Brian Patrick Butler

For other people named Brian Butler, see Brian Butler (disambiguation).

Brian Patrick Butler is an American actor, film director, screenwriter, and film producer. He is known for writing and directing the film Friend of the World (2020), writing and performing in the film Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea (2023), and appearing in the films South of 8 (2016), Thane of East County (2015) and We All Die Alone (2021).

Brian Patrick Butler
Born	San Diego, California, U.S.
Alma mater	San Diego State University
Occupations	Actor filmmaker
Years active	2014–present
Known for	Friend of the World Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea
Notable credits	South of 8 Thane of East County We All Die Alone
Website	brianpbutler.com

Life and career

While pursuing a degree in theatre arts at San Diego State University,^[1][2][3] Butler directed a production of Stephen Adly Guirgis's play The Last Days of Judas Iscariot.^[4] After graduating, Butler performed at New Village Arts Theatre in the West Coast premieres of The House Theatre of Chicago's The Nutcracker^[5] and Sarah Ruhl's Stage Kiss.^[6] He was also cast in Return to the Forbidden Planet at New Village Arts^[7] and played KJ in Ion Theatre's production of Annie Baker's The Aliens.^[8] During this time, Butler acted in the feature films South of 8 and Thane of East County^[1] before writing and directing two short films: Hatred and The Phantom Hour.^[9] In 2017, Butler starred in the short film Assumption^[10] and later in Hacksaw, a feature-length slasher film with Sadie Katz and Cortney Palm.^[11]

Released films

Main articles: Friend of the World and Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea

In 2016, Butler formulated a script titled Friend of the World.^[12] In 2020, the film premiered virtually at the Oceanside International Film Festival during the COVID-19 pandemic.^[13] Following the premiere, Butler mentioned he was inspired by the works of John Carpenter and Samuel Beckett.^[14] The film was distributed by Troma Entertainment in 2022^[15][16] and is listed as one of the 100 Best Zombie Movies, Ranked by Tomatometer.^[17]

In 2023, Butler starred as Liz Topham-Myrtle, a ruthless landlady, in a film made from his screenplay Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea.^[18][19][20] Directed by Tony Olmos, it was distributed by BayView Entertainment in 2024.^[21] Butler was nominated for acting, writing and editing at the 13th Oceanside International Film Festival.^[21]

Upcoming film: A Corpse in Kensington

In 2024, Butler directed a horror film titled A Corpse in Kensington, based on his own screenplay.^[22][23] Justin Burquist helped produce the film, which features Michael Madsen, Ryan Bollman, Derrick Acosta, and Kimberly Weinberger.^[24] It is expected to release in 2025.^[22]

Filmography

Year	Title	Writer	Director	Actor	Producer	Role	Notes
2015	Hatred	Yes	Yes	Yes	Executive	John	Short film[9][25]
2016	The Phantom Hour	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Bryce	Short film[9]
2020	Friend of the World	Yes	Yes	No	Yes		[2]
2023	Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea	Yes	No	Yes	Executive	Liz Topham-Myrtle	[18][26][27][28]
2025	A Corpse in Kensington †	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	—	[22][29]

Key

†	Denotes films that have not yet been released

Acting roles in other films

Year	Title	Role	Ref.
2015	Thane of East County	Matt	[1]
2016	South of 8	Ryan Bertrand	[1][30]
2017	Assumption		[10][31]
2019	Buy Roses for Me	Leo
2020	Hacksaw	Tommy	[11]
	Zach King's Day Off	Brian Butler	[32]
2021	Graduation Afternoon	Ben Dorne	[1]
	We All Die Alone	Riley	[33]
	Continuance	Loren	[3]
2022	Mike & Fred vs The Dead	Fred	[32]
	The Gools	One Leg / Hyena (voice)	[34]
2023	The Godfather	The Crime Boss

Accolades

Event	Year	Award	Film	Result	Ref.
Horrible Imaginings Film Festival	2015	Best Dramatic Short Film	Hatred	Nominated	[35]
Downtown Los Angeles Film Festival	2022	Best Ensemble Cast in a Short Film	We All Die Alone	Won	[36]
Oceanside International Film Festival	2022	Best Supporting Actor	We All Die Alone	Nominated	[37]
	2024	Best Actor in a Lead Role	Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea	Nominated	[38]
		Best Editing in a Feature	Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea	Nominated
		Best Screenplay (Feature)	Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea	Nominated
Atlanta ShortsFest	2022	Best Ensemble Cast	We All Die Alone	Nominated
Georgia Shorts Film Festival	2022	Best Actor	We All Die Alone	Nominated	[39]
Video Librarian	2022	Top 15 Best Narrative Films	Friend of the World	Won	[40]
Simply Indie Film Fest	2023	Best Ensemble Cast	We All Die Alone	Won
San Diego Film Awards	2015	Best Supporting Actor	Birthday Wish	Nominated
	2020	Best Narrative Feature Film	Friend of the World	Nominated
	2022	Best Ensemble Cast	We All Die Alone	Won
	2024	Best Ensemble Cast in a Narrative Feature Film	Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea	Nominated	[41]
		Best Lead Actor in a Narrative Feature Film	Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea	Nominated
		Best Narrative Feature Film	Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea	Nominated
		Best Original Screenplay in a Narrative Feature Film	Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea	Nominated
San Diego Film Week	2023	Best Dark Comedy Feature Film	Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea	Nominated	[42]