[2] The project was born of PIlieva's collection of photographs of herself and husband cinematographer Andre Lascaris kissing over the years of their relationship.
[3] It inspired the idea of capturing first kisses on film, and the idea came to life when Pilieva's friend Melissa Coker, the fashion designer behind WREN, reached out about doing a film short to promote her Fall 2014 collection.
[3] Pilieva recruited 20 single friends, dressed in WREN, to meet and kiss for the first time on set as five cameras rolled continuously.
[3] Launched online on March 11, 2014, the three-and-a-half-minute short film went viral[4] and as of May 17, 2014, had 59 million views.
Some backlash emerged when viewers learned the film was a clothing ad, although the company was mentioned in the opening and closing credits.