Writer-director

It is no wonder Esther May Campbell's compelling visual style has caught the eye of UK film executives. Her short films - Delilah, Poppy and most recently September, about a man's infatuation with a circus performer - make the most of their modest budgets and have a mesmerising sense of mood and place. But it is not just about the look. As Rebecca Mark-Lawson, managing executive of Lifesize Pictures which runs the UK Film Council's (UKFC) shorts scheme that part-financed September and Poppy, says: '[Campbell] loves the underdog and she wants to celebrate them through cinematic study. She's passionate about her characters and that comes across in her work.' Three short films for BBC's teen website Slink - one in particular about a young girl coping with the death of her mother - demonstrate that commitment to storytelling. This self-taught film-maker is now talking to Company Pictures' Robyn Slovo about a feature project, as well as writing the black comedy Gaddibledah with Philippa Goslett (Little Ashes) and developing family drama The Number 9, produced by Met Films with backing from South West Screen.

Contact: Casarotto Ramsay, (44) 20 7287 4450