Azim Miah

Starting out, “my back was against the wall,” says film director Azim Miah. He lost money, faced criticism from those around him, and didn't see people in the industry who looked like him. But it was these early experiences that shaped his voice as a director, while his upbringing and home in Northampton gave him an edge and perspective outside the London-centric industry. Now working across commercials and music videos with the chance to hire other creatives, he’s paying it back and supporting others.

What I do

My creative practice
I am an independent film director and editor. My job is to take an abstract feeling, brief, script or musical concept and turn it into a living, breathing visual story. As a director, I guide the vision, work with the actors and lead heads of departments (camera, lighting, styling, art) on set. As an editor, I sit with that raw footage and sculpt the rhythm, tone and emotional beats in post-production.

Influences and inspiration
Ironically, most of my early influences were not related to film. Growing up in Northampton, my visual and rhythmic sense was shaped by a massive collision of cultures: gangsta rap from one speaker, Bollywood soundtracks from another; wrestling games, anime and rock music. I was labelled as too westernised by my own culture, but too eastern for people who weren’t Bangladeshi. I’ve always felt like an outsider and used that to cultivate my voice.

Today, a lot of my visual pacing comes straight from hip-hop and jazz music production. I study how producers sample and manipulate off-beat timing and translate those musical cadences into the edit suite. Creating outside the London bubble gives me a unique lens: in Northampton, you can find stories, textures and grit in places mainstream media rarely looks.

My training
I am self-taught, built up over 13 years in the independent trenches. I started with an old webcam and an iPhone 6s, learning through trial and error from YouTube videos. I gradually transitioned to films to express myself.

Beyond knowing the technicals, the two most vital traits are empathy and high-pressure problem-solving. Directing isn't about barking orders; it's about active listening. If you can understand what people need and make dozens of cast and crew members feel heard, they will give you everything on set. It’s about balancing boosting morale and what you truly want.

Favourite recent project
One of my favourite recent projects is The Exorcism for the dating app Breeze. It was my first time directing VFX, featuring a levitation sequence that personifies the modern era of dating in a horror aesthetic with a pinch of comedy. It got attention from big publications (Shots labelled me as one of the top unsigned directors) and knocked down some industry doors that were closed just a few weeks prior.

A day in the life
It genuinely depends on the production phase. Pre-production is a mixture of pitching, building concepts, meetings, recce visits, casting and more. Being on set is always a long day: early morning call times, high-focus energy and time constraints. At the same time, morale is always high and the day runs smoothly because of extensive prep. Post-production is me in the edit suite – the complete opposite of set life because I’m mostly in solitude.

Outside of production, I’m constantly researching and studying the greats in my craft while making time to enjoy life with friends and take care of my physical and mental health through exercise.

A starter pack for my job:

How I got here

Starting my creative journey
It was a super slow grind. Growing up in Northampton, specifically The Mounts, you see the harsh side of life right on your doorstep, with homelessness and people dealing on the corner. I watched people around me generally have two paths: settle for a safe job to make their family proud or get sucked into crime because it’s always within reach.

Pursuing filmmaking with no connections or budget seemed completely illogical. As a teenager, my back was against the wall: I was losing money, getting zero approval and a ton of criticism, and never seeing anyone who looked like me on TV or film unless they were comic relief or a stereotype. But I couldn’t help but keep going; if not for me, then at least for my culture. Filmmaking became my lifeline and the only way to build something of my own.

I'd speed-walk home from school and make videos for hours every day because it was the only form of expression I felt I had. I treated every micro-budget project like film school, picking up every tool I could get my hands on; some of my early projects were done on a webcam and an iPhone 6s. I had no clue what I was doing, but I knew it felt right.

Landing my first few jobs, clients and/or commissions
100% cold outreach. I went to countless events and offered a multitude of different services and styles – corporate, music videos, social content – until, after hundreds of conversations, someone decided to give me a shot on a super low-budget corporate video.

I did a couple of those, then I branched into doing ridiculously cheap music videos to get my foot in the door. On any low-budget music video or film I directed, my one condition was always complete creative freedom; I used that as leverage to build my own distinct style and brand. Eventually, that led to clients directly hiring me for my eye.

Biggest challenges along the way
Being a black sheep in my own community, having no formal guidance and battling depression whilst pursuing a path that is essentially a pay-to-win system. It often felt like a lose-lose scenario. However, those challenges built my voice.

As a director, I can hire a range of creatives, helping people get paid and their families fed. The people I’ve met along the way and the freelance opportunities I can now offer others serve as massive motivation, helping me push through the hardest moments. I’m not just doing this for my own self-expression, but for current and future generations of British-Bangladeshi artists.

My social media and self-promotion vibe is…
Overcome your fear of what people might think and pair that with consistency. I don’t believe in the whole "Post at an exact time with your phone angled at 75 degrees" advice from social media gurus. Algorithms are always changing, but great, consistent work never expires.

Three things I've found useful in my career:

Courses, programmes, initiatives, access schemes or job boards I've found helpful:
Studying film at the University of Northampton helped me understand people. You have students from all walks of life in one room, which teaches you how to navigate different personalities while protecting your artistic vision.

Being selected for the BFI Immersive Storytelling Lab 2026 expanded my understanding of spatial storytelling and non-traditional visual frameworks. It challenged me to think beyond standard flat frame narratives and experiment with audience experience of immersion, pacing and emotional perspective.

My greatest learnings when it comes to making money and supporting myself as a creative:
I’ve seen too many filmmakers fall into the ‘starving artist’ trap. It is completely okay to take a non-industry job to support your creative ambitions, even if it’s for months at a time. I’ve worked numerous jobs to keep myself afloat: bartending, retail, kitchen porter shifts, warehouse work, you name it. Did I want to do those jobs? No. Did they fund my dreams and turn ideas into reality? Yes.

The only thing you have to watch out for is getting too comfortable. View the day job as a resource to fund your portfolio; in your spare time, build your freelance network and body of work until it’s strong enough to step out full-time. Enjoy the ride and don't rush the process.

My advice

My most useful career tips
One of the biggest hurdles early on was not putting myself out there enough and feeling disconnected from the industry because I’m based in Northampton and not London. I tackled that head-on by getting over my fear of rejection and doing consistent, targeted, in-person networking.

I’d follow creatives I respected, reach out, buy an open-return, same-day train ticket to London, and stack four to five coffee meetings across a 12-hour day. I repeated that process continuously, tapping into wider networks until my contacts grew from a handful of people to over a hundred. Travelling in person shows people you are serious about building genuine relationships, not just chasing a transactional link.

What I'd say to someone looking to get into a similar role
If you want people to understand your work, understand yourself first. The more authentic and clear you are about who you are, the more people will resonate and back you.

Practically, research production companies, executive producers and directors whose rosters and visual taste genuinely align with yours. Avoid mass copy-and-paste emails; instead, send highly targeted, personalised notes referencing specific projects you admire and explaining clearly why your visual style complements their work.

Make sure your portfolio website is clean, focused and highlights your strongest work upfront so your value can be seen in under thirty seconds. Persistence matters, but quality of connection always beats sheer volume.