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National car ad will show familiar places Photo by Jim Craven A film crew on a boom truck keeps pace with a Nissan van Thursday on Queen Anne Avenue in Medford. The crew, from OneSuch Films of Los Angeles, shot portions of Nissan's 1998-99 national ad campaign in the neighborhoods around Roosevelt Elementary School and on school grounds. Valley streets, kids get into the act By JULIE SWENSEN Next time you see a Nissan commercial, take your eyes off the car and watch the scenery -- you could be seeing parts of Medford. A film crew of about 40 people was in town Thursday filming a commercial for Nissan's 1998-99 national advertising campaign. OneSuch Films, based in Los Angeles, came to the Rogue Valley to shoot film near Queen Anne Avenue, in and around Roosevelt School and on Dead Indian Memorial Road near Ashland. Not only will the commercial bring Rogue Valley sights some fame, but some Roosevelt schoolchildren could be on TV, too. Principal Ginny Hicks said the camera crew filmed schoolchildren on the playground during recess, and the director was telling them to swing and jump rope. While the commercial may show the kids, it won't show parked cars. The crew had obtained a permit from the city manager's office to use the street, and had distributed fliers to neighbors asking that they not park along the entire length of Queen Anne Avenue and parts of Academy Place and Reddy, Euclid and Lindley avenues for the crew's safety. Roosevelt School, which doesn't have a parking lot, was paid $1,000 for its help. Hicks said that while a couple of people grumbled about the lack of parking, most everybody thought it was interesting and wonderful that the school was getting the opportunity. "A little bit of inconvenience was well worth it. It was well worth $1,000," the principal said. The crew also paid for a substitute so a school employee could help with the kids during filming. They paid a neighbor $50 to set up picnic tables in the driveway for lunch, said Hicks, who added that location manager Lenny Neimark volunteered to talk to the kids about video production and careers. In addition, the camera crew picked up the cost of Medford police officers providing traffic control during takes. A producer for OneSuch Films said the company discovered Medford by starting at the state Film and Video Office (which markets film locations in Oregon), and then used a location scout. Medford provided the grassy and mountainous areas that were needed to do the job, he said. Kaja Zaloudek, program manager for the Film and Video Office, said companies and ad agencies contact the office about scenery they're looking for, such as a road winding along a river. The office then sends them photos. Zaloudek said she didn't know of any future plans for filming in the Rogue Valley. OneSuch Films will be filming in the area through Nov. 12, said a crew member, who didn't know when the commercials would air. Other areas being filmed are Jacksonville, Kirtland Road and Highways 66, 140 and 238. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford, Oregon USA