Q&A WITH CHARLIE BUDDEN


 Introduction

Charlie Budden is a graduate of Arts University of Bournemouth, and an alumni of Tanglin Trust School. He studied Film Production, and directed the short film "Oh, Little Spark!" which was released in 2021. The short won best film of the month at the Independent Short Awards. On the 16th of August 2022, he came to speak about his experience in directing, his freelance work and the challenges he faced while filming his short film.

"Oh, Little Spark" is a short film inspired by a Polish lullaby. The story follows a young man and his grandmother, played by Rula Lenska. Lenska is a well know actress in Britain, mostly known for her role in 'Coronation Street'. This was a big success for Charlie Budden as it likely gave his film more credibility and exposure.



Crowdfunding

Although Charlie was given a budget by Arts University of Bournemouth, he used a website called 'Crowdfunder' to raise more money for filming. The website is a platform where independent productions can pitch their project, and try to convince people to contribute towards the budget. Often projects offer rewards in return for donations, to help encourage contributors. Through the website, 'Oh, Little Spark!' gained 117 supporters in 28 days, raising £9,160. His overall budget was around £10,000. Despite this, Charlie told us that budgeting was still a challenge, and that the money went very quickly. On the website, Charlie included a synopsis for the film and a short explanation on why people should support the production. Additionally he included character descriptions, a production plan and a budget breakdown.

Charlie's presentation emphasized how important planning is before filming. His explanation about his budget going quickly taught me that I need to think ahead and account for challenges I will encounter when filming my coursework.



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