Portsmouth filmmaker’s ‘excitement’ as debut feature film officially released by UK distributor

Sam Plommer’s comedy flick ‘Plastic Boy’ has been released by new distribution company Tanglewood Films and is now available to buy and stream on video on demand and streaming websites in the UK.

Sam said: ‘It's very exciting, it means it can reach a lot more people and have a life outside of just being on my external hard drive.’

Filmed on an iPhone for a micro-budget, ‘Plastic Boy’ won awards at the Ramsgate festival and the Monkey Bread Film Tree awards.

Shown at festivals across the world, Plastic Boy tells the story of a man who is not where he should be in life – but cannot be bothered to do anything about it.

Portsmouth-born Sam, who went to Admiral Lord Nelson school, said: ‘Portsmouth is definitely an inspiration and I am very interested in exploring my relationship to Portsmouth in future films as I’m very interested in that relationship to a hometown.

‘Portsmouth is even mentioned by name in Plastic Boy. Even though Plastic Boy is set in London it is very much the story of someone who has left their hometown and found it to be a challenge, which is pretty universal I feel.’

Early critic reviews called the film ‘a quiet little gem’ and said that Sam’s performance of a role inspired by himself was ‘sincere and real’.

Sam added: ‘I’m currently writing a few scripts at the moment which I hope to get funding for off of some of the success of Plastic Boy.

‘A lot of these scripts either highlight a relationship with the main character and their hometown - like in Plastic Boy, I play the lead in stuff I make - or would be set in Portsmouth.’

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Sam said that there is ‘a lot of Portsmouth energy’ connected to the film; cinematographer Danielle Wiltshire studied at the University of Portsmouth, and Sam’s dad played a small role in the film.

The filmmaker said: ‘My dad is a taxi driver in real life and played one, so he knew the role well.

‘He even let us use his Aqua taxi in it – you can even see it in one of the shots.’

Plastic Boy includes performances from The Bill’s Shaun Stone as well as Blood and Bones star Ross McNamara, and features music from the band Trust Fund.

The film is a continuation of the themes explored in Sam’s web series ‘Sorry Not Interested’, such as a quarter life crisis, awkward sex scenes, and what one character refers to as ‘white gay problems’.

Sam said: ‘The film is the product of so many life events and painful experiences learnt and feels like something I’ve been planning on making since I was 18 - lots of little fragments of life from over the past 13 years that felt like they were connected in some way and told a story.’

Viewers can watch the film on platforms such Vimeo on Demand, Plex, and more.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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