AFTER a successful crowdfunding campaign to raise funds for her short film Eduardo Munez, actress and writer Ruth Tapp – from Kilbirnie in Ayrshire – has been inundated with handwritten letters addressed to the eponymous character.

When Ruth wrote the script for Eduardo Munez, a darkly humorous short film about a man bombarded with mail, she had no idea that life was about to imitate art and she would soon be the recipient of nearly 400 letters, sent in just three months, from all over the world.

Envelopes from countries as far apart as Brazil, Singapore and Egypt have been arriving through Ruth’s door on a daily basis since late January, sometimes with as many as 20 in one delivery, all addressed to Eduardo Munez.

During the crowdfunding campaign, which featured in the Herald last year, Ruth’s film received a lot of attention from letter lovers or "snail mailers".

Some of these mail enthusiasts asked if they could send letters to Mr Munez to be used in the film as props. The first few letters trickled in and in January, Ruth set up the Eduardo Munez Letter Project Blog to display the envelopes as they arrived.

The blog proved to be extremely popular and it now features 366 letters from 28 different countries with more arriving every day.

“When the first few letters arrived I thought we’d get 20 or maybe 30,” admitted Ruth.

“Then at the end of January it just sort of exploded! I started to get emails from Russia, Morocco, Taiwan – all from people wanting to write to Eduardo. We now have letters from every continent in the world except Antarctica. Actually there is a post office in Antarctica so I keep hoping one might still arrive from there. That would be amazing.”

Despite temptation Ruth has yet to open any of the mail she has received.

“In the film none of the letters get opened so everything has to remain sealed until after we finish shooting," she said. "Some of the envelopes are so beautiful – I’m desperate to see what’s inside but I have to be strong.

"We are planning to film a sort of opening ceremony afterwards to reveal all their mysterious contents, which I’m really looking forward to.”

Ruth is an actress and writer from the Garnock Valley.

Her credits include How Not To Live Your Life for the BBC and national theatre tours of Whisky Galore and Lilies on the Land. She is working on this project with producer Joseph Teague and the award winning director Laurel Parker of Mobley Street Productions. Eduardo Munez will be filmed in London in June 2016.