The Producers Turn Lonely Heart Ad into Short Film Series

In this fast-swiping, instant gratification age of Tinder and Bumble, trying to find love the old-school way - via a personal ad in the paper - seems charmingly out-of-touch, even hopeless. But one lonely heart, Shahram Katozpour, now has a better chance than most, after his ad was plucked off the back page and turned into a short film series.

“May my heart be your shelter and my arms be your home,” runs the ad penned by the 52-year-old, which was spotted by Australian film production company The Producers, on the lookout for the perfect singleton for a new creative collaboration.

After approaching McCann Melbourne for an initial concept, the company went on to produce three films inspired by the native Iranian's search for “a friend and someone I can get to know before love” - each helmed by a different director on its roster - showcasing the distinct sides of Katozpour's personality and his passions.

In Before I Love [top], an homage to poetry and dance, Lou Quill immortalised lines from the original print ad as neon light fixtures, and shot Katozpour dancing, clumsily but sweetly, around them, while Olivier Staub's film noir-esque Find The One [above] compares love to a chess game.

The final film, Share Shahram's Table, [above], celebrates Katozpour's - a chef by trade - love of food. Directed by Mitch Kennedy, the film follows Katozpour pottering from farm to kitchen as he prepares a delicious-looking meal, while spouting such gems as: "To quote the great Nelly Furtado, in the kitchen I am like a bird". Laying the table for two, he then, heartbreakingly, sits down to eat on his own.