By Danny Vasquez
Acting as host to the film industry, a few commercials and public service announcements were filmed at various locations across the campus to raise money to compensate for the budget cuts.
A few areas that were highlighted were the Weingart Stadium, the G3 auditorium and the swim stadium. Last Wednesday, J.G. Wentworth filmed an internet commercial between the G1 administration building and the and G3 auditorium. The commercial took two days to film.
The most popular place to film was Weingart Stadium, where several celebrity athletes have stepped onto the Husky turf. David Beckham used Weingart Stadium to film a commercial for the summer Olympics last Tuesday. Beckham also gave the athletic department a monetary donation. Burnett said that this is not uncommon, as producers have given out donations to the athletic department, on top of paying the rental fee.
Not only is the campus used to promote sports and other commercials, but they’re also used for awareness of important causes and health-related issues. Shriner Hospital, a children’s hospital, filmed in the aquatic stadium. “They were filming children with devastating diseases and injures who later became athletes. They’re filming a girl who had a spinal injury that became a diver,” Burnett said.
Celebrity athletes Clay Matthew, Demarcus Ware and Walter West filmed a public service announcement for prostate cancer awareness in Weingart Stadium.
Event coordinator Ernest Burnett contacted studios to pitch East Los Angeles College as a filming location by displaying pictures of the campus.
Producers must pay a rental fee to use the campus. Burnett said that every little bit of money coming in from the commercials helps. “All we can do is raise revenue for the budget cuts,” Burnett said.
Burnett said that he tries to schedule filming when class is not in session, so that students are not disrupted during class. “My role is to help the students. I market the school. You kind of have to get the word out that ELAC has a beautiful campus, and with its budget shortfall, it’s a good combination, so we can help the students and faculty,” Burnett said.
Burnett said that ELAC is a beautiful school, and with the recent commercials being filmed on campus, students have something to be proud about. “I want students to take pride in their school; it’s a great school,” Burnett said.
