The Martini Shot

10/23/2025

HAPPENING TONIGHT! 🎃
’s 2nd annual Halloween Short Film Fest and Costume Contest will feature short films by local filmmakers, followed by a costume contest with prizes. This is a terrifyingly great opportunity to see some spooky local shorts, mingle with the filmmakers behind them, and get in the Halloween spirit! Link in their bio. 👻

06/30/2025

is hosting a free open house! Every attendee gets 25% off studio rentals and one lucky winner is going home with a free studio day! They are also providing free entertainment, food, alcohol, cannabis, and interactive production sets! Links to tickets are in their bio. 🎟️🎟️🎟️

05/04/2025

Free ticket alert! 🎟️ Please email [email protected] to gain access to this exclusive premiere at the music box theater. Only 15 slots available!! 🚨

10/21/2024

Here’s a throwback of a Halloween party we threw with back in 2019! We only have a few tickets left for our next spooky event this Friday with our friends at 🎃

10/07/2024

Happy Monday everybody!

We hope you've all had a spectacular summer and have been able to take advantage of the myriad of events happening in and around Chicago.

Well, we’ve got one more for you, and it’s a fun one.

Who wants to watch some spooky short films together over a couple o' drinks and maybe win some cool stuff?
We are proud to announce the next Martini Shot! event in collaboration with our friends at Mainstage Chicago!

Scream-Tini Shot will be taking place at the Mainstage studio on Friday October 25 commencing at 6pm, with the screening kicking off at 7pm.
Tickets are $10 and get you a goody bag, beer and wine, and some light refreshments along with the chance to score some prizes courtesy of Mainstage and Eleven04. We are working on securing some other goodies as well!

**CALL FOR ENTRIES**
Do you have a scary short? A dark comedy? A bit of a horror piece? We'd love to show it off!
A couple of guidelines...
Shorts must have a total runtime of 15 minutes or less
It must not have been screened at a previous 'Show us your Shorts' night
It must fit within one of the following genres: horror, sci-fi, thriller, dark comedy, slasher, paranormal, psychological
Submissions for consideration can be made by filling out this submission form
https://forms.gle/wVHLKrZQYYdH1r2P7

Deadline: Wednesday October 16

Successful entrants will be notified by Friday October 18 and will receive two comped tickets.
There will be a prize for best film, as voted by the audience.

Oh! One more thing. This will be a COSTUME PARTY with a prize for best costume so get your threads and makeup ready and prepare to strut your stuff.

Get your tickets:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1039554524567

These screenings have proven to be very popular and it's likely to sell out.

We're excited to hang with you all once again.These

08/14/2024

This is exciting! A new cinema and photo rental company has opened on the north side of Chicago and they want to invite you to their launch party! Follow .rentals for more information. 🤖💚

07/10/2024

Cheers!🍸

06/26/2024

Our next event is right around the corner!

We are very excited to announce that we will be hosting our very first feature film premiere at Mainstage Chicago! Directed by Jason Mac and produced by two very talented Chicago filmmakers Nicolas Silva and John Lerchen.

“A political dinner turns deadly when a group of power starved politicians fight for a seat of survival on a helicopter at the onset of a nuclear war.”

Come join us on July 12 at 6pm alongside the cast and crew for the world premiere of the film accompanied by a BBQ!
Complimentary beer and wine will be provided.
Registration is NOW OPEN.

Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/932445117447

See you at Mainstage!

Wes and Sarah
Founders. Filmmakers. Friends

Join Martini Shot! & Mainstage for the Chicago premiere of the feature film 'A Social Contract'

06/21/2024

Can’t wait for this one!!

We are thrilled to announce our next event on July 12th at 🍸 A world premiere of “A Social Contract” starring Sean Astin! Cast and crew will be in attendance for this exciting limited viewing. Tix will go on sale next week so be on the lookout for our announcement! We will have a BBQ and cocktail hour prior to the film screening.

06/21/2024

We are thrilled to announce our next event on July 12th at 🍸 A world premiere of “A Social Contract” starring Sean Astin! Cast and crew will be in attendance for this exciting limited viewing. Tix will go on sale next week so be on the lookout for our announcement! We will have a BBQ and cocktail hour prior to the film screening.

04/12/2024

What a great evening at Mainstage Chicago for our ‘Film and Television Unions of Chicago’ panel! Thanks to those of you who came out!

With solid representation from:

IATSE Local 600 Cinematographers Guild
IATSE Local 476 Studio Mechanics
IATSE Local 769 Wardrobe
and
IBEW Local 1220 Broadcast Technicians,

we all learned how unions function, the steps required to join and what happens once you’re a member.

Huge thank you to our panel participants:

John Rizzo, Local 1220
Anthony Baracca, Local 476
Jennifer Jobst, Local 769
Ashurina Atto, Local 600

Thank you also to Angela Bour for running tech, Grace Schuler and Katelyn Douglass for setup/strike and check-in, and Nick Bacon for making this whole event possible (oh, and cheers for the beers!)

Please hit us up on our socials or via email with suggestions for what you’d like to see at the next one!

[email protected]

03/29/2024

Good morning and happy Friday, Martini Shot members!

We hope you have had a good start to the year. We are excited to announce our next event, coming up in a few weeks with our partners at Mainstage Chicago!

We would just like to thank everyone that attended our last SOLD OUT event at Mainstage. It was truly incredible to host a showcase for local talent, as well as see so many new faces.
If you didn't get a chance to see the photos, please pop over to our Facebook or Instagram! Thanks again to Wendy Davis for capturing the night.

Please join us on April 11th from 6-9pm for an evening tailored for Chicago's vibrant film & broadcast community!

Whether you're a seasoned professional or just starting out, this event is your gateway to understanding the importance of union memberships and how they can shape your career.
Our panel discussion, led by local representatives, will delve into the details of union memberships for folks working across the film production and television broadcast sectors.

This is a theme we’ve been talking about doing for a long time now and we’re really excited to finally make it happen.
Get ready to have your questions answered:

How do I select and join a union?
What are the benefits of union membership?
What are different tiers of memberships?
Can I still work non-union jobs if I join a union?
And much more!
Invited Union representatives on our panel include:

John Rizzo (IBEW Local 1220)
IATSE Local 769
IATSE Local 600

We will provide drinks and snacks as usual for the event.
Registration is now open. Please grab your ticket on EventBrite here! https://www.eventbrite.com/e/martini-shot-union-workshop-at-mainstage-chicago-tickets-871901038477?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl

Other April events happening in Chicago:
Chicago Filmmakers | Onion City Film Festival
Midwest Film Festival

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Sarah + Wes
Founders. Filmmakers. Friends.
--
Martini Shot Chicago

Everything you wanted to know about joining a union (but were too afraid to ask)!