If you’re a young filmmaker clinging to the idea that your script or short film could be the path to that elusive first movie, take heart from the experience of actor/director Matthew Butler, who is even now in the process of turning his comedy short E’gad Zombies into a romp called The Curse of the Buxom Strumpet. And he’s nabbed no less a cast than Ian McKellen, Gillian Anderson, Judi Dench and Mark Williams to star.
McKellen was the first aboard, having narrated E’gad Zombiesand already filmed his scenes and narration for Strumpet (a good idea, since he’s going to be busy on Peter Jackson’s little genre project for the next few months in New Zealand). The rest of the cast have slowly been gathered since then.
With a script co-written by Butler and producer Toni Hart, Strumpet will expand E'gad's world, follow struggling 18th century poet William Filthe, who is trying desperately to win the heart of the seemingly unattainable Vanity Banks. His romantic quest is made that much harder when a zombie outbreak happens in their small village of Upper Trollop.
Butler is busy scaring up the £2 million he needs to complete the rest of the film, and has been shopping the rights around Cannes. With luck, he’ll crank the cameras again later this year in Scotland.