Premiere Gallery
A look inside the night, the crowd, the conversations, and the celebration around Creating Scala.
.jpg)
.jpg)
We secured just over 200 tickets for the premiere, but by the time the night unfolded, nearly 240 people filled the room.
Friends, family, artists, collaborators, and members of Chicago’s creative community came together to celebrate the story behind Scala.
Creating Scala premiered at the 3 Top Lounge at The Salt Shed in Chicago, and it became far more than a film screening. It turned into a celebration of public art, collaboration, craftsmanship, and the people who dedicate years of their lives to creating something meaningful.
The room was packed with energy. Artists Edra Soto and Dan Sullivan were surrounded by family, friends, architects, structural engineers, fabricators, and supporters from across Chicago’s creative community.
My good friend and partner, Steve Larosiliere, who played a huge role in helping bring this project to life, was there as well. Having close friends like Alex, Britton, Dan, Jeremy, and Greg in the room meant a lot to me personally.
If a building can be made,
a large art piece can be made also.
What made the night so powerful was that the audience wasn’t just watching a film. They were witnessing the journey behind an enormous public artwork that took years of planning, engineering, craftsmanship, and trust to bring into existence.
Scala is massive. The scale of it is almost difficult to comprehend until you stand beneath it. Over 17,000 pounds of carved wood, suspended in space, built through countless hours of labor, problem solving, collaboration, and belief in an idea.
Being able to document that process, from early concept conversations to the final installation, was truly tremendous.
A look inside the night, the crowd, the conversations, and the celebration around Creating Scala.
After the screening, Edra Soto and Dan Sullivan took part in a live discussion and audience Q&A surrounding the deeper meaning behind Scala, the construction process, the cultural influence woven throughout the piece, and the sheer complexity of bringing something this ambitious into the world.
The discussion and moderation following the film was led by Lorelei Stewart, Director and Chief Curator of UIC’s Gallery 400. Her conversation with Edra and Dan helped further unpack the scale, vision, and emotional weight behind the sculpture.
Listening to them speak about the work in front of a packed room made the entire experience feel even larger than the film itself. That is what documentary filmmaking can do. It gives people a way to see the process, the pressure, the craft, the relationships, and the belief behind something they may only experience as a finished piece.
As a filmmaker, this project changed me. Creating Scala was an opportunity to document a real piece of history as it was unfolding.
To capture the people behind the work, the obsession with detail, the setbacks, the victories, and the belief that public art still matters. It reminded me that documentaries are not just about recording events. They are about preserving the human energy behind them.
The premiere night was emotional, overwhelming, inspiring, and honestly one of the proudest moments of my career.
Creating Scala was never just about a sculpture. It was about the people willing to build something impossible.
Need a brand film, campaign, documentary, commercial photography, podcast, recurring content system, internal training video, corporate media, or creative plan? Reach out directly and we will figure out the right package.