The Denni Farm is picked for site
National commercial filmed in Sunman
Wanda English Burnett - Editor

The beautiful rolling countryside many residents of Ripley County take for granted will be seen by thousands when a new Toyota commercial airs. The exact date it will be aired is not yet known, but it is projected to be shown some time in January of 2005.

The picturesque rolling hills of the Wilbur Denni farm at Sunman was the setting, representing what Indiana has to offer the tourism industry.

Dottie Denni, who still lives in the homestead house on the Denni farm, owns the sprawling 107 acres that caught the eye of producers as they drove the state looking for the picture perfect setting for their newest commercial to showcase Toyota.

Just off the interstate, the Denni farm had everything needed - a curving, rolling drive, red barns and a big white farmhouse. "This is an original log house that's been covered," Mrs. Denni noted as she shared the fact that the house and farm had been in her husband's family for generations.

" A lot of Denni's have lived here," she laughed as she recalled coming there with her husband Wilbur, who has now been deceased for 16 years. "He would be so proud of what has happened," she said with tears close. She was referring to the farm being chosen for the site of a national commercial.

The fall day began like any other for Mrs. Denni, but when she returned home and found an envelope attached to her door, that's when things would change.

"There was a note inside this envelope telling me they would like my permission and assistance to film a Toyota commercial on my farm," Mrs. Denni remembered.

Mrs. Denni contacted the number on the note, and the ball began rolling. "They told me they would need a combine, tractor, and wagon. She noted that since she rents the ground out, she needed to borrow a combine. She would get that from Joe Schwegman, who farms for her now.

On November 3, there was a lot of excitement on the Denni farm as a production crew rolled in about 5:30 a.m., according to Mrs. Denni. She said there were about 35 people with the group, along with local police who would block off the road at the time needed.

An RV and equipment truck from Hollywood, CA, was brought in and set up on Mrs. Denni's daughter's

The Denni's have seen a lot of activity over the years on the farm raising dairy cattle to chickens. They also had a grain operation over the years and still rent the property out to be farmed.

Mrs. Denni explained that the commercial is supposed to show five different areas, depicting the five states where Toyota plants are located. Her farm will showcase Indiana's part, then there is a horse farm in Kentucky that will be shown, and she wasn't sure what the setting was, but filming would also take place in West Virginia, Texas, and California. "The scene for the commercial is supposed to start at the Golden Gate Bridge in California and our farm is somewhere in the middle," she noted. "Toyota's Avalon is supposed to be showcased, as those driving one would leisurely drive through the countryside," she said.

Things changed many times while the filming was taking place at the Denni's and she said "don't hold me to the description of the rest of the commercial because it could change too."

This much excitement doesn't usually take place in farm life and when Mrs. Denni's friends at the YMCA tell her she's a celebrity, she proudly says, "No, I'm not the celebrity, my farm is!"

Mrs. Denni works part time at the Indian Lakes Golf Course and enjoys daily workouts at the Batesville YMCA, but her life will never be the same. The pride she feels is shared with the memories of her husband. "This farm was his love," she concluded.

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Mrs. Dottie Denni poses beside the Hoosier Homestead sign at the Denni farm near Sunman. The big white house in the background was an original log home that has been remodeled.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

The winding road leading to the Denni farm, along with the red barns on the left and big white buildings on the right, caught the eye of film makers and the farm became the scene of a national commercial for Toyota.