In the spring of 2023, it came to my attention that SCAD was looking to hear ideas from students on what a new food series in Atlanta could look like. I immediately reached out to one of my closest friends and collaborators, Wesley Giang, asking him to develop a pitch with me. While I had some experience with producing and directing my own mini food series in my small town, I hadn't been in Atlanta for long, and I felt that I needed to work with one of the biggest foodies I know. That was one of the best decisions I made during my time at SCAD.

In the spirit of collaboration, each pitch group teamed up with interior design students to form a plan for the on-campus kitchen set. Together, we gave our pitches to the school presidents' office with the hope that our ideas would come to fruition.

The summer after our original pitch, I joined the chefATL pre-production class. Students joined the class Zoom from various parts of the country (and even France!) to combine the best parts of our pitches and turn it into something tangible.

Before shooting the first episode of season one, we developed and filmed a proof of concept. Despite being home for the summer, I flew back to Atlanta so I could be part of the production. While this episode never aired, it was a big step toward forming the structure of this ambitious docuseries. 

Drafting a "script" for an unscripted series is a challenging task that involves a lot of research on the talent. As a story producer, I helped solidify the structure of chefATL and provide a framework for the following episodes. 

This series was my first as a script supervisor. I learned how to line a script, keep an eye out for continuity errors, and take notes that would help the editor during post-production.