Screen Magazine - Index

Screen Magazine - Screen Magazine: Vol. 29, Issue 10 - Index

While listening to the executives of Chicago-based
Show Department, Inc. (SDi) talk about the company’s
25th anniversary there were a lot of laughs, old stories,
reminiscing about the industry and how it has changed.
Each of them were very knowledgeable about their areas
of expertise with regard to technology and the changing
media landscape and you could tell they have a good
time doing what they do. Even with all the serious talk, it
was kind of like being in the audience of a comedy club
– entertaining, fun, comfortable - they all know their stuff
while remaining extremely humble and down-to-earth
– true to the work ethics for which Chicago is known.
SCREEN sat down with CEO Lee Facklis, vice president
of operations Larry Whitlow, vice president of sales John
Kavanagh and director of marketing Diane Mercurio for
a few hours to discuss the inner workings of the company,
how it came to be and where it’s headed in the near future.
Though consistently busy, there was an air of calm before
the storm, since, at press time, the team along with the
rest of the staff were gearing up for a big 25th anniversary
celebration at their Kinzie Corridor location. Twenty-five
years in business no doubt brings much to celebrate.
Show Department was founded in 1983 by brothers Jeff and
Lee Facklis, COO and CEO of SDi, respectively, who continue
as sole owners to this day. For a quarter-century, Show
Department® has demonstrated an ongoing commitment
to expanding its service offerings. In 1990, SDi acquired
The Screen Works®, a manufacturer of portable projection
screens and audio-visual support products. In 2003, Show
Department expanded its U.S. base of operations to include
an operation in The Netherlands to provide streamlined
show support throughout Europe. Then, in 2004 Resolution
Digital Studios® was opened, a 32,000 sq. ft. HD production
and stage complex adjacent to SDi’s existing 50,000 sq.
ft. main warehouse on Chicago’s West Side. Today, Show
Department has become much more than the supplier of
staging services that it is known for.
To put the idea of SDi’s worldwide services into a more
tangible perspective, the company has worked on shows
in Amsterdam, Beijing, Cancun, Dublin, Frankfurt, Glasgow,
Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, London, Madrid, Nanjing, Paris,
Rome, Sao Paolo and Tokyo, just to name a few of a
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The Show Must Go On!
The Show Department Turns 25
Compiled by Amy Wilschke
very long (and conveniently alphabetical) list. SDi takes
pride in being able to offer the same quality services and
equipment abroad as are available in the U.S.
One of the most important traits to recognize about SDi as
a well-established company in the Chicago (physically,
despite its global presence) industry is its longstanding
commitment to client service and technological excellence,
and this is due to the business model the founders put
in place at the company’s inception. This is especially
important as talks of an economic recession float around
among network news and daily papers – it seems as
though SDi and, speaking even more broadly, the industry,
is immune to such a concept.
Part of the reason for this, according to John Kavanagh and
the group, is that the three companies work very closely
and sort of play off of each other, staying consistently
busy and bringing work to each other, thus staving off
recessionary talks. Though they can’t say much about what
the company is working on currently, the group confirms
that the SDi-RDS-The Screen Works triple-threat is busy with
projects every day. Of course, the fact that the company
works globally and not just in the U.S. plays into this as well.
Still, being Chicago-based, SDi remains committed to
bringing production work to Chicago and helping to recreate
the production magnet that Chicago was in the
1980s, when SDi was a struggling company trying to gain its
sea legs. Lee Facklis explains the dichotomy of himself and
his brother as similar to that of order and chaos, as he is the
one who decided to plunge head-first into the seemingly
scary realm of striking out on his own. Lee was the idea guy
with the daring imagination – sometimes his ideas seemed
implausible – even risky. Jeff, on the other hand, could
somehow make sense of Lee’s adventuresome thinking. Jeff
was the one who zeroed in on the ideas and gave them
realistic parameters to work within.
Facklis can take all the risks he wants, but ultimately
he and his team are doing something right. Twenty-five
years is a long time to be in business, especially when the
business deals with the ever-evolving and changing realm
of technology and client solutions. Keeping on top of trends
and changes in technology and the industry are what has