A new trailer has dropped for an upcoming British comedy featuring a bunch of people you may (or may not) have heard of, a thrilling heist, and an infamous 80s arcade game that can supposedly control people’s minds!
‘Ashens and the Polybius Heist’ stars some of the most famous people you’ve probably never heard of, with Stuart Ashen (1.5 million online followers) featuring alongside Sunday Times best-selling author Daniel Hardcastle (2.5 million followers) and Stuart Barter (3.5 million followers) amongst many other huge names in the online world. They join forces with legendary actor Robert Llewellyn (Red Dwarf’s Kryten) and a slew of up and coming comedians to bring together a passion project seven years in the making.
Every gamer and sci-fi fan knows the Polybius legend, with rumours swirling of hallucinations and fatal side effects amongst its players until the game suddenly vanished from arcades in 1981, never to be seen again… A motley crew of misfits band together to hunt down the infamous game that can supposedly control people’s minds. But is the legend all that it appears? Can the No-Confidence Crew get to it before it’s too late? And what do lawnmowers have to do with it? The clock is ticking…
“Filmmaking is bloody hard at the best of times, but completing a film this ambitious in the midst of lockdown has been the challenge of a lifetime,” comments lead actor and co-writer Stuart Ashen. “It has taken a herculean effort from the whole team to finish off this fun, feel-good story that’s the perfect tonic for the times we’re all living through.”
Following the breakout success of 2013’s ‘Ashens and the Quest for the GameChild’, Relentless Films were able to crowdfund £150,000 towards the film’s budget in 2018, demonstrating the huge interest in the project. Shot on an Arri Alexa with post-production services from The Farm and Technicolor, Polybius Heist brings a big budget ethos to a home-made story. The film is a veritable love letter to geeks and anyone who has ever felt like an outsider: a film made by nerds, for nerds.
“The fans’ passion for this film has been incredible,” director Riyad Barmania. “I’ve never worked on something with so much excitement and support from the audience, I can’t wait to share it with everyone.”
On a side note, if you scan the trailer closely, you may also spot our very own blue-haired muppet, Bex of TristaBytes, in the background of a couple of scenes!
Gear up and synchronise watches, as ‘Ashens and the Polybius Heist’ premieres On Demand via iTunes, Vimeo, YouTube, Google Play, and Amazon Video on Thursday, 19th November 2020.
