THE EMPIRE
Bachelor of Screen Arts student Charlie Faulks has been awarded funding from NZ On Air to produce a six-part zombie apocalypse-themed YouTube series called Bloke of the Apocalypse.
Charlie says the idea for Bloke of the Apocalypse was inspired by his upbringing in rural Gisborne.
“It’s a very personal story, minus the apocalypse part! Bloke, the father in the series, is a caricature of my dad, they’re spitting images of each other. Oliver is a mixture between me and my little brother Ollie. Thankfully they both love seeing themselves as little animated characters. I just need to find a way to add my mum in – she really wants to be in the show.”
The Bloke of the Apocalypse funding is part of a $5 million investment from NZ On Air as part of its new strategy to engage young New Zealanders with local content.
Charlie moved to Wellington in 2022 to study a BSA at Massey, and says he finds the city cosy and central.
“Back in 2022, it was the scariest thing moving from little old Gisborne to Wellington, but I settled in pretty fast. It’s a very inclusive, welcoming city. My passion lies within film, animation and everything else creative, so Massey in Wellington naturally seemed to be the best choice for me.”
He enjoys that the BSA programme covers such a wide-range of screen-based specialisations.
“It’s been fantastic to learn the ins and outs of the filmmaking process at Massey, getting technical with editing and camera work. It’s such a luxury having direct access to industry-standard tech and to have made friends within the course.”
– Massey University.
Bloke of The Apocalypse – Trailer
We got the chance to go spend some time with Charlie and his team on a recent trip down to wellington, it was such an insight to see the early stages just as the calm before the storm of what will be a raging success of a show. Seeing first hand the creative process and creativity that has lead to something that is more than just a comedy but an exploration of ones own mind and surroundings repackaged into an entertaining cheeky jab at the stereotypical Bloke in the most chaotic situation imaginable. It shows over time the love Charlie has for the characters and the inspiration that created those characters.
You can see our hang with Charlie and the crew in one of our YouTube Vlogs ( skip to 12 mins for that part)
Check out the first 2 Episodes right here!
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