CSU Premieres Original Television Series

An example of what goes on at our neighborhood university. Did you know that they shot a TV program pilot right on campus? This is what this article from The Citizen is about:

At 7pm in the Breakey Theatre—located in Douglass Hall—Dr. Christine List, chairperson of the department of English, Communications, Media Arts & Theatre took the stage and introduced the entire cast and crew as well as several graduates who returned to the campus just to see the pilot. Welcoming the crowd, List addressed the audience who was anxious to see what “The Chill” was all about.

“The Chill” is a story about a college student named Khrys Carter (DeShawn Smith) who leaves Mississippi and moves to Chicago with his half-brother Toni (Roderick Haygood). The pilot revolves around Khrys getting adjusted to his new life. He makes several new friends and also begins to take interest in a girl named Tiffany (Tessa Harp), whose boyfriend Marcus (Astin Simmons) becomes a constant source of trouble for Khrys.

The 30 minute episode was a crowd-pleaser from start to finish and ended with a dramatic cliffhanger that made the audience go wild with applause.

“The Chill” started off as a class project for the Producing for Film and Television course, taught by Dr. List. The project ultimately took 2 semesters to complete. According to Dr. List, she and students spent the first semester in pre-production and the second semester in post-production. The entire pilot was shot on Chicago State University’s campus.

“This is a beautiful campus,” the series’ director Darren Davidson said. “The script and the campus just coincided. You really get to appreciate how beautiful this campus is when you’re looking for shots and angles.”

This Citizen article was posted on May 3rd on their website.