Lights, Camera, ACTION!

An exclusive look behind the scenes

By Chef Kendra Culinary Producer, Prairie Street Culinary Kitchen

We have been building the Prairie Street Culinary Kitchen video library for more than two years and I’m proud to report that to date we have aired more than 100 high quality, original videos. If you follow our YouTube Channel, (and if you haven’t yet subscribed, what are you waiting for?), you know we are committed to bringing you delicious content each week. While that is no easy feat, our word is our word, and we absolutely love sharing our knowledge with you. But have you ever wondered how do they do that? Well, c'mon in!

To watch the full video, follow along and get the inside scoop, click or scan below!

Bete’avon ! — Bon Appétit !

PICTURED –

The

For every production, there is a team of at least 10 to 15 people who work behind the scenes to make our food shine. Planning, or pre-production, begins about two months out and a shoot can last anywhere from two to four days. But the fun doesn’t end when the cameras stop rolling. The editing process, or post-production, lasts for several months after—all while we begin pre-production for the next shoot!

Culinary

Researching, cooking, tasting, developing, and writing is an ongoing process. CEO and Founder, Elliot Moscowitz, the chefs, and I are constantly going back and forth on ideas. When finalizing which products, recipes, and content will be shot during the next production we’re considering everything from the holidays to methods and techniques. Once the recipes are set, my job of breaking down the recipes, begins. Here, I create lists upon lists of ingredients, dishes, props, schedules, talking points, etc, etc. It’s an ongoing process that doesn’t really end until after the dish is complete. I call it the “culinary conundrum” (and I love it!).

LIGHTS! CAMERAS! AUDIO!

Food is only one part of this production puzzle. Our crew consists of video professionals who manage and maintain a huge setup and breakdown of state of the art lights, cameras, and audio equipment. While you can capture a lot with an iPhone (and we use those, too), it's the high-tech camera setup that demands key lighting from every angle. The kitchen quickly becomes a living obstacle course with everchanging wires, diffusion boxes, c-stands, drapes, and tripods.

Action

All of this is carefully orchestrated by our Creative Director, Sandra Dillon, and Elliot. When not doing a million other things, they’re staring at the many monitors in video village ensuring the cameras are capturing the right thing, nothing is out of focus, and the framing is correct. From here they communicate with the talent, the crew, and anyone else who needs to know when it is good to start rolling, when we need to hold, and when it’s time to cut. This communication is key because each of us in our own roles can only see a fraction of the big picture—they’ve got the master view.

Be Flexible

Elliot’s favorite term is “etched in jello”, and for good reason. When on set one has got to be flexible to calmly handle things that come up: the weather suddenly changes, something breaks, a delivery comes in late, or Elliot gets an idea for another video that he wants to film. All of these things happen and we all adapt quickly. Being prepared for anything and having that team mentality helps us to achieve this. The bottom line is that we are all there for one reason, and one reason only: to make Prairie Street shine!