Dedicated to expanding Chattanooga’s film scene
Christian Eaves is a big part of a small community. Despite Chattanooga having one of the best film festivals in the region, the filmmaker scene is relatively small.
It’s not for lack of trying—Chattanooga State has a premier television and film production program, one that has led to many a student leaving for greener pastures, typically Atlanta, which is quickly becoming a southern haven for Hollywood productions (provided the state government doesn’t drive them away with their extremely conservative social policies). Christian has done work in Atlanta, as well as across the country, but he calls Chattanooga home.
“I was born and raised in Chattanooga,” Christian says. “The early part of my career started with various projects in Chattanooga before branching out.”
His interest in film developed at an early age, encouraged by his father. As with most children, an interest is sparked by watching the adults around them.
“My dad used to film various subjects when I was very little, mostly family hangouts,” Christian explains. “When I turned 10 my dad was upgrading cameras and decided to pass down his old one to me. I was so nervous to operate it—I had no idea how to stop it after pressing the record button.”
What was initially just a hobby became something else in high school, however. Christian spent his teenage years “filming various skits with his friends”, but according to Christian, he “didn’t realized [he] was laying the foundation for understanding the filmmaking process.”
As he grew more confident and more capable, he attracted the attention of “prestigious museums [The Holocaust museum in Jerusalem] and a famous global economist [Harry S. Dent Jr.].” These successes helped lead him to the pursuit of film professionally.
A visit to Christian’s website (christianeaves.com) reveals a small smattering of his work, from commercial projects, to music videos, to his short film Tomorrow Never Knows, which won the MTSU Film Festival Award in 2016.
It seems obvious to anyone familiar with film that Christian has a keen eye for camera work, particularly in his short film. In fact, it’s the direction that really elevates the film to something more than that it seems. Christian’s approach to filmmaking has changed as he’s moved farther into the industry.
“My approach towards all genres have altered over the years,” Christian says. “In the early years I would mostly show up and create on the fly (still do sometimes). Nowadays I tend to spend more time on the pre-production so that I’m more prepared on set. It’s not so much I prefer one genre over the other, but I do prefer a project that is creatively engaging and challenging. A commercial can be more creative than a music video, depending on the client.”
Beyond just commercial work for clients, Christian says he is interested in working on features, but he’s not sure exactly what capacity it would be in. “The ultimate thing to overcome is financing,” he says.
Film work in Chattanooga can be challenging, Christian admits. “The film scene in Chattanooga is still fairly quiet,” Christian says. “Only a handful of people to my knowledge are actively trying to produce films here. All mostly low budget.”
There are a few positives, however. “People can be very supportive and there are always people interested in lending a hand,” Christian says. But there’s also a “lack of specialized on-set positions such as DP’s [director of photography], Audio, or Grip. There is not a big selection available.”
Christian is also concerned about how few avenues there are for young filmmakers to get their work in front of an audience. “I think local film festivals could improve on showcasing films that are produced locally. There seems to be little to no representation.”
He admits that the lack of representation could be due to lack of quality, but still thinks festivals should make room. “I do think local festivals should open a category dedicated to specifically Chattanooga films,” he says. “Why not have representation for films that are produced in the same area as the festivals? It seems pretty obvious.”
In terms of future projects, Christian wants to play things close to the chest. “I’m currently in preproduction for a local short film directed by Emily Steele,” Christian says. “I will be the DP on set and hopefully it will give me a chance to showcase my ability as a dedicated DP. More projects down the pipeline, but would like to keep those as a surprise.”