John Butler, the IFTA-winning director of RTÉ sketch show ‘Your Bad Self’, has been chosen by the Director’s Finders series to screen his feature debut ‘The Stag’ at the Director’s Guild of America theatre in LA this 20th September.
Mr Butler’s selection will grant him the opportunity to showcase his comedy film before an audience of US distributors and key industry figures in the hope of securing a US distribution deal.
The impressive cast includes Andrew Scott (‘Sherlock’), Hugh O’Conor (‘Bloom’); Andrew Bennett (‘Moone Boy’); Michael Legge (‘Shameless’); Brian Gleeson (‘Love/Hate’); Peter McDonald (‘I Went Down’) and Amy Huberman (‘The Clinic’).
‘The Stag’ follows a group of friends on a stag weekend camping trip to the West of Ireland, which is thrown into chaos by the bride-to-be’s crazy brother ‘the Machine’, played by Peter McDonald.
The film is produced by Treasure Entertainment’s Robert Walpole and Rebecca O'Flanagan, and co-produced by Claire McCaughley; based on a screenplay written by John Butler and Peter McDonald.
‘The Stag’ was filmed over four weeks in Dublin in November 2012 and was supported by the Irish Film Board.
Mr Butler told the Irish Film Board: ‘This is a huge honour for me and for all parties involved; my collaborator Peter McDonald, the producers, and cast and crew. At the outset, the only hope you can articulate for your film is that it manages to find as big an audience as possible. We're so proud of this film, and hopefully the 2013 DGA Director's Finders award gives us a chance to get ‘The Stag’ out into the world.’
