A Digital Media Production student and Make Up For Stage & Screen student from Stratford-upon-Avon College blended their skills recently for a project to create a gruesome zombie film.
Charlie Pack, who studies on the Level 3 Digital Media course, and Hattie Jessup, from the Level 2 Hair & Make Up course, benefitted from each other’s skill set on this creatively terrifying project, as they brought to life the musical zombie horror film Night of the Living Rockstar.
Charlie has always wanted to work in the horror film genre, with his dream career being a Horror film Director. When the students were set a short film project, Charlie couldn’t help but sink his teeth into it.
He organised, produced, wrote and directed the whole project. Knowing that Zombies would need to be created (not literally) for the film, he decided to utilise his fellow creative colleagues at college.
Hattie heard about Charlie’s request for a Make Up technician on his set. As she lived in the area it was being filmed, she jumped at the opportunity.
The day long shoot involved 10 actors, with the majority playing Zombies. Hattie and one other Make Up Artist had to create the looks for all of them, including bites and wounds.
Check out some of the fabulous work Hattie and the team created!
Hattie had a great time: “It was a lovely bit of work experience! I loved creating the Zombie bites, the detail was great and they looked really good. It was a great experience, I learnt a lot and the College helped me by providing equipment. My next work experience is a wedding so very different!”
Charlie was incredibly proud of the film he created and thanked Hattie for her incredible work: “I can’t stress enough how good Hattie was! I’m currently collaborating with Make Up students on my next project; it’s so great to get the help you need whilst knowing they are benefiting from the experience also.”
He also details how the College had prepared him for creating these kinds of projects: “My skills have 100% been elevated. I’ve improved my camera work and my understanding of how sets work and how to manage projects on a budget.”
The film has been submitted for a range of local film festivals and Charlie is already working on his next horror film, which will be submitted for his final major project, before he progresses to university at Bournemouth Film School.
Digital Media Production Lecturer, Sarah Downing, is delighted to see students benefitting from each other’s learning. She commented: “We offer a variety of creative courses at the College which provide a fantastic opportunity for our students to collaborate and bring each other’s ideas to life. Charlie’s zombie film is a brilliant illustration of this.”
You can watch the short film here.
