by Dov Kornits
“A set is a fascinating place to both Joe and I, but we were conscious most people wouldn’t have background knowledge of the industry,” admits Ben Bouvier-Farrell about his film-set centric satirical web series Hit the Ground Running. “It was a challenge in a way because we wondered how to make this translate. We decided that telling this series from a runner’s perspective gave the audience characters everyone can relate to.”
“No matter the industry, we’ve all started off at the bottom of the ladder and it’s likely been an experience that you’ll end up laughing about,” adds Joe Murphy.
Winner of Best Series at Bushwick Film Festival, Best Comedy at Sydney Web Fest and DC Web Fest, Hit the Ground Running is a 4 x 8-minute series following the hijinks of a couple of production runners.
“All stories were based on firsthand experiences but largely tweaked to end in more peril,” says Bouvier-Farrell. “Usually, we’d start with an idea of something we did, or friends did, as runners and think, ‘ok how can we make this situation significantly worse and have a wider impact on the crew?’
“We were always interested in the idea that runners are low ranking positions often linked to a high-stakes component of production. For example: driving a lead actor to set for a 6am call-time. Appears straightforward… but a mistake can lead to big consequences for the day.”
“It’s really just about entry level employees doing their best to climb up the ladder,” Joe Murphy chimes in. “This is the story of so many people’s lives, and the comedy just shines through when people find moments of the absurd that they can relate to.”
Self-funded, but with support from industry big-guns such as Gregor Jordan – “We were fortunate enough to get notes from Gregor during our fine cut stage. We were enormous fans of his work, and we were itching to hear his thoughts. He was super generous with his time, and we were stoked that our jokes were landing in his eyes. He also said it reminded him of starting out in his own career which was great to hear” – the Hit the Ground Running team used their lack of budget as a resource rather than a limitation.
“You have to accept that things might be out of your control and learn to make compromises. This can often lead to the most creative ideas though,” says Joe Murphy.
“An example which comes to mind is that we tried desperately to shoot inside Fox Studios but couldn’t,” remembers Ben Bouvier-Farrell. “It was life imitating art in a way. However, we decided from here we wouldn’t see any actual sets in the show – it would be this mythical place our lead characters couldn’t get to.”
With the festival run over, the filmmakers are now hoping to partner with a broadcaster to make the series available to a broader audience, especially with so much potential for new material.
“Every time I walk on the set of a new TV show or advert, there’s stories that come through,” says Murphy. “It’s hard not to think we could continue with the series when it’s rife with ridiculously funny content. Fingers crossed we can get out and make more episodes.”
“Funnily enough we’re hearing more and more runner stories from other jobs we’ve gone onto,” adds Bouvier-Farrell. “I’ve got them stored away for now, but we’d be thrilled to make more or even explore a half hour format.”
Follow Hit The Ground Running on Instagram: @hitthegroundrunning_webseries
