ABOUT THE WRITER / DIRECTOR: Carlos A. Chavez (Carlito)
It was 1986 when I fell in love with the ribs from Einstein’s Restaurant on Lincoln avenue in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago, which was my dad’s restaurant. One of my very first summer jobs as a teenager was as a busboy at the Columbia Yacht Club. A few summers after that, I was serving meatball sandwiches for Biagio at the Taste of Chicago. For countless summers thereafter, I was grilling chicken for Vesuvio sandwiches at the Italian Fest while also serving as an Andy Frain usher at the Chicago Stadium.
Finally, in 1998, at the age of twenty, I opened Shrimp Chicago, a small seafood restaurant in the Lakeview neighborhood. After 13 months and many hard lessons, I gave up and moved to California to study business and contractual law.
Many years later, I reentered the service industry as part of the opening staff at Denver based Punch Bowl Social in the West Loop. As my curiosity and leadership prowess grew, I joined the management team at VU Rooftop in Chicago’s South Loop.
Months before the pandemic, I left hospitality to again follow in dad’s footsteps and assume the family business of environmental hygiene, which grants me access to all parts of Chicago and the surrounding suburbs.
A city dweller by trade, I capture and document the many things this city has to offer, including the culture of food and beverage. I say with great certainty that the heartbeat of Chicago are the women and men who stand on their feet for countless hours to feed our appetites. The documentary 86’d chronicles how Chicago’s hospitality community faced a pandemic and survived despite great uncertainty.
To learn more about the film makers visit the Southpaws page.
86'd Production Team
Vince Brown
Maddie Willis
Maddie Willis
Cinematographer
I am a visual artist based on the South Side of Chicago. As a cinematographer, I believe that representation is everything, striving to set the narrative straight. I recently graduated from Columbia College Chicago, specializing in camera and grip/electric work. Continuing to seek out authentic stories, and community building is my passion.
Maddie Willis
Maddie Willis
Maddie Willis
Director Of Photography
I am filmmaker and multi media artist whose work centers Black life and legacy through documentary and personal storytelling.
Blending various art mediums, they explore lived experiences with depth and visual nuance. After graduating from DePaul University in 2023, they conde their work by being featured in film screenings, interning at film festivals, and working as freelance filmmaker.
Loren Fay
Maddie Willis
Loren Fay
Editor / Colorist
I am a video editor and colorist from Michigan, now based in Chicago. I’m drawn to stories that leave a mark, projects that start conversations, challenge perspectives, or just stick with you long after the credits roll. Working on 86’d has been exactly that kind of experience! Whether I’m cutting a documentary or crafting a short-form piece, I’m always looking for ways to shape honest, impactful storytelling through strong visuals and intentional pacing.