BBC Fresh Profile: Graham Hughes

Graham Hughes, film-maker and creator of The Odyssey Expedition, talks to BBC Fresh about how he started making films.

Performing and filming his own comedy performances at university led to a film project that saw Graham travelling to every country in the world.

Watch film-makers Aneel Ahmad, Zoe Callan, Graham Hughes and Fran Baker talk about short films

How did you get started in film making?

In the late 90s while at Manchester University studying Politics and Modern History I was involved in setting up a Comedy Society in which we would go out and shoot short comic sketches on a Sony Digital-8 Camcorder. It was about the time that non-linear editing was becoming a viable option for the home user. As well as performing, I loved the technical side of things and the ability to tell a story through imagery and sound. Not wanting to be a politician, lawyer or history teacher, after I graduated I set myself up as an independent film-maker.

It was about 8 years of making music videos for local bands, no-budget shorts, self-filmed travel documentaries and boring (but well-paid!) corporate work before I got my big break with Lonely Planet to film my own TV show.

Can you list some of your production credits?

Lonely Planet's The Odyssey (8x30mins) - Creator, Writer, Director, Producer, Presenter.

What do you love about making documentaries?

Shooting from the hip, pulling images and moments together to make a story, meeting crazy characters and the wonderful feeling once it all comes together to make something really special.