We're Filming a Pilot for HGTV!
THE PORCH HOUSE We've been working on something really big behind the scenes around here and I'm so excited to finally share it with you. We're filming a pilot for HGTV!
The pilot is for a 30-minute show currently titled 'Rehab Crazy', and if it gets picked up, it will focus on Garrett and I as we renovate old houses in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. The kiddos will make an appearance too, of course. But before I get into more details, let me back up and start at the beginning...
Last year I got an email from an HGTV exec asking if we'd be interested in doing a TV show. It was totally crazy, but not altogether unprecedented. We get emails from production companies asking us that same question about once a month or so (and we aren't the only ones). We even filmed a sizzle on HGTV's dime in 2015. A sizzle is a short, 5-minute clip that gives the network an idea of who you are and what you do and takes 2+ days to film. The first sizzle was a really fun experience, but didn't lead anywhere (you can read about that experience here). It was the type of opportunity that doesn't usually come around once let alone twice so we never expected to get that email from the HGTV exec last Spring. But we were sure flattered when we did! So we happily filmed a little introductory video of ourselves and our projects and sent it to her, which she pitched to her team. Can't you just imagine a bunch of HGTV folks sitting around a conference table watching yours truly and my peeps in a self-produced iPhone video?! Talk about a cringe moment! Thankfully they liked it and we found ourselves filming another sizzle, which was shot over two days. During our road trip last Fall, we got the call that HGTV commissioned a 30-minute pilot about us!
Garrett and I were immediately tasked with buying an old house to renovate for the pilot, which was convenient timing since we were already looking for a renovation project in Ellensburg. We closed on the Porch House in February and dug into pre-production for the pilot. Let me just say, that I had no idea how much work goes into a 30-minute show! Both the network and our production company have been busy preparing for the shoot and making sure we craft the best show possible. The filming timeline is super tight so Garrett and I have also been deep in construction prep to make sure we can actually pull this whole thing off.
We don't know if our pilot will air yet or not - I've been told that HGTV makes plenty of pilots that never see the light of day - but we hope it does! Either way, we're excited to tackle our renovation on the Porch House, put together the best possible pilot, and soak up this crazy experience.
I'm hoping to share updates during filming over the next couple of weeks via Instagram Stories. Once the crew goes home and we can take a breath, I'll share more of the Porch House renovation here on the blog. In the meantime wish us luck!
xoxo
-Cathy
p.s. these photos are from the Sizzle filmed last Fall and taken by me and our great onsite Producer, Michael.