That’s WINDIE City, not RAINY!

Almost sure Danny is actually sleeping here after writing all night; might be the only chance he gets!

As you may know, this weekend is the Windie City Shootout, otherwise known as the Chicago 72-Hour Film Race.  The title pretty much sums up the competition:  last night at 8 pm we got some instructions and then the clock started ticking.  By Monday evening, we have to write, shoot, edit and produce and deliver a short film.

That’s a tight time frame and we were up writing most of the night so that we could shoot all day today.  But the best laid plans are no match for Chicago weather.  Note to aspiring filmmakers: if you’re shooting in Chicago in the summer (or fall, winter or spring), have a back-up plan.

We didn’t.  We were totally committed to the frankly very cool script that Don Thacker and Danny Giovannini (looks like we brought him on board just in time) cranked out in the middle of the night.  So when the rain started falling and the wind started whipping and it became clear that we were not going to be filming all of those critical outdoor scenes on Day 1, we had to do some fast shuffling.  The upside is that we may all catch a few hours of sleep this evening.  The downside is…tomorrow.

Director Don Thacker and Producer Emma Vandervest plot to turn a two-day shoot into a one-day shoot without giving up any cool content.

But it will work out.  Wait and see.  This is going to be an amazing film, and if I can keep my eyes open tomorrow evening, I’ll check back in and let you know how it’s going.