Coming Soon To A Screen Near YOU!!!

 

Ever wanted to see your name up in lights? How about seeing them in the credits? I was idling through Twitter or X or whatever it is called nowadays, and came across a tweet from Matthew Butler-Hart. He was saying that a Kickstarter was being organised to get his latest film onto a screen nearby. I’ve followed Matthew and Tori Butler-Hart for a while now, since I got to review their lockdown feature Infinitum: Subject Unknown. This was a blessing back in the days when I was getting loads of ultra low budget films to review.

They had been given lemons and actually went off and made limoncello. They only had iPhones at their disposal but, let’s face it, an iPhone Pro has a pretty decent camera built into it and, ultimately, what makes a film a winner is more about where the camera is pointed and what goes on in front of it than who actually made the thing! And what they also did was make use of the lockdown. Remember at the height of the lockdown when you went and stood at the end of your drive and could hear…nothing! Remember how weird it was? All those years when you went into your garden mid-morning and thought how peaceful it was. 

That Was Then…

But now you realise how noisy it was then. Traffic at the end of the road, a primary school’s playtime two streets away, aeroplanes, and all that were gone. NOW it was quiet! They took that atmosphere and ran with it. Infinitum: Subject Unknown was a slice of Sci-Fi Mystery set in a parallel universe and that was what big cities like London felt like in lockdown. Oh that’s obvious you may say, but how many one man film crews do you remember wandering around? Also, how many independent directors can get the likes of Ian McKellen and Conleth Hill to take part in their films? Yes…those ones…Gandalf and Lord Varys! It boils down to contacts and connections going back years. 

So that was why I was following Matthew on Twitter. Well, that and the fact that the guy can tell a really good story. Which is also why I tried to find some of his older films. The first one I actually found was The Isle. This was a fantasy/mystery/period piece again featuring Conleth Hill and Tori Butler-Hart. I’ll be honest and say that I think Tori is gorgeous. I would watch her peeling potatoes and be quite happy. I can’t say more because Matthew might read this. So, two films. Both gripping but totally different showing that, as a director, Matthew Butler-Hart definitely has range.

…And This Is Now

But enough of ancient history. I started off talking about a new film and a Kickstarter campaign. The new film is called Dagr. I did a quick Google and found that Dagr is Welsh for dagger, and the film is set in Wales. I also found that Dagr is the personification of the day in Norse mythology and there is some demonic activity promised. In some ways it appears to be a return to The Isle in as far as it is on a folk horror theme but it is also bang up to date in that it is in the found footage sub-genre and features fame seeking YouTubers in a paranormal nightmare. Having seen a bit of the stuff that goes out on YouTube it’s no more than they deserve.  

So what are the funds being raised for? This is the best bit. Dagr has wrapped on filming and being in the horror vein, it would be marvellous if it could be released as soon as possible. The money is to boost the post-production budget so that it can be on some big screens in the spring. I, personally, have never dipped my toe into the murky Kickstarter waters until now. I know this will be a great film and I am chuffed to silly apples to have the opportunity to help out and, finally, get my name on the credits! Trust me, when you have an ideal face for radio it’s the only way it will happen!

Want to get your name on the credits as well? There’s not a lot needed to reach the target but, if you’d like to see your name in the credits, follow this link!