Facebook built an entire 'Game of Thrones'-themed kingdom for its employee holiday party, complete with White Walkers, swords and archery (FB)

[ad_1]

robert baratheon drinking

  • Facebook’s annual holiday party for employees was “Game of Thrones”-themed in 2019.
  • The lavish event took place over two days at Pier 8o on the waterfront in San Francisco, California.
  • It comes after another tough year for Facebook, including increased regulatory scrutiny and a $5 billion FTC fine.
  • The glitzy party included White Walkers, a marching band, an archery course, and a feasting call.
  • Keep reading to see employees’ photos from inside the exclusive event.
  • Click here for more BI Prime stories.

Winter is coming, and Facebook employees are stoked.

Earlier this month, employees of the California social networking giant let their hair down in an extravagant end-of-year “Game of Themes”-themed holiday party — complete with luxurious medieval decorations, White Walkers, archery, and a larger-than-life iron throne. 

It’s been another rocky year for Facebook. Still smarting from scandals like Cambridge Analytica, the company has attempted to repair user trust and make big changes in 2019 — but has been beset by further challenges over the last 12 months, including a $5 billion fine from the FTC, intense regulatory and political scrutiny over its Libra digital currency plans, fierce debate over the role of fact-checking in political advertising, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg being hauled in front of Congress for a second time.

The $564 billion company decided to end the year with a bang, and threw an ostentatious Westerosi bash for its employees in the Bay Area at Pier 80 in the Dogpatch neighbourhood of San Francisco. It took place across two nights, December 6 and 7.

Facebook has a taste for extravagant employee parties. In 2018, it create a giant winter village in San Francisco for its employees, complete with chainsaw ice-sculpting and frolicking elves, as Business Insider first reported at the time.

The 2019 party encompassed all of Facebook’s main apps and services — Instagram, WhatsApp, Oculus, Messenger, and Facebook itself — and on-brand employees were quick to post photos of the festivities on social media, offering a sneak peak inside the exclusive event. Check it out:

The venue was transformed into the kingdom of “Winterbook,” complete with with the “Courtyard Well” (a bar), “Hall of Facebook” (a Braavos-themed photo op), and “Healers Point” (the first-aid centre).

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B5w2WrBnDTq/embed
Width: 540px

 

An epic-scale Iron Throne sat pride-of-place at the centre of a bar, and dragon skulls decorated the tables. (Swipe or click through the photos for more images.)

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B6D9dhqg7So/embed
Width: 540px

 

The space was festooned with (non-lethal) props, and was designed to look like castle halls — complete with battlements.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B516_KVHKiu/embed
Width: 540px

 

The official theme name was “Winter Realm.” A company spokesperson said they didn’t know why Facebook settled on the apocalyptic fantasy aesthetic.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B5znOUhFOO0/embed
Width: 540px

 

Custom green-screen photo booths gave employees the option to ascend the Wall in the icy North.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B50pXbAhJ3u/embed
Width: 540px

 

And Arya-inspired engineers could try their hand at archery.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B5zisipnL-5/embed
Width: 540px

 

There was even a hog roast (though it doesn’t appear to be real, unfortunately).

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B5yPXz1H8e9/embed
Width: 540px

 

Plenty of actors were about to add to the feudal ambience.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B50bbahJT87/embed
Width: 540px

 

There were feasting tables, a mockup medieval village, and tons of good food.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B5zgr4dH_1N/embed
Width: 540px

 

Some employees went all-out with their outfits.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B5yKcRgHtWN/embed
Width: 540px

 

White Walkers were on hand to provide the party with a more ominous air, and a marching band performed “Rains of Castamere.”

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B51VmAmhEzr/embed
Width: 540px

 

Here’s another look at the feasting tables.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B5zJkdzn3Df/embed
Width: 540px

 

Passageways were decked out to look like direwolves and White Walkers.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B6AUg-FB7_P/embed
Width: 540px

 

And it was all topped off with the essential “Game of Thrones” ingredient — dragons. Well, sort of.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B532se8hYMp/embed
Width: 540px

 

One thing that was rather less authentically Westerosi? A raging DJ dance party in the great hall.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B51pkvoB51_/embed
Width: 540px

 

One more thing…

Do you work at Facebook? Contact this reporter via encrypted messaging app Signal at (+1) 650-636-6268 using a non-work device, email at rprice@businessinsider.com, Telegram or WeChat at robaeprice, or Twitter DM at @robaeprice. (PR pitches by email only, please.)



[ad_2]