Naeem Mahmood

Naeem Mahmood is one of the freshest directors emerging in the UK whose work has been screened at various International Film Festivals and broadcast on BBC TV and ITV Network. He was mentored by Gary Kurtz - producer of Star Wars and Empire Strikes Back, and is a graduate of the Berlinale Talent Campus at the 54th Berlin International Film Festival 2004. In his late teens Naeem won the Prince's Trust Millennium Award and teamed up with several young creatives to set up the film production company Trailblazer. In 2002 Naeem's short film 'Home Sweet Home' made the finals of ITV's Whose London? competition. He went on to work for ITV on programmes including the Graham Norton Show, Pop Idol, GMTV and the South Bank Show. Having cut his teeth in television, Naeem won a Best Picture award at the BRNO International Film Festival for the film 'Swimmer' which was described by Time Out magazine's Dave Calhoun as "A film that shows real promise and exudes confidence." Naeem went on to direct 'Flashmob' - an uncompromising portrait of the horrors of cyber bullying. The film won the 2008 Apollo Award for Best Youth Arts Project in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. The Mayor of London awarded Naeem for his outstanding contribution to London through his film work. Naeem's directorial feature debut Brash Young Turks was released theatrically in the UK to considerable acclaim, followed by a TV broadcast on London Live and digital release on Amazon Prime. The film was awarded Best UK Movie at the 10th Movie Video & Screen Awards 2016. Naeem's ability to constantly come to the table with fresh ideas has seen him direct stand out promos for acts including Vivienne Westwood, Mos Def, Akala, Lemar, D Double E and Margherita Taylor.