Harry Potter: Students aim to raise £40,000 to produce 'fan film' Published duration 10 November 2014

image copyright other image caption A promotional teaser has already been shot for Mudblood and the Book of Spells

A group of Harry Potter fans hopes to raise £40,000 within a month to make a film inspired by JK Rowling's novels.

Manchester student Cameron Cairnduff said his movie would follow the story of a wizard expelled from Hogwarts - the school attended by Potter.

If enough is raised on the Kickstarter crowd-funding website before December, filming could start in the New Year.

Mr Cairnduff said the new story "didn't want to rip off Harry Potter" but would explore issues raised by the books.

image copyright Warner Bros image caption The last Harry Potter movie was released in 2011, four years after the final novel was published

He said Mudblood and the Book of Spells would focus on the lives of "muggle-born wizards".

For non-Harry Potter fans, muggles are people who are unable to perform magic. Their treatment by some wizards in the novels is often viewed as an allegory for racial discrimination in society.

"It can relate to a lot of things like being the odd one out at school," Mr Cairnduff said of his plan to make the UK's first 'fan film' inspired by the Harry Potter series.

The film and television post-production student said he had sent a "piece of parchment" about his project to JK Rowling but has yet to receive a response.

"We want to make something people will want to watch and we want to create our own [job] opportunities," he added.

"There are no good Harry Potter fan films - they're all American and have low production values."

Northern filming

Mr Cairnduff is working with classmates at Futureworks media school in Salford and volunteers from universities including Manchester, Manchester Metropolitan, Salford, and the Royal Northern College of Music.

Along with students from the universities of Staffordshire and Huddersfield, they hope to start shooting across northern England in January, before premiering the film in Manchester and London at the end of 2015.

Award-winning actor Bretten Lord will play the lead role of Charlie, forced out of Hogwarts after retaliating to abuse from other students.

image copyright other image caption Bretton Lord won a Hollywood award for his role in the film Lad: A Yorkshire Story

After 200 were auditioned, Forbes KB - who played Lorren in Game of Thrones - has also joined a 100-strong cast of volunteers.