Love me a short film. So I was happy to receive an invite to the premiere screening of new short, held at Salford University at MediaCity.

Know what else I love? Connect 4.

The 14-minute comedy-drama, set in the traditional social clubs of the North West of England, joins young Connect 4 star “Frank” as he attempts to take down a 4-time Russian Grandmaster in the world final.

The wacky comedy dives into the fictional world of competitive Connect 4 to tell the story of an overbearing father who is on the brink of seeing his son realise his lifelong dream of having a Connect 4 champion in the family.

From Glacé Media, a Manchester production company, co-produced by Flare, and filmed across Greater Manchester in February, Connect 4 is a love letter to the traditional to the traditional tongue-in-cheek grounded northern grit, meets the surreal.

Written and directed by Matt Green and produced by Marcus Johnson, Connect 4 doesn’t mess about. Going straight in with a nervous breakdown by the urinals, and culminating in a heady meeting of minds that is the Connect 4 final, plus, PLUS, the results of the meat raffle, it’s a story of winners and losers.

But it would be remiss of me to ruin the tension and spoil the end by revealing just where and with whom victory lies. That’s for you to find out.

And I really do recommend you take the opportunity to do so.

A dad’s dream, a son’s nightmare…

Some highlights:

• The training scenes, featuring Liam Grunshaw as the father-cum-coach and Mickey to Frank’s Rocky.
• The high tension, punctuated by the staggered crunching of a Monster Munch crisp as a group of friends pull together and come to the aid of another in the toilets of a social club
• The head-to-head scene of young Frank meets old Frank, as the latter searches for the courage to take to that competition stage, and the classic battle that is yellow meets red.

Some great performances from the cast, including Ronan Taylor, as the older Frank in only his first professional acting role, and some great laugh-out-loud moments which very much embrace the spirit of the classic northern comedy we love.

Thank you for the sneak peak Glace and I look forward to seeing it again at a film festival near me soon.