Lydia Barnes to play Estelle in Shiona Penrake's Look Inside

Our short film, Look Inside, finally has its lead actress – Lydia Barnes. We saw a lot of faces, a dozen or so reels and audition tapes and in February 2016 we got the short list down a small handful of talented young actresses for the role of Estelle. The choice wasn’t an easy one, but overall we felt Lydia possessed the kind of screen presence we were looking for in this film.   

Lydia  (15) has played leading roles in 4 short films, one of which was chosen for Cannes Film Festival. Over the last 6 months Lydia has been a featured actor in the BBC's Eastenders.
 
When we asked her what drew her to the character of Estelle, she said she liked her honesty and could relate to her as she was a daydreamer too!

Lydia: “It's going to be challenging because Estelle has Asperger’s, or something like that, but I have a passion for playing characters that are different from the typical teenage girl. The moral of the film – to look inside, and believe in yourself – is something that has helped me as a teenager. I've learnt that being pushed, even bullied by people, can make you stronger. At this age your head is all over the place and it takes time to realise that being true to yourself is SO important.”

You can see Lydia in The Golden Age where she gives a natural, even nonchalant performance as a young teenager, who gets into a random conversation with a man planning to drown himself at sea.