31 North 62 East, the debut feature film of Horsham-based Fact Not Fiction Films, enjoyed its worldwide Premiere at the Capitol Theatre on Wednesday night.
If it wasn’t a strange enough sight seeing a fleet of Limousines lining up by the traffic lights, a red carpet added to the glitz and glamour of the event, as autograph hunters gathered in the foyer to catch a glimpse of screen idols.
Some driving by might have felt the need to step on the accelerator - as several local doormen had been hired to pose as SAS soldiers for the night, and looked particularly menacing with convincing replica machine guns!
As well as director Tristan Loraine, chief executive of Fact Not Fiction Films, all of the film’s major stars were in attendance.
John Rhys-Davies, perhaps the best known of the film’s stars thanks to his roles in the Indiana Jones and Lord of the Rings films, chatted with some of the 423 guests on the night.
Also present were Craig Fairbrass, Marina Sirtis, Heather Peace, Mimi Ferrer and Aurelie Bargeme, who all feature prominently in the film.
Tristan confidently took to the stage to present the film, and was warmly applauded by an audience who, either through their own experiences with the director or through reports in the local press, were well aware of the extraordinary efforts he had gone too to put together such a production.
Many of the scenes in the £300,000 film were shot in Horsham, and the sight of spots such as The Causeway, Wiston House, Bar Vin and The Bedford Pub caused a stir amongst the audience.
And Tristan plans to exploit the beauty of the town further still in his next production A Dark Reflection (which will star many cast members seen in 31 North 62 East) and has pencilled in several key scenes for a Horsham setting.
The film will be shot early in 2010, with a budget about three times that of his directorial debut. This figure, though, will pale in comparison to the £10million release of another future project, Shadows in the Sky.
Tristan already compares the script for Shadows to that of Erin Brockovich, and claims that the major release will expose corruption and shake-up the aviation industry.
The film will be on general release at The Capitol for one week from tonight (Friday).
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