Jonathan Sothcott, from Sussex, started production company Shogun Films with his wife Jeanine in 2020.

Mr Sothcott’s love for films was inspired by renting videos from a shop in Hailsham – one of his nearest towns when he was a child. 

He said: “What made me fall in love with films was renting them. 

“They had an old shop called Video Legend in Hailsham that I used to love.

“Now we’re making small indie movies. We’re trying to work with older actors as well.

“We decided to start the production company just before the pandemic. 

The poster for Helloween(Image: Shogun Films)

“My wife said ‘you love action and horror, why don’t you do that stuff?’.

“We make quite old-fashioned horror films. The kind people used to rent from Blockbuster.

“We have found a nice niche. We’re a small family run business. 

“Jeanine is an actress as well. It’s the two of us and the dog.”

Mr Sothcott’s latest film, Helloween, was released on BluRay on October 13 and is due to appear on the big screen at Hailsham Pavilion on Halloween.

“It’s showing at a beautiful cinema in Hailsham”, he said. 

“It’s a fantastic cinema, it’s a charity. This is a different kind of Halloween event and something fun.”

Jeanine Sothcott in the film Helloween(Image: Shogun Films)

Helloween, described as “The Purge with clowns”, was inspired by the killer clown trend in 2016.

Directed by Phil Claydon, whose other works include Lesbian Vampire Killers starring Mathew Horne and James Cordon, the film follows a doctor, played by Mr Sothcott’s wife Jeanine, and a journalist.

The pair trace the source of a murderous craze back to a jailed serial killer, who they race to stop. 

Actors include Michael Pare, known for Streets of Fire, and Ronan Summers, who has featured in Guardians of the Galaxy and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. 

Mr Sothcott’s other films include Nemesis, Renegades and Harbinger, for which filming has just finished outside Hailsham. 

Tickets for Helloween at Hailsham Pavilion are available to purchase on its website. The film will show at 7.30pm on October 31 and appropriate fancy dress is encouraged.