[UPDATE: Scroll down for the first teaser trailer]

Fans of the Sherlock TV mini-series - as co-created by current Doctor Who head showrunner Steven Moffat - know all about its star, Benedict Cumberbatch. The rest of the world has gotten a crash-course on who this guy is - and why he's inspired such a rabid fanbase - since Cumberbatch portrays the "mystery" antagonist in Star Trek Into Darkness.

The actor has completed work on a smaller-scale project; a short film, titled (appropriately) Little Favour. The action-thriller will pair Cumberbatch opposite Nick Moran - who played one of the Snatchers in the final two Harry Potter films - and is described as follows:

It's been 7 years since [WALLACE, played by Benedict Cumberbatch] left Her Majesty's service and 10 years since the American counter-part who became his friend, saved his life on a joint mission in Iraq. He's migrated his skill set into a lucrative business while managing to keep his secret battle with PTSD under wraps. One day, while finally deciding to try his hand at a functional relationship, his old friend JAMES cashes in his chip and asks a LITTLE FAVOUR. How could he refuse when he owes the man his life?

Little Favour was written and directed by first-timer Patrick Victor Monroe, with fellow newcomers Adam Ackland and Ben Dillon producing through the SunnyMarch production company (which the duo formed last year). Principal photography will take place in London, thanks to funds raised through Indiegogo. In fact, Screen Rant's President and Founder, Vic Holtreman, donated at a level that gives him an executive producer credit on the short film.

Benedict Cumberbatch in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Benedict Cumberbatch in 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy'

Monroe's script, by the sound of it, is the rare modern-day spin on the cloak-and-dagger espionage sub-genre, which tends to be reserved for movies set during the past (like the Cold War-era Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, co-starring Cumberbatch). It's not as though the actor is struggling to find work; so, following that logic, the story and lead role in Little Favour must've been good enough to get him onboard (that and a true indie-scale production might feel a refreshing change of pace for him, at this point in his career).

Check out the first teaser trailer for Little Favour:

In the meantime, you can see Cumberbatch on the big screen in Star Trek Into Darkness (read our review), followed later this year by his appearances in award season contenders like 12 Years a Slave and The Fifth Estate; not to mention, he is voicing Smaug the dragon in this December's The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.

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We'll keep you posted on further developments concerning Little Favour.

Source: Indiegogo