A horror movie created by a Stevenage-based production company has raced to the top of the film charts after being released two weeks ago.

Treehouse hit the top spot of the iTunes Horror Films category on its release week, based on the number of times it had been downloaded.

Producer, writer and actor Steve Weston brought the film to life and premiered it at the Bram Stoker International Film Festival in Whitby on Friday.

The 48-year-old said: “I am so proud of it. It is only the second film we have made and it is doing incredibly well.

“Both our films have been independently funded and we have had amazing success with both of them.”

Mr Weston set up Strong Oak Pictures – that’s the AngloSaxon derivation of Stevenage – in 2009 to work on his own projects.

His first film Wounded, which he co-wrote, was released in 2012 and went on to win the best feature film at the Marbella International Film Festival and the London Independent Film Festival.

Treehouse was shot on location in Missouri with an American cast, and the trailer has already been seen by more than a million people on YouTube.

Steve, who has 20 years acting experience, said the film has already been released as a DVD and online in the UK, but will get a theatrical release later this year in America.

The plot centres on a small town in America where people are going missing. A group of teenagers go into the woods and stumble on a treehouse, with one of the kidnapped victims inside.

They then have to fight their way to freedom.

He said: “It is story-based rather than just violence-based and it is something that people can get carried along with.

“It is a good horror story and I think it will be around for some time. It has a nailbiting finish and the visuals are outstanding.”

Speaking about Stevenage, his home town, he said: “People do not think there is a film community in Stevenage, but there is.

“I think Stevenage is a town that apologises for itself, but there a lot of great people here doing great things that people are not aware of. It is time to stand shoulder to shoulder and be proud of who we are.”

To find out more about Strong Oak Pictures visit www.strongoakpictures.com.