We had the good fortune of connecting with Charles Thomas and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Charles, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Both my podcast Atlanta Film Chat and my production company Hooty Hoo Productions were products of jumping at opportunities. AFC began because I noticed nobody was covering the Atlanta and Georgia film scene which was (and still is) exploding. Hooty Hoo was a result of a guest on AFC saying there was money to be made in unscripted content versus scripted films or shows. I had no interest at the time in doing unscripted work, but the chance to get some shows made was too promising. So off we went, and now we have a comedy special out on Apple TV and Amazon Prime that went #1 on iTunes.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I started off in entertainment only wanting to be a horror screenwriter. Since then, I’ve branched out to not only writing other types of content, but wound up in role as a producer, something I had no idea I could ever do. I like to say that I’m just smart enough to realize where opportunities lie – TV and film evolve rapidly, especially these days, so realizing where things are headed (streaming options, niche audiences, etc.) can help you continue to have a career where others will stagnate and wither away. As storytellers in the unscripted world, we simply want to tell interesting stories, whether it’s in the world of professional gaming, comedy, home improvement, or whatever comes next.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’m not much for nightlife, but I am all about eating. I’ve explored the Westside a good bit as far as restaurants go. Some of the best I’ve discovered are Chef LA’s Fish Fry, Fit Foodies, Rodney’s Jamaican Soul Food & Grill, and Tassili’s Raw Reality. When I lived near Chef LA’s I ate there every chance I got. As far as things to do, any visiting friends would undoubtedly also play video games, so we would probably go to Joystick Gamebar so I could easily destroy them in whatever fighting game they chose. Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Before I started Atlanta Film Chat, I listened to a bunch of shows to get the ideal format I wanted. Shows like Nerdist, Penn’s Sunday School, Doug Loves Movies, and the Du Nord Futbol Show (RIP) all helped me figure out how I wanted the show to sound and flow.

Website: http://atlantafilmchat.com/ afcindiefilm.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atlfilmchat/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ATLFilmChat
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/atlfilmchat
Other: My production company Hooty Hoo Productions’ website is hootyhooproductions.com.
I am on the board of Film Impact Georgia, a local non-profit that assists indie filmmakers in the state filmimpactgeorgia.org

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