Ahead of the inaugural Melbourne Web Series Festival on 20 July, we’re profiling all 30 series that made the Official Selection list. Next up is To Punchy, created by Will Murphy.

To Punchy is an intrigue driven drama filmed within Ontario, Canada by creator Will Murphy. The basic synopsis is this: Punchy is dead and a motley crew of anti heroes team together to discover who the murderer is. “In a tale of vengeance, pride and loyalty – the truth will be revealed,” says Murphy.

Murphy created the series with the intention of bringing a cinematic plot to the world wide web. With more and more people turning to the net for a quick fix of entertainment, Murphy explained that this would allow people to watch it in their free time and at their convenience. Social media such as Facebook and Twitter have helped drive the series and reach distant audiences.

So why should people watch this series? According to Murphy, “people should watch To Punchy because there’s going to be a character in there you like and want to see more of, it’s a story you’ll want to discover and it’s an experience you won’t regret.”

http://youtu.be/VFhMNJcjvzs

What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome in production?

There were a few challenges when it came to production due to budget. A lot of our techniques were very indie yet we wanted this to look as high budget as possible. There were a majority of homemade DIY appliances for movie making methods.

The most difficult scene was one that takes place in the third episode. It’s a five minute, one shot scene which follows two characters as they break into a house and after walking throughout the entire house engage in a complex choreographed fight scene with three other men. Needless to say, it took a few takes, some very talented operating from the DP, and some incredible actors and stunt men. We got it done and I’m extremely proud of the finished product.

What do you want people to take away from your series?

My ultimate dream would be for them to connect to it emotionally. Whether it’s compassion for a character, relating to a story aspect or predicting what’s going to happen; it would be a dream come true for it to mean something to them. The characters are ones that I would want people to fall in love with and hate. I want them to be sitting at their desk watching this and feeling the same as they would sitting in a movie theatre watching their favorite flick.

Why make a web series?

I see web series as the new output for ambitious young filmmakers. There’s still some attention they need to get and the market still needs to be fully established but it allows you to tell a narrative story and really access your viewer in a way that was once never possible. I only see them becoming more and more the way people go, and in doing so, they’ll become more and more popular.

To Punchy on the web:

Series website:  www.topunchy.com

Series Facebook:  www.facebook.com/ToPunchySeries

Series Twitter: https://twitter.com/ToPunchy

Creator’s website:   www.odinsmustache.com

Creator’s Twitter:   https://twitter.com/odinsmustache

Melbourne WebFest is on July 20, and tickets are on sale now. Keep up to date with the festival on Twitter: @MelbWebFest

La Trobe University is an official partner of Melbourne WebFest