Filmmaker Goes Viral With High-End Commercial For Fiancée's Old Car
EAST HOLLYWOOD (CBS LA) -- A filmmaker's hilarious attempt to help sell his fiancée's old car has paid off a little too well.
Max Lanman's Youtube creation, which features the sweeping aerial shots and cinematic voice-over like any TV car commercial, quickly went viral and sent the price for the used Honda skyrocketing into the thousands.
The 1996 Accord, also known as "Greenie," was being offered on eBay for $499. Lanman's comical video details Greenie's 141,000-mile life, his fiancée's odd driving habits, and even the couple's cat in the minute-long drive along the California coast.
"Greenie is a treasure. The original paint is in fantastic shape save for a few cosmetic dings. Drives like a dream. Leather seats are in great condition," according to the eBay auction's notes.
What Lanman may not have been expecting was how much fans of the video were willing to pay for the 21-year old Youtube star. The video has already been viewed nearly four million times and Greenie's original eBay auction exploded with more than a hundred bids sending the price over $150,000.
Believing the auction was a hoax, eBay actually cancelled the sale. After straightening things out with the online auction company, the couple's new auction quickly passed $3,200 after one day online.
"The inspiration to make the ad came while my girlfriend Carrie and I were driving up the coast on Highway 1," Lanman told the BBC. "It dawned on me that it would be really funny to film a car commercial for a really crappy car against such a gorgeous backdrop."
The California filmmaker added that he's amazed by the support and interest their short film has created for Greenie. "It is surreal to think that something that I made with my friends, that two days ago sat on my computer, is now being watched around the world. Thank God for the internet."
Bidders are clearly buying the spoof ad's signature tagline: "Luxury is a state of mind."
As of Thursday, a note in the comments of the YouTube video post stated that eBay also cancelled the second auction set up for the car.