Merokean wins Super Bowl commercial contest

As a lifelong Giants fan, Zachary Borst, of Merrick, watched intently on Sunday as his beloved Giants took on the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI. But Borst had even more incentive to watch the Super Bowl than most –– a commercial that he wrote, filmed and produced will air during the game.

Borst, 26, a 2003 graduate of Calhoun High School in North Merrick, won a Chevrolet advertising contest, earning him the grand prize of $25,000 and the opportunity to see his commercial air during one of the most-watched television programs in the country. "It's overwhelming, it's exciting, it's shocking, it's humbling –– it's all of those things rolled into one,” Borst said.

Borst filmed the commercial in September in a mere four hours, in what he said was a very hectic day. Borst said he woke up at 4 a.m., took a train from Floral Park to Penn Station, hopped on a train to Newark, and took a monorail to Avis Rental Car to pick up a yellow Chevrolet Camaro. He then drove through New Jersey and Manhattan, picked up actors in Brooklyn and Astoria, and ended up in Floral Park, where he filmed the commercial. After four hours of filming, he reversed the trip. "It was fun,” Borst said. “I got to drive that car. I don't think I'll ever get to drive that car again in my life."

After graduating from the City College of New York’s writing and directing program in 2010, Borst, an aspiring filmmaker, said he did a lot of freelance work, including work on a couple of low-budget documentaries. About a year ago, he said he learned of Internet commercial contests, and began entering them regularly, to great success. He won a couple of contests, and finished in third place in a scriptwriting competition held by Chevrolet, which he said helped get him on Chevrolet’s radar. “I've been able to stay creative by writing and directing and editing, and it pays my bills,” he said.

After filming his commercial, Borst spent weeks editing it, modifying the color and sound, and trying to make it as perfect as he could. "I went through so many versions of it,” he said.