{"id":1043165,"date":"2026-09-04T16:06:28","date_gmt":"2026-09-04T16:06:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/1043165\/"},"modified":"2026-09-04T16:06:28","modified_gmt":"2026-09-04T16:06:28","slug":"from-the-block-to-the-big-screen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/1043165\/","title":{"rendered":"From the block to the big screen"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s easy to generalize what makes Chicago\u2019s theater and film scenes unique: Steppenwolf-style ensemble mentality, City of Big Shoulders work ethic, midwestern authenticity over everything. It\u2019s another thing to prove it, tucked away and toiling on a quiet block in Bowmanville, with an improbably self-funded and locally crewed indie rom-com.\u00a0<\/p>\n

After 25 years in theater, playwright Hallie Palladino went back to school for screenwriting during the pandemic and began dabbling at A Red Orchid Theatre\u2019s Studio, a burgeoning open arts forum for developing new work. Her vision: a Gen X rom-com set at a quintessential Chicago block party. The Studio crew loved it, and she completed a draft in December 2025.<\/p>\n

Block Party\u2019s IMDb<\/a> logline reads, \u201cReturning to Chicago for his father\u2019s funeral, Julian alienates the tight-knit block his dad once captained\u2014then impulsively agrees to run the annual party the very next day, convinced it\u2019s his best shot at winning back his first love.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Palladino describes it as a popcorn rom-com with indie quirks, where substantive storytelling coexists with silliness.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve spent decades in theater trying to get my work in front of audiences,\u201d she says. \u201cI realized that I\u2019m 46 years old. I want to see if we can do this.\u201d With her husband, Rocco, she founded Hiffclanger Productions<\/a> with the plan to self-finance their feature debut, leveraging the state\u2019s 35 percent tax credit<\/a>. \u201cThis is a moon shot for us,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

As a SAG-AFTRA film in the Ultra Low Budget category, Block Party\u2019s budget could not exceed $300,000. The producing team decided on a \u201cmost favored nations\u201d structure for paying cast and crew, meaning everyone on the film\u2014from the director to the production assistants\u2014earned the SAG day rate of about $250. This equitable approach made it easier to sign on crew members, and a scrappy team coalesced around the project, feeding off Palladino\u2019s tenacity.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The assembly of cast and crew brings to mind a line from 2001\u2019s Ocean\u2019s Eleven: \u201cYou\u2019re gonna need a crew as nuts as you are.\u201d I had a chance to see these creatives in action during a couple of set visits in July.<\/p>\n

An inexhaustive intro:<\/strong><\/p>\n

The unlikely romantic lead<\/strong>
Actor Lawrence \u201cLarry\u201d Grimm<\/p>\n

One of Red Orchid\u2019s founding ensemble members, Grimm created the Studio in 2023. \u201cI didn\u2019t think I would be a lead in a film, let alone a rom-com, ever,\u201d says the 58-year-old, who plans his own block\u2019s annual party.<\/p>\n

The emotional architect<\/strong>
Director John Mossman<\/p>\n

Palladino met Mossman through his creative partner (and Block Party producer) Jennifer Jelsema. A screening of their summertime comedy Line Cooks (release date forthcoming) sealed the deal. Mossman came to film and theater young as a means of \u201cfinding flow and being mentally at rest,\u201d and in 1998, he cofounded the Artistic Home.<\/p>\n

The guidance counselor<\/strong>
Producer Grace Hahn<\/p>\n

A film production veteran, Hahn is eager to pass along her knowledge about how \u201cindie film is like bedlam in great and terrible ways.\u201d Weekly meetings with Palladino evolved into a role focused on budgets, connections (need a guy for traffic barricades?), personnel, and most importantly, cheerleading.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The aesthetic eye<\/strong>
Director of photography Herman Asph<\/p>\n

The Line Cooks alum\u2019s 15-plus years in the industry were instrumental in procuring crew and equipment to make this feel like a multimillion-dollar film. A major coup: He snagged a 27-foot-long Technocrane in a trade with Midwest Camera Car, making shots of waterslide drops and water balloon fights look slick.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The immersive artist<\/strong>
Production designer Lola Selby<\/p>\n

This is the Northwestern University film school grad\u2019s second feature after Line Cooks. Her resourceful team pulled set pieces from neighbors, small businesses, and even a fire sale by recently wrapped The Chi. She credits Palladino\u2019s hustle for lucky scores including a kayak, a cotton candy machine, and a motorcycle.<\/p>\n

The titular block<\/strong>
Exterior set: 2100 block of W. Summerdale Street<\/p>\n

