The Isle

1846 and another ship crashes on the rocks of an almost deserted island in Scotland. Three sailors survive the wreck and make it to shore where the few locals take them in as they wait for the mainland boat to come for them. But the sailors' survival story has only just started as they uncover the strange past of the once vibrant island.

Starring Conleth Hill (Lord Varys in Game of Thrones), Alex Hassell (Surburbicon, directed by George Clooney, BBC's The Miniaturist with Anya Taylor-Joy, Red Sea Diving Report with Chris Evans), Fisayo Akinade (The Girl With All The Gifts), Tori Butler Hart (Keeping Rosey, Edie, Two Down) and Alix Wilton Regan (The Wife).

Gareth Jones (Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Mum's List) and Jim Reeve (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Lady Macbeth) are producers, with Sir Ian McKellen as an associate producer.

  • Matthew Butler-Hart
    Director
    Two Down
  • Tori Butler-Hart
    Writer
    Two Down
  • Matthew Butler-Hart
    Writer
    Two Down
  • Tori Butler-Hart
    Producer
    Miss In Her Teens, Two Down
  • Gareth Jones
    Producer
    Mum's List, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels,
  • Matthew Butler-Hart
    Producer
    Miss In Her Teens, Two Down
  • Jim Reeve
    Producer
    Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Lady Macbeth
  • Conleth Hill
    Key Cast
    Game of Thrones, Suits
  • Alex Hassell
    Key Cast
    Surburbicon, Two Down, The Miniaturist
  • Tori Butler-Hart
    Key Cast
    Two Down, Miss in Her Teens, Keeping Rosy
  • Fisayo Akinade
    Key Cast
    The Girl With All The Gifts
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Genres:
    Supernatural Thriller, Period, Thriller, Ghosts, Myths, Victorian, Folk
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 36 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    August 10, 2017
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.39
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Manchester Film Festival
    Manchester
    United Kingdom
    March 3, 2018
    UK Premiere
    Best Cinematography
  • Newcastle Film Festival
    Newcastle
    United Kingdom
    April 1, 2018
    Breakthrough
  • East End Film Festival
    London
    United Kingdom
    April 20, 2018
    London
    'Discovery'
  • London Independent Film Festival
    London
    United Kingdom
    April 21, 2018
    Best Horror Film
  • International Independent Film Festival
    Los Angeles
    United Kingdom
    September 30, 2018
    Best Director
  • Norwich Film Festival
    Norwich
    United Kingdom
    November 9, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Berlin Motion Picture Film Festival
    Berlin
    Germany
    December 15, 2018
    Best Narrative Feature Film
Distribution Information
  • Great Point Media (Sales)
    Country: Worldwide
    Rights: All Rights
  • Brainstorm Media
    Country: United States
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Matthew Butler-Hart

Matthew originally trained as an actor and worked professionally for over a decade before becoming a full time director of film and theatre. He created Fizz and Ginger Films, with Tori Hart, in 2009 and has since written and directed various award winning short films, a TV movie, Miss In Her Teens and two features with the company, Two Down, and now The Isle.

Acting has always been in the family with his Irish great Aunt, Molly Quinn, training at RADA before becoming a poet. Matthew has two younger brothers, Graham Butler, also an actor, and Dominic Butler, a writer. Their father, Patrick Butler, was a keen amateur actor before dying at the age of 43.

With a mixed heritage of English, Irish, Scottish, Scandinavian and European, he was born in Shropshire but it wasn't until he was in the rainy hills of Yorkshire and Lancashire that he began performing and writing plays for his high school. It was at this time that he discovered the joys of creating films and this grew into his biggest passion.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

The Isle was my second feature film after the award winning Two Down and a huge change in direction after the black comedy thriller that that film was. I've never wanted to just focus on one kind of film and after the the dialogue led character film that Two Down was, I wanted to explore a much more visual kind of storytelling. I also wanted to work with a genre that I have loved since I was young, but also try and do something a little with it.

Since I originally trained as an actor I have always been character-centric in my writing, and even though with this film I wanted to explore the visual more, I will always work with the actors right from the beginning, meeting with the them to go through every line and moment and rehearsing the scenes of the next day the night before.

We shot the film in 2:35 to capture the natural beauty of the Scottish island and to help with that vintage feel, which I felt was integral to the storytelling. This means that the bigger the screen, the more amazing the film looks!

We never thought about writing this as part of a series of films, but since filming we have realised that there is room for more of the story and we are currently working on a second story, set fifty years after the original.