A new documentary, Spreadsheet Champions, is set to screen at the Melbourne international film festival, offering a glimpse into the little-known world of competitive Microsoft Excel. The film was directed by Kristina Kraskov, a Melbourne-based film-maker who first learned of the international Excel competition six years ago and was so intrigued she decided to make a film about it.
The competition, run by Certiport and officially endorsed by Microsoft, has been held since 2002 and is open to students aged 13 to 22. According to the documentary, the average person uses only 10-15% of Excel's capabilities, but competitors must understand closer to 70%. The contest has two parts: the first tests proficiency in formulas, functions and features, graded on accuracy and speed; the second involves a more creative application of the software, described by Kraskov as “understanding the story of the data, or the soul of what it is actually telling you”.
Each competitor must first qualify as the best in their home country, and entrants are allowed to compete only once in their lives. The film follows six young people from around the world as they head to Florida for the 2023 Microsoft Office Specialist world championship: Alkimini, 20, from Greece; Braydon, 16, from Australia; Carmina, 16, from Guatemala; De La Paix, 19, from Cameroon, who had no laptop or wifi and studied at school; Mason, 15, from the US; and Nam, 21, from Vietnam.
Kraskov and producer Anna Charalambous spent about a week with each competitor in their home country, observing their daily lives and speaking with their families. “People reveal themselves a lot if you just pay attention to how they live their lives,” Kraskov said. The intention, she added, was to show how amazing the competition is, not to mock or disparage the contestants.
The documentary also touches on the secrecy surrounding the contest, which is overseen by a man named Bing. Kraskov explained that security was high-level, though Bing eventually trusted them with retired questions. For participants, the experience can be transformative: Carmina, now 18, is studying mechatronics engineering at university.