\u201cUnofficial mayor of Bowmanville\u201d Jeff Graves delivered Palladino her outdoor set, as the block party planner easily built street-wide consensus. They rented homes; neighbors, kids, and dogs were excited extras. What amazed the Chicago Film Office? Zero complaints were filed, because everyone had a blast.<\/p>\n

\"\"Credit: Asher B. Gudsen<\/p>\n

Paskal Rudnicke Casting, who famously cast The Bear, lined up a who\u2019s who of theater standouts, many of whom played roles in early Studio and SAG script readings. My question was, what does it look like for theater people to make a movie?\u00a0<\/p>\n

Actress Shariba Rivers, fresh off The Chi, says she learned that a full-throated stage voice isn\u2019t needed when you\u2019re miked up. She felt the \u201camazing chaos\u201d of a theater camp, with people off their phones, riffing on lines, and breaking into song. Grace Steckler, playing Grimm\u2019s daughter in her first film outing, learned to change her \u201crobot settings\u201d from theater to film and act with built-in pauses, critical to the edit.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In film, \u201cwe only speak when we fail to communicate,\u201d says Mossman, who\u2019s always killing darlings in favor of visual representation. As a director, he prefers actors with a strong point of view. Film needs reactions to advance the story; in theater, they risk pulling focus. Asph guides theater actors toward more contained, subtle movement, since not hitting your mark means you\u2019ll fall out of focus. He doesn\u2019t forget the vulnerability of a camera in an actor\u2019s face, and prioritizes empathy and positive feedback to build trust.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Witnessing lengthy coverage and setups showed Palladino why they shot just five pages a day. Time ticks away. So does the sun. Filmmaking requires the director to be both \u201cthe foreman of a barn raising that has to be done by sundown . . . and also the village shaman,\u201d Mossman says with a laugh. In one example of ritualistic team building, he and Asph let the cast bombard them with water balloons\u2014a trial by water, if you will. The hardest lesson to learn? Leave room for playfulness, those happy accidents that have people belly laughing or brought to tears.<\/p>\n

\"\"Beth Lacke and Lawrence Grimm as Melissa and Julian, the central pair in the rom-com
Credit: Asher B. Gudsen<\/p>\n

The Block Party shoot was a master class in MacGyver-style problem solving and the maxim that \u201cconstraints breed creativity.\u201d Asph had to contend with Grimm\u2019s towering 6\u20194\u201d height and what that meant for filming, given the director of photography himself was . . . not 6\u20194\u201d. \u201cCamera language\u201d in mind, Asph pulled a taller teammate to shoot Grimm straight-on earlier in the story to reinforce the character\u2019s unlikability. As he moved along his emotional arc, camera operation flipped to Asph, now viewing him heroically from below. Over in props, Palladino marveled at a wheel of Brie made out of 20 pounds of butter and the unmeltable mashed potato ice cream for the extras.<\/p>\n

Murphy\u2019s Law happens, of course, but the show goes on in sickness, health, and Canadian wildfires when you\u2019re in it for the love of the game (they pivoted indoors to keep everyone safe). For an intimate scene in the main character\u2019s childhood bedroom, Selby\u2019s team painstakingly created a transportive 1996 time capsule. \u201cWith theater people, the physical experience of the set becomes quite important versus painting frame for frame,\u201d Selby says. The credibility of the set led Grimm to comment, \u201cI don\u2019t have to act in that bedroom,\u201d making the long night worth it.<\/p>\n

The night shoot of the pivotal dance party exemplified beauty in constraints, thanks to Selby\u2019s eclectic toolbox of accumulated art supplies. They danced sans music given the late hour, with just a thumping backbeat, creating a blissfully surreal backdrop for the main character to find love, Grimm reminisces. \u201cArt, music, visuals, all the sensory elements come together in a really magical moment.\u201d Everyone held their breath watching.<\/p>\n

\n

Why not now, for a wave of investment in John Hughesian, homegrown Chicagoland films?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

I had the opportunity to visit the Block Party set twice, once for the block-wide water balloon fight and again on the last day for the feel-good final shots. It\u2019s hard to play it cool on a film set while hearing classic phrases like \u201caction\u201d and \u201ccut\u201d and sitting glued to the monitor thinking, \u201cI\u2019m really in video village!\u201d I quickly realized the zippy pacing of Apple TV\u2019s The Studio is decidedly not true to life, given the amount of waiting filmmaking requires. Airplanes have to pass (not to mention trains and barking dogs), crane choreography must be practiced, extras must be wrangled, and light must be harnessed. But it was perfect\u2014the neighborhood extras were buzzing, and I eagerly listened to their debates about outfit changes and film continuity.<\/p>\n

