The woman behind ‘Hunt Vs Lauda; The Next Generation’

Charlotte Fantelli certainly is a woman in a mans world. Not only is she a female business owner, film producer and director, she specialises in making content for a male audience. Her latest film Hunt Vs Lauda; The Next Generation picks up the legendary rivalry between racing families Hunt and Lauda. A nod to Ron Howard’s ‘Rush’ the film carries the story of legendary James Hunt and Niki Lauda and pits their two sons Freddie (Hunt) and Matthias (Lauda) against each other head to head.

Motorsport is an area mostly thought of as ‘male’ dominated, but this will be Charlotte’s third foray into the genre, with films she has Directed and or Produced; ‘Journey to Le Mans’ and ‘Gentleman Driver’ blazing a trail for her in the niche.

We catch up with her on the day her latest film is released.

So Charlotte, please tell us what interested you in the Hunt/Lauda story?

Well as a motorsport fan the Hunt/Lauda rivalry has to be the greatest in history. To be able to be a part of bringing these families back to the trash head to head is an absolute honour.

What were your expectations as a filmmaker?

Honestly as a documentary maker you shouldn’t go in with preconceived ideas or a closed mind. However, I was of course looking forward to getting to know the guys (Freddie and Matt) more and learn what was similar to, and what was different from their fathers. I had obviously been told they were quite similar to their dad’s, however, I wanted to tell this story afresh, and get to the heart of them as individuals, to examine their unique characters and what makes them tick. After all, when the viewer watches the final race between them, I wanted them to have a favourite, be rooting for a champion, and to be on the edge of their seat. We couldn’t achieve that simply by writing a historical story.

How was it living and breathing this story beside these two characters?

It was wonderful. One of the things I truly love about being a filmmaker is being utterly emerged in the story you are telling for a period of time. We travelled to Scotland to stay with Freddie and to Ibiza to be with the Lauda family. Being able to go into their homes and their lives, to eat with them, chat with them, touch and feel the racing suits of them and their fathers.. These things are a dream for a racing fan like me, but also essential in order to properly translate their motives and characters on screen.

How do you ensure a good story in a documentary when you are showing real events?

Ha that is a great question. It is hard to say how much is luck and how much is talent or skill. I have been exceptionally fortunate with the stories I have been telling, to have some very compelling things happen. Journey to Le Mans for example we had the main character crash into a wall and come back from disaster before taking his ‘underdog’ team on to become world champions! I can’t take too much credit for that! In this one – without giving too much away, the races could not have been more dramatic and nail-biting. However, without blowing my own trumpet, I think it is also about having an eye for character and storytelling. If no-one cared about the characters, there would be no drama. If you can portray people in a way that connects the audience with them, they will be right there with them in the story.

Will you do more motorsport docs?

Yes absolutely. I have two in the pipeline currently and an Amazon series we are hopefully about to sign this coming week. I have plans to do other things too of course, but this is a passion and a niche that suits me and Branded Studios. We have proven our abilities to tell great motorsport stories that capture and audience and perform commercially – a winning combination!

Where can we find Hunt Vs Lauda?

It is out in the UK as of Dec 19th 2022 and worldwide over the coming weeks. It is available on iTunes, Amazon, Google Play and DVD among other channels globally. You can keep an eye on our websites huntvslauda.com and brandedstudios.co.uk for more information. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Jose Pottamkulam, James Crofts and Joe Mathews for bringing me the Hunt Vs Lauda opportunity in the first place, it has been a pleasure bringing this vision to life.