Ucluelet business got a welcome boost this week from the commercial industry as camera crews came to town to film a Viagra commercial.
That's an influx of 50-plus camera, grip and director types for several days.
Departing out of the Ucluelet fuel dock, the crews captured the thrill of a man's return from the sea to the arms of his wife.
Tammy Shymko is the Tofinobased location scout who helped make it happen. For confidentiality reasons, she would not personally confirm the topic of the commercial.
Ucluelet was chosen "basically, because it has the character of an old-school, still-working Alaskan fishing village," Shymko said.
"It's been great, it's been awesome - it's always a pleasure being here," she said.
Formerly a Squamish-based location scout, Shymko has been helping commercial and movie crews film on the West Coast since she moved here.
She worked on Superman and Twilight, both which shot film in Ucluelet.
It's not the first time Ucluelet has been the backdrop for manlyman commercials. Gillette razors shot a commercial here.
"Fishermen are sellable items on big boats .. they have to have a big boat catching something - and that's Ukee's thing," she said.
The picturesque Long Beach Golf Course has also been the site of commercial work.
The results are a shot in the arm for business here.
The crew took as many rooms as they could get at the Black Rock (since there was a wedding in town), with overflow staying at several sites in town.
Solidarity Snacks got the catering contract, and countless coffee drinkers have wafted in and out of local coffee joints.
Ukee Rentals, Jamie's and Subtidal Adventures got some work, and even the Co-op got hundreds of bucks worth of craft service business each day, Shymko said.
editor@westerlynews.ca