Sober – the comedy film shot in Leeds – about to arrive on your screens very soon.

In coming!

Sober (2024) is the new comedy film set in Leeds and starring Tom Gibbons (Funny Cow) and Dean Smith (Waterloo Road / Still Open all Hours).

We shot the film back in April 2023 in nine days and for the past 18 months it’s been in post-production as I worked around other script writer for hire and UK script consultant gigs

As of today at the end of July 2024 – the film is about to be locked visually and sent off to the composer.

The film is without doubt, the biggest achievement of my filmmaking and scriptwriter career – all the more because the total budget of the film was below £10,000 and the film is based on script originally written in 1998 at the very start of my filmmaking life.

The script has changed drastically over the years – but the original intention to create a laugh out loud comedy drama has been preserved.

The two lead actors – who co-wrote and co-produced the film have been instrumental in my finally realising this project as a feature film – and getting it over the line. And both the performances of the lead actors show a lot of courage and heart – and belief in the project, so much so that they helped co-finance it with me.

So, now begins the build up to how we get this film released and shown to the general public.

Keep watching this space.

Matthew Cooper has been a script writer for hire and UK script consultant for over 20 years. He’s written for most of the UK soaps, including writing award-winning episodes of Emmerdale, EastEnders, Hollyoaks and Family Affairs and has been BAFTA shortlisted and Royal Television Society nominated as a script writer.

His directorial debut, the rubber reality horror thriller ‘Markham’ was released in 2020, his second feature film as director ‘At The Mountains Of Madness’ hit the screen in 2021 and his third horror feature film (and final part of The Sekurig Trilogy) When The Earth Gives Up The Dead (2022) was released on Halloween 2022.

Matthew has recently directed ‘H.P. Lovecraft’s The Shadow Over Innsmouth’ which is currently in post-production. 

His latest feature film SOBER is near completion – a comedy starring Dean Smith (Last Tango in Halifax / Still Open All Hours) and Tom Gibbons (Funny Cow / The Archers) will be released in 2024.

You can find some of his broadcast credits on the IMDb.