Matthew Morgan as Ashley in “Happy Birthday”. Pic: Oli Ashrafi-Tari

Matthew Morgan is already making his name as an actor both on stage and on screen. Having turned his hand to writing and directing, he is looking forward to the production of his second short film “Home”.

Spiralhouse Pictures is the film production company that Morgan, 20, from Croydon, founded as a sideline to acting.

Morgan said: “[Directing has] always been something I’ve been interested in. I am a huge fan of film and I go to the cinema almost every week. When it occurred to me that I can just pick up a camera and start making my own films, I did it straight away.”

Having recently confirmed their cast, dates and location, Spiralhouse pictures will start shooting their second short “Home”, about “an ageing Jamaican lady [who] dwells on sad incidents from her past,” on November 26.

Morgan told Eastlondonlines that his experiences visiting his Grandmother who suffered with dementia inspired the story for the short film.

“Dementia is such a relevant topic, and it is something we tend to shy away from in the arts, but I wanted to make something which has dementia at its core, and is a touching story which people can relate to.”

Morgan’s first film under Spiralhouse Pictures was shot in Croydon. “Happy Birthday” was well received by audiences and sees Morgan play 18 year old Ashley, a teenager coming to terms with living alone.

“People seemed to respond quite well to it. It deals with death and grief, and we have had a lot of e-mails from people who have watched it telling us how much it resonated with them.”

When asked about the arts in Croydon and South East London, Morgan said: “Personally, I think it’s shameful. We don’t have a very good reputation for arts, and it is so sad, as there is a huge demographic for good theatre and other arts, as well as hoards of talented young artists with no real outlet.”

‘Home’ is being developed by B3 Media and funded by O2 Think Big. Morgan described the two national organisations as “very supportive”.

Spiralhouse Pictures hopes to finish the short film in February 2015, and it will be on the festival circuit soon after.

The 20 year olds acting credits include BBC television show “My Almost Famous Family”, Ed Sheeran’s music video “You Need Me I Don’t Need You” and two feature films. Morgan is currently performing at the Almeida Theatre in Islington.