Experiencing Interruptions?

Booth by the Window

Facing a pivotal decision in their lives, customers enter a magical reality when they step into a quiet diner, which, along with the ever-changing server Robin, helps people find their way through surreal experiences.

"Booth by the Window" is a web series created by The CU Denver Film & Television Program. The series features six episodes that focus on different characters who encounter a diner that helps them through a crossroads in their life. An exploration of magical-realism in storytelling and filmmaking techniques, "Booth by the Window" is a drama in the vein of "Twin Peaks" with the ominous whimsy of "Welcome to Nightvale".

  • Rachel Sochinski
    Series Creator
  • Santiago Jimenez
    Director
    Episode 1: Runaway
  • Aaron Henderson
    Director
    Episode 2: Confession
  • Will Pash & Víctor Yagüe Izquierdo
    Director
    Episode 3: The One
  • Makayla Lange
    Director
    Episode 4: Judged by Fate
  • Brea Ingram
    Director
    Episode 5: No Smoking
  • Alexander Kimose
    Director
    Episode 6: Robin
  • Rachel Sochinski
    Writer
    Episode 1: Runaway
  • Rachel Sochinski
    Writer
    Episode 2: Confession
  • Amadeus Bennett
    Writer
    Episode 3: The One
  • Hunter Thompson & Alexander Kimose
    Writer
    Episode 4: Judged by Fate
  • Peyton Hagerty
    Writer
    Episode 5: No Smoking
  • Rachel Sochinski & Brea Ingram
    Writer
    Episode 6: Robin
  • Trey Daub
    Producer
  • Savanna Poelma
    Producer
  • Rachel Davis
    Producer
  • Peyton Hagerty
    Producer
  • Hannah Sheldon
    Producer
  • Hannah Vail
    Key Cast
    "Young Clara"
    Episode 1: Runaway
  • Bruce Carter
    Key Cast
    "Robin"
    Episode 1: Runaway
  • Phil Luna
    Key Cast
    "Samuel"
    Episode 2: Confession
  • Eli Weadley
    Key Cast
    "Robin"
    Episode 2: Confession
  • Josh McFadden
    Key Cast
    "Desmond"
    Episode 3: The One
  • Bobby Lee Black
    Key Cast
    "Robin"
    Episode 3: The One
  • Paul Pirkle
    Key Cast
    "William"
    Episode 4: Judged by Fate
  • Exzinia Scott
    Key Cast
    "Robin"
    Episode 4: Judged by Fate
  • Shaquille Mathurin
    Key Cast
    "Lewis"
    Episode 4: Judged by Fate
  • Billie McBride
    Key Cast
    "Georgia"
    Episode 5: No Smoking
  • Jesse Manderson
    Key Cast
    "Robin"
    Episode 5: No Smoking
  • Lauren Kotre
    Key Cast
    "Adult Clara"
    Episode 6: Robin
  • Shelia Traister
    Key Cast
    "Robin"
    Episode 6: Robin
  • Project Type:
    Short, Student, Web / New Media
  • Genres:
    Magical Realism, Drama, Surrealism
  • Completion Date:
    May 14, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    10,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes - University of Colorado Denver
Director Biography - Santiago Jimenez, Aaron Henderson, Will Pash & Víctor Yagüe Izquierdo, Makayla Lange, Brea Ingram, Alexander Kimose

Series Creator:
Rachel Sochinski is a Filmmaker, Production Designer, and Writer pursuing her bachelor's degree in Film and Television Production at the University of Colorado Denver. She has worked as a Production Designer on over 10 projects over the last two years including short films, an opera, and a web series. She is extremely passionate about art and design and how production design can be used to enhance and even tell stories.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

"We are constantly met with crossroads that could change the course of our lives forever, but it can often be difficult to step back and evaluate priorities in the uncertainty and chaos of the modern world. In "Booth by the Window", the Crossroads Diner is a place that sits beyond space and time, offering the characters a reprieve from the outside world and a new perspective on their own situations; that self reflection is essential to their making active choices in life.

I wrote this series during the first few months of the pandemic in the diner I’ve worked at for a long time. It was mostly shut down due to Covid-19, so it felt strange to be working in a place I’d worked in for 5 years without having any customers in the building. It was that feeling of liminal space that "Booth by the Window" captures. The idea of customers being at a ‘crossroads’ reflects the uncertainty we all feel during the pandemic.

With the world turned upside-down in the wake of a global pandemic, we're all living at the threshold of something unknown and somewhat terrifying. I want to honor that unsteady feeling of uncertainty and the courage that comes with pushing forward despite it."

-Rachel Sochinski, Series Creator and Production Designer