Chris Bouchard
Chris Bouchard, a British film producer and director, released The Hunt for Gollum in May 2009. In its first week, the film ranked fourth on the US most-watched chart. The films above it were X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Star Trek, and a romantic comedy starring Matthew McConaughey. Those were studio productions with considerable budgets behind them. Bouchard's film was an independent Lord of the Rings fan film, made in Britain. How that kind of film reached those numbers is one question worth asking. Where its director went afterward is another.
Bouchard held the budget for The Hunt for Gollum to £3,000 by relying on crowd-sourced visual effects. That same year, the Cinéma Tous Ecrans festival awarded the film Best Fiction Produced for the Web. As of May 2024, fifteen years after its release, The Hunt for Gollum had been watched by 13 million people.
In 2014, Bouchard directed Hackney's Finest, a feature-length crime drama produced by Framestore, a film studio based in London. In 2018, he co-directed The Little Mermaid, released through Netflix. The film starred Shirley MacLaine, Poppy Drayton, William Moseley, and Loreto Peralta. Netflix distributed it nine years after The Hunt for Gollum had first found its audience on streaming platforms.
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Common questions
How much did Chris Bouchard's The Hunt for Gollum cost to make?
The Hunt for Gollum was made for £3,000, a budget achieved through crowd-sourced visual effects. Bouchard produced and directed the film as an independent Lord of the Rings fan film released in May 2009.
How many people have watched Chris Bouchard's The Hunt for Gollum?
As of May 2024, The Hunt for Gollum had been watched by 13 million people. In its first week of release in May 2009, the film ranked fourth on the US most-watched chart.
What award did Chris Bouchard win for The Hunt for Gollum?
The Hunt for Gollum won Best Fiction Produced for the Web at the 2009 Cinéma Tous Ecrans festival.
What films did Chris Bouchard direct after The Hunt for Gollum?
Chris Bouchard directed Hackney's Finest in 2014, a feature-length crime drama produced by the London studio Framestore. In 2018, he co-directed The Little Mermaid for Netflix.
Who starred in Chris Bouchard's The Little Mermaid?
The Little Mermaid, co-directed by Chris Bouchard and released on Netflix in 2018, starred Shirley MacLaine, Poppy Drayton, William Moseley, and Loreto Peralta.
How did The Hunt for Gollum rank on US charts in its first week?
In its first week of release in May 2009, The Hunt for Gollum ranked fourth on the US most-watched chart. The films above it were X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Star Trek, and a romantic comedy starring Matthew McConaughey.
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14 references cited across the entry
- 1JournalUniversity of Chester - Interview with Chris BouchardEmma Dollard — 15 September 2009
- 4NewsGuardian - fan films Hunt for GollumRichard Rogers — 2 May 2009
- 5NewsHunt for Gollum
- 8Youtube is Changing Media LandscapeKansas State University
- 9News‘The Hunt for Gollum’ Was Just Announced. It Was on YouTube in 2009.Stefano Montali
- 10Guardian - Week's New Films4 April 2015
- 11Gravitas Acquires Londons FinestScreen Daily
- 13- The Little Mermaid10 March 2017