# Mock Celebrity Selfies Dan Rubin's 'Phonies' Mock the Selfie Phenomenon with Celeb Faces By Laura McQuarrie | Published 2014-05-30 | Tech Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/phonies References: [danrubin.tumblr](http://danrubin.tumblr.com/post/87286518591/htc-gave-me-a-new-htc-one-mini-to-play-with-and) & [htc](http://www.htc.com/uk/smartphones/htc-one-m8) With his super fun series of 'Phonies,' Dan Rubin decided to put his own spin on the selfie phenomenon and celebrity obsession by merging street style captures with celebrity faces. As one of the most influential photographers on social media with a following of nearly 750,000 on [Instagram](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/instapocket) and over 34,000 on [Twitter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/createmybanner-1), [HTC](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/smart-shooting-system) set Rubin up with a brand new HTC One mini 2 phone to play with. Creating these Phonies required finding people on Carnaby Street who looked more or less like the celebrity photos of Kim Kardashian, James Franco and Harry Styles on-screen, which Rubin noted was a slight challenge. However, the results are fantastic and the Phonies are pretty funny way to comment on the way selfies have now been ingrained in pop culture. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 6.6/10 - Popularity: 93% | Activity: 96% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Gen Z, Millennial - Top markets: Europe ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Tech](https://www.trendhunter.com/tech) > [Mobile](https://www.trendhunter.com/mobile) ## Key Themes ### What's Driving This Trend - **Celebrity-inspired Street Style:** Creating Phonies by merging street style captures with celebrity faces presents an opportunity to explore the popularity of celebrity-inspired fashion. - **Satirical Commentary on Pop Culture:** The Phonies series offers a disruptive innovation opportunity by using humor and satire to comment on the influence of selfies and celebrity obsession in today's society. - **Artistic Expression Through Digital Manipulation:** The use of digital manipulation techniques to create Phonies showcases the potential for innovative artistic expression and creativity in the realm of photography and visual arts. ### Who This Affects Most - **Fashion and Apparel:** The celebrity-inspired street style trend presents opportunities for fashion brands to create trendy and marketable clothing lines. - **Social Media and Viral Marketing:** The Phonies series demonstrates the potential for leveraging viral marketing strategies and social media platforms to generate brand awareness and engagement. - **Digital Art and Photography:** The artistic expression through digital manipulation trend opens up possibilities for artists and photographers to experiment with new techniques and create visually captivating artworks. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [AI-Generated Selfies](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/dreambooth.md) - [Selfie-Centric Action Figures](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/selfie-series.md) - [Imperfect Photography Celebrations](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/nonnas-cam.md) - [Revived Modular Photo Booths](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/frames-booth.md) - [Imaginative Photo-Editing AI Tools](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/youniverse.md) - [Creative Photo Communities](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/hipstamatic.md) - [Celebrity Social Feeds](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/bereal-1.md) - [Photography-Centric Smartphones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/ax-phone.md) - [Frameable Device Screenshots](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/framous.md)