The traffic on Jackson in the morning is terrible, due to parents dropping their kids off and commuters trying to get to work. The only thing that could be worse is if they shut the whole street down.

Unfortunately for all the students getting here late, they did just that during homecoming week. Tuesday and Wednesday October 4th & 5th, Jackson and surrounding blocks were closed off for filming.

Students wondered in the halls and at lunch tables what could be filming.  Was it Empire? Or Chicago Fire or Chicago PD? Would our school get cameo? That would surely get some attention with the sirens and wild situations that go on in those shows.

The Beacon was able to steal the set’s Location Manager, John Tagamolila, away for a few moments. Here’s what he was able to tell us about the whole ordeal.

Jadah: We’re members of the school newspaper and we just found out there’s gonna be filming in the area. We just wanted to ask about what’s going on and what network is it for?

John: Everything we’ve got is for NBCUniversal. You know Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, and now this is Chicago Justice. Yeah Dick Wolf, he used the same person who did Law & Order. I kind of feel like this is the new Law & Order.

Jadah: Have you worked with any of the actors, producers, or directors on this set before?

John: You know, it’s funny, because in television, they use the same directors. Our director today has also done [Chicago] Med, [Chicago] PD, and stuff. They kind of trade them, You only usually do one or two episodes in an entire season; sometimes more, but they do get traded out. The rest of the crew is always there. You know we’re about to start a new episode Friday, so we’ll get a new director and script and we’ll have a new location.

Why we ended up here is because I needed a garage and a stoop in the same location. They’ve got a great stoop here, this is a beautiful building, and we just got lucky because they have a garage that isn’t full of stuff, so we put a car in there.

Jadah: Could you explain what the show is gonna be about, for this episode, and why this location is important?

John: Justice like it sounds, is more like how Law & Order used to be, so there’s a crime and they lawyer up and solve it. PD is more like Police doing that and solving the cases.

Jadah: Has this aired on NBC yet?

John: It has not, and in fact NBC had so much faith in it they skipped the pilot, where they would test it out and have people watch to see if they’d continue with it. I think this will be a midseason replacement. When something goes off you’ll see this replacing it.

Jadah: Great, so we’ll see this in January or February. We’re also in the TV production class so this is really….

John: If you would have come to me yesterday or the day before we would have been able to show you around. Next time look at the fliers and contact the number and hopefully you’ll get someone that’s willing to show you around. I worked with Glee for a few years and the actors were the nicest, they did interviews for the newspapers. It’s just something you’ve gotta set up in advance.

Jadah: You guys are filming all over Chicago?
John: We’ve been in the Blackstone and Chicago Athletic Association, a couple days from now we’ll be in the Peninsula. we’re showing Chicago as Chicago. The reason we’re right here today is the view of the Willis tower from the stoop. You take that shot and you’ll know exactly where you are.