You must surely have seen it during your movie outs at one of the QFX halls. It feels like ages since we shot it. But notes of appreciation have been received from lots of people. So, what really happened behind the scenes? Let’s find out from an eye witness.

When I was assigned to assist the shoot for the ECS ad, I jumped a feet high with excitement. The whole ad was planned to be shot in one day which suggested a hectic schedule as there were five different locations (each to represent different publications of ECS media and one as a summary) for a 30-second advertisement. Teenz was only in its conceptual phase back then. And Life and Times had not even been formulated. Director Murray Kerr, a British Filmmaker of the SickCity fame had conceived the project. The way it was planned was to move through the covers, with the character (model for the Ad, Sabona Limbu) somehow featured on each cover, yet she is reading a copy of the previous magazine featured each time, pulled out from the previous shot.

So, all the crew members met on a chilly December day at Nepix Studio, Tripureshwor and started discussing the first shot while the model got into her glamorous dress and makeup. The first shot was for Living magazine, where the model wore a short cocktail dress and walked with poise while a large fan was blowing in her direction making her hair fly away like we see in Hollywood movies! The whole thing looked so interestingly spectacular. After a few flings and hair swings and pouts, the shoot for the first location was wrapped up.

We then proceeded to the second location, Chaitanya Spa where we would be shooting for Healthy Life. The theme there was Sabona enjoying the warm Jacuzzi and relating to its health benefits. It was mid-afternoon by the time we got over this shot and we headed for lunch. We discussed the remaining two locations and shots and talked about what could be the best approach. After a satiated lunch, we left for the next location which was for a summary of all the publications. This took place in a Stationery shop where all the magazines from ECS Media were available. This was the most important part of the whole ad so we shot it with great care. After this was done, we waited for the sunset which was a must for our next shot. Murray was very serious about his job. Once he wanted something, he would stick to it and try to do his best! It was at an old temple in Tripureshowr and this time for ECS NEPAL. There were background elements required for this shot so we hunted for small girls who knew how to dance in order to showcase the cultural side of Nepal.

We finally found some who danced splendidly! After having practiced the shot more than twenty times, the lighting was perfect and we all rushed to get it right and after the director shouted the words “ Cut” everyone had big smiles spread across their faces.
It was dark by the time we reached our second last location. All tired and worn out at Tamarind; Jhamel, over a cup of coffee, we discussed the next shot and got ready for it. This was for Fr!day and it had all the spark and entertainment needed for a tabloid. The day came to an end and we were all happy and satisfied with our work completed!

After a month or so, when I was chomping off my popcorns in one of the halls of QFX, I saw the ECS ad. At first I couldn’t tell if it was the same one. It all looked so different yet glamorous.
To watch the corporate ad,
visit www.living.com.np