Charlie Lunardi is a new transfer student at Boston University, and transferring during a pandemic has certainly been a challenge. Along with all of the other struggles of changing schools, Charlie also has to learn how to work with a rather collaborative medium in a time where in-person collaboration is discouraged. During our conversation, Charlie shared her experiences with transferring during the pandemic, advice for others thinking of transferring, as well as some insights on what it’s like working in film during this time.
Monica Courtney: What are you majoring in and what do you hope to do as a career after graduation?
Charlie Lunardi: I’m majoring in Film and TV, so I’d love to have a career as a writer-director, but I also would like to establish teaching programs for incarcerated people (specifically in art recreation).
MC: How did you know transferring to BU was the right choice for you?
CL: I always knew I wanted to live in a city, and BU has a great film program. BU is also very future-focused in a good way. Most colleges advertise to prospective students like they’re selling the *experience* of college, but BU seemed very focused on education, and I liked that. I knew I would be around other people who wanted to learn, not just party, and have the “college experience.”
MC: How has the pandemic affected the process of transferring?
CL: I definitely don’t think I would have been accepted if not for the pandemic. I started applying to transfer before the pandemic hit, so I was planning for it. I do think the pandemic pushed me towards BU a lot more since it gave me something to look forward to. If I didn’t transfer, my options would have been doing remote school at a college I didn’t like or doing remote school while stuck at home. It was an easy choice. I will say that making friends and just connections, in general, has been super hard because of the pandemic. It almost doesn’t even feel like I’m really in college because things are so isolated. That being said, I’m coping with it a lot better than I thought I would. I actually like kind of being on my own and having my own routine, I think this whole process has made me grow a lot as a person.
MC: What is it like taking classes, specifically film classes, during the pandemic?
CL: Film classes have definitely been lacking. I was drawn towards film because it’s such a collaborative art form, but now that collaboration is completely gone. The restrictions have been tough, too. Sets have to be super small, we can’t film in dorms, and actors have to wear masks. On the one hand, I think these restrictions are going to force students to be more creative with their projects. I’m fine with never seeing another student film shot in a dorm room. However, it’s difficult for actors to wear masks, and I feel like the professors don’t like it either. Unfortunately, we can’t do anything about it, so we have to live with it. It’ll be interesting to watch films from this year in the future. It’s a weird time stamp that automatically dates everything we make now. I think that’s neat, in a way. I miss working on big sets, and I miss the collaboration, but I know all this weirdness is temporary.
MC: What advice would you give to other students thinking about transferring to BU?
CL: Don’t freak out too much. it’s a scary decision but if it feels right to you then you should do it. You only get to be young and in college once, so you should like where you’re at and be confident that you’re getting the best education possible.
Thank you, Charlie, for talking to me and sharing your experience transferring to BU during the pandemic!
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