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Transformers filming this weekend

18-Aug-10 – The Transformers 3 film crew will be back on the LaSalle Street Bridge this Friday and Saturday. The bridge will be closed both days, noon to 10 p.m., between Wacker Drive and Kinzie Street.

The bridges at Michigan Avenue, Wabash Avenue, and State Street will be raised when a low-flying helicopter films the Chicago River on Saturday morning.

According to a memo from an assistant location manager, the bridges will be raised from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. During that time, pedestrians will be kept away from the flight path of the helicopter. Traffic on Wacker Drive and the Dearborn Street Bridge will also be interrupted for no more than 15 minutes at a time.

Photo by Steven Dahlman

(Above) The LaSalle Street Bridge was the setting for a Transformers 3 photo shoot last Saturday. (Click on image to view larger version.)

According to the Chicago Office of Emergency Management, there will be filming Friday and Saturday at “several downtown locations,” including the old post office at 433 West Van Buren Street. Van Buren will be closed on Friday between South Wacker Drive and South Canal Street west of the Chicago River from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Last Friday, the Chicago Film Office released the street addresses of specific filming locations coming up this weekend. They include…

  • 151-154 East Wacker Drive (between Michigan Avenue and Columbus Drive)
  • 200 North State Street (near theWit hotel)
  • 285 West Wacker Drive (between Franklin Street and Wells Street)
  • 300 North Wabash Avenue (near intersection of Wabash Avenue and Wacker Drive)
  • 401 North Wabash Avenue (Trump International Hotel & Tower)
  • Kinzie Street Bridge

As usual, expect explosions, fireballs, smoke, and simulated gunfire under the supervision of Chicago police and fire departments.