‘Under the Mud’ is a local production by independent film company Hurricane Films, which was written by local teenagers in Garston at the Internet drop-in centre, Interchill in 2002. Just like its real life roots, this is a heart-warming tale of family and friendship against the odds, which manages that tricky mix of drama and humour.

Despite being branded Liverpool’s answer to ‘Shameless’ and the best script celebrated actress Kathy Burke had read in years, the ‘Under the Mud’ crew found it difficult to secure funding. That is, until South Liverpool Housing provided financial support which enabled Hurricane Films to shoot the film two years after it was written.

Once ‘Under the Mud’ was made, nothing could stop its quest for world domination. This little indie film from Liverpool was shown in film festivals across Europe, Canada and America, where the young writers rubbed shoulders with Zac Effron, Brad Pitt, the Affleck Brothers and even John Travolta. From their sofas in Liverpool, watching Hollyoaks, the group had made it to Hollywood USA.

However, as independent filmmakers know, the path to success is never smooth and the group discovered this when they could not find adistribution deal. Despite the film’s obvious charm and warmth, companies were nervous about its lack of a big name star, which unfortunately condemned it to never be released. All involved began to move on, get new jobs and put Hollywood behind them. Hurricane Films went on to make the BAFTA nominated ‘Of Time And The City’ with Terence Davies - but that’s a different story.

Suddenly, news arrived that a wealthy ‘fairy godmother’ had fallen in love with the film and was willing to invest. Events spiraled as a DVD release was on the cards and the whole crew was rounded up for radio interviews and newspaper reviews. Even an ‘Under the Mud’ bus was made to promote the film across the city. Finally, seven years after that local writing group first met, ‘Under the Mud’ has been released on DVD by Hurricane Films themselves, showing that just like the family in the film, they will succeed.

More info at www.underthemud.com