Liverpool teenagers take leading role

LIVERPOOL TEENAGERS TAKE LEADING ROLE

A VIBRANT comedy film, written by Liverpool teenagers is to receive its world premiere in the city on February 9 at the Philharmonic Hall.

Under The Mud, produced by Hurricane Films with the support of North West Vision, the film, TV and digital media development agency for the Northwest, has taken two years to reach the screen - and film-fans will be delighted with the result.

“The film has already received high praise from acclaimed professionals such as Kathy Burke and Jimmy McGovern and tickets for the premiere are selling really fast,” says Chris Moll, Head of Funds for North West Vision, which provided substantial investment towards the film’s costs.

Further financial backing was received from the UK Film Council, Liverpool Culture Company, Glaxo Smithkline and South Liverpool Housing.

The community project tells the story of a day in the life of a family from hell. Or are they just ‘one hell of a family’?

Liverpool City Council Leader, Cllr Warren Bradley, says: “This is a fine achievement and it’s great that Liverpool people will be the first to see the film at its special charity screening. It represents two years of work for the young people and they should rightly be proud.”

Shot in and around Liverpool’s Speke and Garston areas, the film shows the lives and loves of the Potts family, who seem set on a course of self-destruction. The lead character, Magic, is played by comic actor, Lenny Wood, who also helped to script the film.

“Lenny is a true star of the show,” says the film’s director, Solon Papadopoulos. “The fact that so many of our young writers went on to act in the film is testament to the uniqueness of the project.”

Hurricane Films have now set up a community foundation scheme, Hurricane Film Foundation CIC, to enable further feature film ideas to be developed, in collaboration with sections of society who wouldn’t usually have access to the world of professional film-making.

Under The Mud’s producer, Roy Boulter, says the film is packed with humour. “The young writers have created a world that is full of hope and inspiration,” he says. Though the writing process took two years and involved lots of hard work, Roy maintains that it was “highly enjoyable” and feels strongly that Hurricane Films got just as much out of the collaboration as the young writers.

For more information visit www.underthemud.com Tickets for the gala charity screening are available from Liverpool Philharmonic box office 0151 709 3789.