KC Film Spotlight: Chuck Browne
We were lucky enough that Chuck Browne sat down to answer some questions for us on the heels of his feature release: “The Shutdown”! Read on to see what he’s been up to, his thoughts on being part of the KC creative scene, and what’s next for Chuck!
How did you get your start as a filmmaker?
I first got my start as a filmmaker during my years as a student at Texas Southern University in Houston, TX. My major was Mass Communications with an emphasis in TV & Film. I was always drawn to the profession due to my love for films in general, dating back to childhood. I used to, at one point, want to be an actor but took more of an interest in college being behind the camera.
What kind of projects are you drawn to?
Projects I have done have been a lot over the years. I started my production company, Chuck Browne Productions, in 2009. I have shot, directed & edited over 100 music videos, over 100 commercials/promo videos for small businesses, over 100 weddings, close to 100 live events, 5 documentaries & 4 short films. Most recently, I did for my 1st independent feature film titled: The Shutdown.
What is it like working in production in the Greater Kansas City area?
Working as a creative in Kansas City has been great. I’ve met a lot of people in the Kansas City film community who have been open to working with me on my projects, and/or who I have worked with on their projects. Most of the people I have met have been open to collaborating and helping each other. We have some of the most talented filmmakers & production specialists in the U.S right here in Kansas City, and I think most of what is put out from indie feature films, short films, commercials, etc. represents Kansas City in a great way.
What I would love to see happen in the very near future are Hollywood production level budget films being shot here in Kansas City and filmmakers who have the talent and skill getting opportunities to shoot, direct and produce those films. We have a lot of large-scale commercial projects that get shot in Kansas City, but not so much when it comes to films.
In regard to the large-scale commercial projects, what I’d love to see change is more diverse production companies being in leadership roles in some of the large-scale commercial projects. There are a lot of us who are in above-the-line positions on a lot of these sets, but not so much in regard to the production company hired for the job. I know there are a lot of black and brown owned production companies in Kansas City, mine being one of them, who can do the job in a leadership role just as good as anyone else and it would be great to start to see a balance in that in Kansas City.
What’s next for YOU?
Next up for me is wrapping up post production on another independent feature film titled: Vengeful. We will have a premiere for the film sometime this early fall. Also continuing to do production work both in, and outside of, Kansas City.
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Chuck, thank you for sharing with us this month. We are so happy to be part of your production journey and community!
