Cameras blanket Naperville for a day
To even the most intense observer of Naperville, Wednesday might appear no different from any other day. But it's likely to be the most documented day in the city's history.
Armed with a variety of cameras - from professional grade to smartphone - the 17 members of the Naperville Community Television Channel staff will spend 24 straight hours recording the activities of the city's residents and workforce for a film to mark the station's 25th anniversary.
Inspired by famed director Ridley Scott's "Life in a Day," the documentary project aims to show the regular routines of living, working or just spending time in Naperville.
Starting at midnight and ending at 11:59 p.m., the channel's staff members will deploy across the city in an attempt to capture as much of the day as they can to highlight the city's cornucopia of characters. NCTV-17 Executive Director Liz Spencer said the documentary will showcase the city's variety.
"You're going to see us out at Naperville North as they present 'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.' There's a ribbon cutting somewhere, and we'll be there. We're sending someone to Edward Hospital, and we're really hoping there's a birth," Spencer said. "We are also going to be out with a convenience store worker at 2 a.m. to see who's getting a Slurpee. We're also going to be out with the garbage people that day picking up some trash. We're just trying to get a snapshot of the entire day as we go through it, so we can create an outline for people's footage to drop into."
And they want you to be part of it, too. Grab your phone camera, camcorder, or digital camera and capture a moment in your day that showcases who you are or what you love about Naperville on Wednesday, May 2. It may be a run in the park with your pal or practicing the piano or catching the morning train.
Spencer said her staff had been searching for a community participation project when someone suggested they attempt to recreate Scott's documentary in Naperville.
"We're not going to have a golf outing or anything like that because we don't do that. So we came up with an idea that encapsulates what we do, which is we tell stories," Spencer said. "And we're going to let our neighbors have that fun feeling we experience while we're out doing that every day."
The television station's staff will be filming random city clocks and landmarks, along with the events they cover, to create a timeline and natural outline for the project, but Spencer said she's counting on hundreds of hours of film and photos from those who work and live in the city to carry the project.
"I'm counting on and I think our community participants are going to be the ones whose videos are going to give us pause and make us stop, whether it be a puppy or someone bathing a baby or someone's birthday. I think the stuff we get from the community at large is going to give us all a lot to think about," Spencer said. "I don't know why I feel that way, but I really do think we're going to get some gems in there. That's usually what happens. It's always the small stuff that really hits you."
Everyone is getting into the spirit, from Mayor George Pradel to North Central College student Mackenzie Dupuy, who thinks the project is a great way to capture the city's "little nuances."
"As a cyclist, I'm up early in the morning training and get to see the city through a unique perspective on my bike," Dupuy said. "This is what I want to share with others. I think a city is defined by those that inhabit it, so by sharing my day with others on May 2, I'm truly going to showcase a day in Naperville."
Pradel said he intends to capture himself and students from Ellsworth School, who will be making their own pizzas for dinner at Lou Malnati's.
"I want to capture something special, so I thought I could ride a train or throw a line in the river and catch a carp," Pradel said. "But the best thing that best describes my normal day will be to capture myself having dinner and hanging out with the youngsters from Ellsworth."
Director of Development Madelene Bernar said residents at St. Patrick's Residence Nursing and Rehabilitation facility intend to share a clip from their daily Mass.
"That celebration of Mass is such a big part of who we are. Staff, residents and volunteers all get together for that one time of day to pray," Bernar said. "It's just a very beautiful part of our day that says everything about who we are."
Everyone who submits something is asked to either upload it directly to the website or deliver it to the station, 127 Ambassador Drive, Suite 103, no later than early on the morning of May 3. For those not technically savvy enough to upload the material, Spencer said she is also accepting DVDs, videotapes, cassette tapes and even handwritten notes about what you saw or experienced. She just needs your name and contact information along with the time and location where you captured your submission. "I think we're going to take the summer to edit it together and premiere it in September when we'll have the most amount of people around to watch it," she said. "And when we're finished, all of the footage will be archived at Naperville Settlement. All of the documentaries we do and raw footage all goes to the settlement because they are the keepers of Naperville's history."
The finished product will ultimately be for sale for $15 from the station and available for checkout from each of the city's three library branches. And before long, it, too, will be a piece of history because Spencer plans to do the project every five years.
"Five years from now we'll do it again because I think it's a great marker of what's going on in our lives," she said. "We need to be capturing this stuff more and more for future generations. I want to make sure we're contributing a little to recording our past."
And perhaps they'll capture a different day next time around since Spencer said May 2 holds no real significance to the project.
"Hopefully it's your average Wednesday right in the middle of the year and a day where everyone can join us and participate because we feel like we're so much part of the community," Spencer said.
"And we hope the community feels like we're part of them as well."