A Southampton filmmaker has said the wider Southampton era could become a movie making hub after his most recent short films gained tens of thousands of views on YouTube.

Callum Brown, 28, from Sholing, used locations such as Netley Abbey, Hamble, and the New Forest for his latest horror inflected short films.

The first of which is The Collector – centres around a sinister remote car owner – that was followed by The Red Veil, that sees three friends uncover a buried pocket watch linked to a disappearance more than a century ago.

“From my experience, there’s loads of areas in and around Southampton where you can film,” said Callum.

“Southampton is becoming more utilised and has the potential to be a real hub, there’s up and coming music artists who film their music videos here, it’s just a great place to film and the people are really friendly.”

READ MORE: Horror film shot in Southampton area released on Prime Video

Having followed his friends to study film and TV at both college and university, Callum said he first “picked up a camera and gave it ago,” before eventually becoming a full-time videographer.

He said: “When I was studying at Solent University, a lot of people on the course didn’t know what there was beyond the city centre.

“I took friends across the Itchen Bridge and showed them areas by the water and Royal Victoria Country Park.

“Southampton is an amazing place to find a variety of different locations and I think it could utilised going forward.”

Though Southampton is not well-known for its Hollywood film status, notable movies to have been filmed in the city include Tenet, Solo: A Star Wars Story, and Sean Connery’s final official film as James Bond, Diamonds Are Forever.

Callum hopes that the cusses of his most recent short films will help him to gain a following online, allowing him to pursue future projects.

“It’s been crazy, The Collector has surpassed 10,000 views on YouTube in about five months, with The Red Veil gaining more than 14,000 views in less than two weeks.

“They’re the first horror films I’ve made, I’d previously made a ballet drama of Othello, and it made it to the semi-finals of the Berlin International Film Festival.

“Everything I’ve done has been self-funded and I’ve enlisted the help of friends, contacts, and students to help with the production of each film.

“If someone is able to start creating films, Southampton is a great place to start as you’ll always find somewhere.”