Love Shahram: Love Shahram - Before I Love

Finding true love is no easy task. But with a team of filmmakers and producers behind you, how can you fail? At least that's the hope of one lonely Australian man whose personal ad was given the professional treatment. At The Producers we were looking for a creative promotional campaign to showcase the diverse talent of our directors. McCann Melbourne came up with the idea of taking one ordinary personal ad and turning into a suite of very different films.

Shahram Katozpour, a 52-year-old chef who lives in Melbourne, placed a simple, sappy ad in the paper. “May my heart be your shelter and my arms be your home,” it began. Originally from Iran, previously engaged but never married, he was looking for “a friend and someone I can get to know before love.”

We produced three films each directed by a different The Producers talent and showcasing a different side of Shahram’s personality. In “Before I Love,” (above) Lou Quill presents a neon-studded dance anthem written around the copy of his original ad. He reads poetry--not just on the beach but in it--and dances inelegantly but sincerely.

Mitch Kennedy’s “Share Shahram’s Table” lets the bachelor show off his skills in the kitchen and as a linguist. He narrates the ironically melodramatic spot in his native Farsi (he can speak fluent Japanese, too) while whipping up a beautiful meal for two--that he eats alone

“Find the One” from Olivier Staub is a black-and-white noir that compares love to chess, another passion of Shahram’s.