� An actor who has spent the past seven days promoting his zombie film at the Cannes Film Festival is due to find out today if he has bagged top prize in a global movie competition.

I Am Lonely, starring Chris Spyrides, from Woodford Green, is one of 10 short films entered into the Cannes Short Film Corner competition.

The eight-minute film beat 2,000 other entrants to make the shortlist of the National Film Board of Canada.

After two weeks of voting, visitors to website YouTube have made their decision on which of the 10 films will win more than �7,000 of production equipment.

Mr Spyrides, 36, of Wallers Close, said: “When I was in Cannes I was trying to speak to as many people as possible and really pumping up the film.

“When you first come out of drama school, the Cannes Film Festival seems like something for big people and big films.

“But this short film competition gives you the opportunity to get noticed and for people to see your work.

“For independent filmmakers, it makes the chance of achieving more tangible.”

The short film was made by Braine Hownd Films and directed by Phil Haine.

It has a zombie plot and was filmed in a single day, with two weeks dedicated to editing.

Team effort

The winning film will be decided based on how many people have selected the “like” option on YouTube after watching the film, minus the number of “dislikes”.

Post-production software and camera equipment will be given to the winning filmmakers.

The film has support from Brit comedy actor Simon Pegg, who re-tweeted a link to it on his Twitter page.

Mr Spyrides, who has been a professional actor for nine years, said: “It was a fun film to make and a real pleasure.

“Everyone was comfortable with each other on the set and it was a real team effort.”