THEY’D made their editing deadline with a few hours to spare and Chase could barely sort through the emotions consuming him. Exhaustion, relief, anticipation, and full-out heart-stopping exhilaration. He and Keith had looked forward to this day since they set out to be filmmakers. It was Friday, December 5, and they’d just sent off the first copy of their movie by courier ser vice to arrive at the office of the Los Angeles Film Festival committee sometime before midnight. They’d called their wives with the great news, and now they were catching their breath, still hanging out in the rented Santa Monica editing room. Chase leaned back in his chair and stretched his legs. “It’s like a different movie — with the color fix and sound correction. The editing.” His voice couldn’t contain his enthusiasm. “Much better than I ever thought it would be. Even with the performances we got on set.” “Don’t get too excited.”
