charlie ford

The Spark:

Its safe to say that no-one enjoys receiving a parking ticket, but over the years I seem to have had some particularly bad luck in this department. After some nasty encounters and unjustified tickets I started to notice myslef getting really worked up. I decided that the best way to deal with this frustration would be to harness it and turn it into something funny. 

I started wondering why someone would take a job as a parking inspector, about what possible motivations they might have aside from money, and whether anyone goes into the job looking to have a positive impact on the community. This was the genesis of the idea for the short film Karma Inspectors, with its protagonist Lucy DoGood and antoagonist Bruce Bureau representing opposite ends of the archetypal spectrum. 

The Film:

Karma Inspectors is a short film about an optimistic young woman named Lucy who wants to bring compassion and humility to the world of Parking Inspectors. It's her first week on the job and she is stationed under a notoriously ruthless and cruel Supervisor named Bruce, whose strict enforcement of parking regulations challenges Lucy's idealistic and kindhearted nature. But what goes around comes around and Bruce's cruelty just might come around to bite him on the bum. 

The Team:

We have a terrific team of filmmakers on board to bring this film to life: 

(Click on names to view personal website)

Writer & Director: 

Charlie Ford

Producer:

Rebecca Janek

Executive Producer:

Ford Sarhan 

Production Manager:

Katrina Sarpi

Cinematographer:
Thom Neal

Production Designer: 

Ella Carey

Production Designer:

James Hills

Costume Designer:
Donna Phibbs

Editor:

Karl Pearson

Composer:

Joseph Giovinazzo

Graphic Designer:

Oscar Finch

We are hoping to raise enough money to get this baby off the page, into production and onto screens.

We want to tell this story in a cinematic way, and as everyone knows; quality filmmaking ain't cheap.

We are kindly asking for donations based on parking ticket related amounts and are offering good parking karma as a reward (parking karma not guaranteed). 

Funds raised will go towards the following costs:

Kick Ass Camera Equipment -  $3-5k

Awesomely Professional Crew - $5-10k

Really Talented Actors - $2-5k

Mackin' Production & Costume Design - $2k

A Really Good Sound Design - $2-3k

Impossibly Exquisite Colour Grade - $1k

Next Level Graphics - $500

Super Nice Catering - $500

Paying Off Charlie's Personal Parking Fines - $8,560,432

Excellent Title Design - $500

Coffees For Late Night Editing - $100

Top Notch Website For The  Film - $500

Original Music - $1K

Rad Poster Design - $500

Securing Good Parking Karma For Supporters - Priceless

Casting: 

One of the biggest challenges we face is finding the right cast. We have high hopes of attracting some talented actors capable of bringing the script to life and giving extra dimension to the characters.

Logistics:

Once we have raised the funds we'll begin pre-production on the shoot, which involves assembling a crew, finding locations, scheduling around everyone's availabilities, sourcing props, creating costumes and organising an enjoyable shoot. 

Once we have shot the film we will be entering into post production with a race to the finish line in order to submit the film before the Tropfest deadline.

Impact:

The real challenge is to create a film that shows both the postive and negative characteristics of public servants without creating hostility or ridicule. 

We all know that parking inspectors have a place in the community, because there simply isn't enough concrete to house all the cars in the world, but we think there is a more humane way to go about ensuring that everyone has a fair shot at finding a place to park their vehicle.

Hopefully this short film can help highlight the importance of injecting some compassion into the often merciless and bureaucratic world of parking regulation.