Matthew Holness is to direct his first feature film, a psychological horror called Possum.

Possum is based on Matt’s short story about a demonic puppet, originally written for the horror anthology book The New Uncanny: Tales of Unease, and now available as an e-book. The story is about the relationship between disturbed puppeteer, Philip (played in the film by Sean Harris), and his hand puppet, Possum.

Matt has called it “a supernatural horror combining the stark psycho-drama of George Romero’s Martin with the uncanny terror of Dead Of Night,” and he claims that it’s “not remotely funny”.

Speaking to Chortle, Matt said of Possum: “The film draws on the dark nightmares of silent expressionist horror, British classics such as The Innocents and Don’t Look Now, as well as the claustrophobic suburban gothic of Pete Walker’s Frightmare.Possum will terrify in the best tradition of classic horror cinema, evoking an atmosphere of supernatural dread and creeping horror.”

Filmed at the end of last year, Possum is currently in post-production, with no news yet on its release details. As soon as we know any more, we’ll be sure to pass it on.

Prior to this, Matt’s directorial work has been in short form films, including the Halloween short Smutch for Sky Arts, and The Snipist, which was one of the Playhouse Presents films from 2012. He also takes writing, acting and directing credits for the excellent A Gun For George. Possum is Matt’s first feature.