Written by Birmingham City University film lecturer Ryan Davis, who also co-produced the work with colleague Alan McQueen, Fixed follows the story of a backstreet bookie stabbed, locked up and left for dead after fixing a bare-knuckle fight – played out through nerve-wracking video, text and phone calls all set in just one claustrophobic and thrilling location.

The low-budget, high-concept drama will be available for UK movie fans to watch on demand before an anticipated US release in 2022.

Fixed was shot in Birmingham’s Lampworks studio over four weeks during the Covid-19 pandemic in December 2020, drawing inspiration from single-location films including Sidney Lumet’s 12 Angry Men, Richard Linklater’s Tape and Steven Knight’s Locke.

Directed by Birmingham-based award-winning director and writer Jez Alsop, the movie features a cameo from UK rap star Juice Aleem, and stars Black Country actor Greg Piper – better known as Sgt Ryan Pilkington in BBC smash hit drama Line of Duty, originally filmed in Birmingham.

Featuring Londoner Nick Clarke with local connections as the lead, Daz, Fixed also sees Birmingham-based star of Doctors and EastEnders, Laurence Saunders, as Roy Donner in the new work.

The Fixed soundtrack was produced by Birmingham musicians Richard March (Pop Will Eat It’s Self, Bentley Rhythm Ace) and Dan Finnemore (Low Cut Connie and Swampmeat Family Band).

Industry experts Davis and McQueen, who lecture in Feature Film Development (MA), Screenwriting and Short Film Making (BA Hons), and Film Business (BA) at Birmingham City University respectively, also worked on the feature film with a colleague from the University’s School of Visual Communication and alumni from the School of Computing and Digital Technology, as well as a team of current BCU students from the Film Business degree course.

Speaking ahead of the release of Fixed, Ryan Davis said, “Fixed was a tough film to produce and make. We came up against the Covid-19 lockdown and two floods on set. It was almost biblical! The budget was also incredibly tight. We all came together, and against the odds made a movie, set and filmed in the city, that we are all proud of. We can’t wait for people to see it.”

Birmingham based production company Gambol Films was founded to ensure Fixed was shot in the region and crewed locally. Adhering to strict Covid-secure working guidelines, the film was shot in four weeks with no confirmed cases of the virus amongst the cast and crew during filming.­