First Look at Sasha Nathwani’s Loud Debut

EXCLUSIVE: Here’s your first official look at Last swim, the debut feature film from British independent filmmaker Sasha Nathwani.

Vertigo will release the pic – which debuted at last year’s Berlin Film Festival – in UK and Irish cinemas on April 4. In Berlin, Nathwani’s debut won the Crystal Bear for Best Film in the Generation 14plus sidebar. Since then, the film has created buzz on the festival circuit with competitive screenings in London and Valladolid.

Set on a sweltering day of exam results in London, the pic follows Ziba, an up-and-coming British-Iranian teenager, as she leads her friends on an eventful journey across the city. Despite the party atmosphere, Ziba struggles to maintain her characteristic optimism as she finds herself struggling with the fears and secrets she keeps from her friends. As day turns to night, Ziba has no choice but to confront her reality, changing the course of her life and the future she has planned.

Written by Nathwani and Helen Simmons (Magot), the film stars Deba Hekmat, Lydia Fleming, Denzel Baidoo, Solly McLeod, Jay Lycurgo and Michelle Greenidge with Narges Rashidi. The producers are Campbell Beaton, Bert Hamelinck, Nisha Mullea, Sorcha Shepherd, Simmons and James Isilay.

Last swim is Nathwani’s first feature film, but he is a seasoned commercial filmmaker. He also studied at NYU. This project was born partly during the COVID pandemic, he told us during an interview in Berlin.

“We were developing the scenarios in the middle of the pandemic, when young people around the world were having their defining years ripped away from them. So that was one of the ideas for the script,” Nathwani said. “How would you reclaim your youth if you could?” »

Check out Nathwani’s full interview here. And the full Last swim trailer above.