CityLife

Salford college film project grabs international attention

Ryan McDermott produces and stars

THE comment beneath the YouTube clip says it all: “I laughed my guts out”. It’s just the kind of recommendation Ryan McDermott and his pals would love to see plastered across a poster at the local multiplex if their short movie is ever remade as a blockbuster.

The gore-and-giggles low-budget film, Mark Macready And The Archangel Murders is a tale of paranormal goings-on in Greater Manchester. But behind the camera, it is a story of three mates making a movie while holding down day jobs and raising the shoestring budget by flogging stuff on eBay.

The gamble paid off with showings at film festivals across the UK, a string of rave reviews and an invitation to last weekend's Zero Film Festival in New York. “They really loved it, we did a cool Q&A after it and they all wanted to know when they could see a feature film. The prospect of more US screenings is high with LA already being discussed with festival organisers.

“My emotions are all over the show. One minute I’m taking office calls and the next minute I’m introducing a film to 200 New Yorkers,” says McDermott, who produced and starred in the film while also holding down a job in NHS administration.

“It’s been a rollercoaster for all of us. We all thought we were part of something a little bit different, but we didn’t know if it would do what it’s done.”

If it seems like a pipedream that a 33-minute film, made for little more than £5,000, should kick-start a film-making career, McDermott cites the six-minute sci-fi short Alive in Joburg, which was adapted into the feature film District 9 with the help of Lord Of The Rings director Peter Jackson. And then there is horror movie Paranormal Activity, made with a camcorder and a $15,000 budget, but now raking in millions. The first version of Blair Witch Project cost only $100,000, but went on to gross $250m worldwide.

McDermott, aged 24, from Swinton, teamed up with Sean Candon, 23, from Swinton, and Paul Feeney, 25, from Salford, in 2002 when they were studying film and media at Pendleton College. Feeney came up with an idea for a British X Files for a project.

'Determined'

“It was deadly serious. We filmed some of it and thought we’ve no chance on earth anyone’s going to believe this,” says McDermott. “We’re not professional actors, so it became a bit of a comedy, and it worked out really well.”

That first version was shot in Langworthy, Salford. The trio stayed in touch and made a short film called The Driving Test which won the BBC3 Funny Hunt competition. They then decided to return to the Mark Macready character and remake it.

They were turned down for Lottery funding and decided there was “too much politics” entailed in seeking help from Northwest Vision And Media.

“We had to find the money in two months, because that’s when we were going to have to film it,” says McDermott. “We all had holidays booked and we all had to be in the same place at the same time. So we went round our houses and found old Star Wars toys, got the He-Man and Turtles toys and put them all on eBay. We raised £2,000. Friends and family could see how determined we were so they put in money. And we had sponsorship on Facebook, and raised £200 or £300 from anonymous people donating.”

Actors such as Paul Newbery and Nathan Head worked for nothing, and filming was carried out in car parks in Manchester, a bus station at Shude Hill, Swinton train station and inside Swinton Conservative Club.

“Four four months, the clock was ticking. We were all working full-time. I was up until 5am or 6am, then getting up again at 8am to go to work,” says McDermott. “I’ve never worked so hard in my life.”

There were five-star reviews in Gorezone magazine, comparisons made with spoof horror movie Shaun Of The Dead and a showing of Mark Macready at the Odeon Printworks in Manchester on Halloween, in a double bill with the classic chiller Halloween.

“I get very frustrated. I want to do this full time, but I need to bring in the pennies,” says McDermott, who lives with partner Hollie Cheadle. “The best outcome would be that we get to make this into a feature film, or get money and work with the same people on a different film.”