Over the years we’ve learned you don’t always need a big budget to make a successful film.
Kevin Smith kick-started his career by maxing out a load of credit cards to raise the $27,000 (£21,000) needed to make Clerks, going on to recoup millions at the box office.
Darren Aronofsky, meanwhile, was able to parlay the $68,000 (£53,000) budget of Pi into a seven-figure box office take and a long-lasting Hollywood career.
The latest addition to the low-budget/high return club, however, is on course to do even better.
You probably haven’t heard of One Cut of the Dead, but you’re likely to hear a lot more about it soon.
The Japanese zombie horror flick cost just $27,000 to make, but – according to The Hollywood Reporter – has already brought in more than $7m (£5.5m) at the box office.
And that figure is only set to rise, with distributors picking up the film in a number of countries… including the UK.
Directed by Shinichiro Ueda, who reportedly put it all together in just eight days, One Cut of the Dead features a largely unknown cast.
The plot surrounds a team of filmmakers and actors working on a low-budget zombie movie when… well, you can probably figure out what happens next.
However, while the premise might not be entirely original, the film has won plaudits for its humour and its self-aware take on the zombie horror genre, earning a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes at the time of writing.
Perhaps the stand-out element of the film is its 37 minute long opening take, described by IndieWire’s David Ehrlich as “virtuosic but strangely casual”.
Another reviewer, John Higgins of Starburst Magazine, says “Its key strength is to take the zombie genre and tip it on its side.”
One Cut of the Dead has already grossed more than $7m in Japan alone, and its international roll-out is likely to take the final figure much higher.
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