In Camera

Twenty-something Aden (Nabhaan Rizwan) dreams of becoming a successful actor, but the nightmarish grind of the audition circuit, with its callous rejections and upsetting micro-aggressions, is starting to take its toll. It doesn’t help that his junior doctor flatmate Bo (Rory Fleck Byrne) is also stressed to the point of burnout. But when self-assured fashion and lifestyle guru Conrad (Amir El-Masry) moves in, his optimism and confidence inspires Aden to take it upon himself to find a new part to play.

Full of pointed observations about an industry rife with prejudice and hypocrisy, In Camera deploys elements of surrealism and fantasy to trace how its young British-Asian protagonist’s sense of self is affected by the tokenism of a world he hopes to conquer. Candid and funny, with an unsettling eye for the warped and bizarre, it’s a playful, stylish satire, not just of showbiz, but also of how the myriad absurdities of modern British life have created a new generation of anxious young men. With a complex and supple central performance from rising star Rizwan and a soundtrack by Clark, this debut film from director Naqqash Khalid heralds an exciting new voice in British cinema.