‘First Date’ Is a Hit

The third time is definitely a charm for former radio-TV-film student Nick Simotas, whose spot for Pepsi Max aired during this year’s Super Bowl. The ad, “First Date,” earned a top 10 spot in the Doritos “Crash the Super Bowl” competition. Six of the top 10 ads aired during the Super Bowl game.

Each year, Doritos launches a contest, inviting members of the public to create and film an ad featuring Doritos or Pepsi. The ad is then aired during the Super Bowl. Simotas’s previous two attempts failed to make the cut. But this year was different.

“We almost didn’t submit one,” he admits. But at the last minute, he and his partner, Kyle Stafford, changed their minds — filming the spot at the Cantina Lounge, a restaurant located near the Fullerton campus.

Caption: In the ad “First Date,” a couple getting to know each other over dinner — and viewers hear what they are thinking. Click here to see the video.

In the ad, a young man and woman are on their first date and as they await their orders, the viewer hears what’s going on in their minds. When the woman’s Pepsi Max arrives, her date begins to imagine taking the drink for himself.

“Nick was always very focused on the creative aspects of production,” said Shelley Jenkins, lecturer in radio/TV/film. “I had him as a student in my field production class in 2004. He went on to an internship with O Entertainment that same year and currently works on the Comedy Central series ‘Futurama’ as an editor.”

Simotas produced, directed and edited the “First Date” commercial. It was written by Stafford who also portrays the man in the ad.

Feb. 15, 2011