Local Film Director Creates Full Movie in Three Months

In just three months, a team of creatives in Tameside bring an idea to reality, allowing an unforgettable movie to come to life.

Steven James Griffiths, the writer and director of the upcoming film ‘Highly Recommended’, explained how it’s been a lifelong dream to make a feature film. After realising that the goal is a “now or never” situation, he decided that this is the perfect time to pursue his goal, bringing a mere idea to a movie in just three months. Steven’s girlfriend, Jo Booth, told Tameside Reporter that “he told me that his big dream was to make a feature film.

Next thing I know, it was three months after the conversation, and he’d written it, directed it, and pulled together 25 people to be a part of it.” ‘Highly Recommended’ is a film that follows the seemingly normal meeting of a weekly book club, which accidentally summons a demon as a result of a Latin inscription within this week’s book recommendation. Jo Booth, who is the executive producer of the film, noted how the horror-comedy genre of ‘Highly Recommended’ is important because it’ll be open to a wide audience. 

The film stars the talented actors Christine Walsh, Neil Rowland, Wendy Patterson, Kelsea Knox, Cal Bentley, and Alexi Papadopoulos. Writer-director Steven gave thanks to casting director Adam Zane for helping gather such a stellar cast, also adding that the cast mainly consists of those from in or around the Manchester area, emphasising the spirit involved in the community project.

Manchester’s independent Angry Lynx Productions shot their debut film in 7 days, each day sitting at around 10 hours of work – a feat commonly unseen in the film industry –with a final budget of under £5,000. Angry Lynx Productions partnered with Munin Entertainment, who “helped massively” with the running of production. 

‘Highly Recommended’ is a film shot solely in and around Mottram Community Centre, with the 200-year-old, grade 2 listed building inspiring the movie, creating the perfect atmosphere for the horror-focused storyline. 

To highlight the positive attitude surrounding the project, Steven said that “Mottram opened the door to us. We tried very hard to make it worth their while.” And Paul Morris, one of the producers for the film, said that “We are extraordinarily grateful to a community that didn’t have to give us the time of day, but did.” 

The team of ‘Highly Recommended’ hopes that when audiences see the final film, they will “have a laugh and have  a jump scare”, as well as realise that it is possible to create a high-quality feature film or similar project on a tight  budget. Writer-director Steven explained how he wishes that they can be the people others come to when they want to make a vision come to life. 

The next steps for the team that will bring you ‘Highly Recommended’ will be to make more, as explained by Steven.He said that script ideas have been lined up by himself, D.B. Madden, who assisted with the story of ‘Highly Recommended’, and producer Paul Morris, with hopes to bring at least one to the big screens for the community to enjoy. 

Members of the production are hoping to bring the finished film ‘Highly Recommended’ to the public on Halloween, offering a public screening in the community centre for those interested. Steven and Jo hope that by doing so, it will encourage other young people in the community to get inspired and see what they can put their minds to. 

To follow Angry Lynx Productions with the most recent updates, view their Instagram @angrylynxprod