Walking into Palladino\u2019s house on wrap day, I nearly entered a crucial shoot in her backyard, and the immersion of it all felt thrilling. Once firmly ensconced in that day\u2019s garage video village, I felt the tension of a golden hour shoot (\u201cWe\u2019re chasing the sun!\u201d) punctuated by a bug spray run by Rocco, Selby strategically rearranging plants for a more balanced composition, and Grimm demonstrating his lauded range with a surplus of nuanced takes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mossman tells me he dissociates into a flow state on film sets, and I felt it, sitting behind his heady mix of precision (diagrams, binders, etc.) and embodied absorption in the performances. The scene: Grimm\u2019s character, Julian, is hugging his daughter, who is wearing Julian\u2019s estranged father\u2019s jacket, then sees his departed father anew in his mind\u2019s eye. And suddenly, a crisis. Steckler\u2019s character was not wearing the jacket throughout the scene, compromising the continuity and eventual catharsis. While Mossman was saddled with \u201cmomentary despair,\u201d I watched every crew member within earshot step up, share ideas, and improvise a path forward that made the jacket\u2019s symbolic journey make sense. Tears and fist pumps followed those final takes, most enthusiastically from Mossman and Palladino.<\/p>\n

Postproduction begins: editor\u2019s cut from Journeywork Entertainment, director\u2019s cut from Mossman, and then producer input prior to locking the picture for scoring. Palladino\u2019s goal is to hit spring submission deadlines for major festivals. Meanwhile, she and Rocco are boning up on music licensing and film distribution.<\/p>\n

In today\u2019s relatively bleak landscape that favors the distributors, they\u2019ll try to get on streamers, but they\u2019ll also explore creative models where they retain the theatrical rights and use Palladino\u2019s producer hat to put up screenings at independent cinemas around Chicago and the midwest. She hopes to host a screening for the Summerdale block by late spring or early summer.<\/p>\n

\"\"From right: Director of photography Herman Asph films Lawrence Grimm and Kelli Simpkins on an interior set, with lighting by Eon Mora and production design by Lola Selby and Ian Machuca.
Credit: Asher B. Gudsen<\/p>\n

People are hungry to find their artistic voice with others, Grimm says, and everyone I spoke with remarked on the significance of a production made about Chicago, by Chicago, and for Chicago. Why not now, for a wave of investment in John Hughesian, homegrown Chicagoland films? The key might just be welcoming places like Orchid Studio, where \u201chaving a fleshed out resume and tons of experience doesn\u2019t have to be the calling card to inclusion,\u201d Grimm says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Both Palladinos are already dreaming up ways Hiffclanger Productions can champion the projects of their growing filmmaking tribe\u2014their screenwriting-curious daughter and cast member Serena included. First, though, maybe a two-hander play in a single room. Something more producible, Hallie says with a laugh.<\/p>\n

Reader Recommends: FILM & TV<\/p>\n

Our critics review the best on the big and small screens and in the media.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Review:\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tLate Fame is a surprisingly warm satire, held down by all-timer performances.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tAugust 18, 2026August 18, 2026\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Review:\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tThe End of Oak Street is a referential, personal, and balanced adventure film from David Robert Mitchell.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tAugust 14, 2026August 14, 2026\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Review:\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tIn Tony, director Matt Johnson smartly depicts a snapshot of the life of Anthony Bourdain.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tAugust 13, 2026August 13, 2026\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Review:\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tJane Schoenbrun\u2019s latest is a surprisingly hopeful metacommentary.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tAugust 13, 2026August 13, 2026\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Review:\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tElliot Tuttle\u2019s Blue Film is explicitly about seeing and being seen.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tAugust 6, 2026\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Review:\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tIan Bell\u2019s WTO\/99 speaks to our nebulous future.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tAugust 5, 2026August 5, 2026\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s easy to generalize what makes Chicago\u2019s theater and film scenes unique: Steppenwolf-style ensemble mentality, City of Big…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1043166,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5124],"tags":[960,415686,5386,1818,144436,417719,415687],"class_list":["post-1043165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-chicago","tag-chicago","tag-fallarts2026","tag-il","tag-illinois","tag-indie-film","tag-local-filmmaking","tag-vol-55-no-20"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/117213635586914506","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1043165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1043165"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1043165\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1043166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1043165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1043165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1043165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}