This video started as a contest prompt. Nikon wanted folks to try out their new mirrorless camera system and they were offering an award for the best short film produced within a certain timeframe.
I emailed Kelly cold after seeing her on Instgram. I knew she was going to run the Chicago Marathon in hopes of qualifying for the Boston Marathon. I was living in Chicago at the time and had strong ties to the Boston Marathon, so the story connected with me. I asked if she would be open to having me come to New York to film with her while she trained and tried to tell the story.
Luckily she was open to it. And so we got to hang out together for a couple of days in NYC and then a couple more in Chicago.
At the end of the project, I wished that I hadn’t needed the prompt to reach out. The gear and timeline forced a lot of decisions that I would have preferred to do differently. But ultimately, I’m grateful, because getting to know Kelly was so much fun.