Inspired by true events. Faced with terminal cancer, a beloved acting teacher rallies his favourite students one last time to stage his final play.
What motivated you to make this film?
It began with a group of close acting friends in London who wanted a project to work on together, purely for the joy of acting together again.
The story itself is rooted in the loss of a dear acting teacher and mentor who passed away while we were rehearsing a play he had written for our troupe. At the time, none of us knew it would be his final work. When he died, what I felt most sharply was not only grief, but a creative rupture. He was someone who gave language to us as artists, and suddenly that voice was gone.
I wrote The Last Rehearsal instinctively in response to that absence. It came from a simple question: who carries the work forward when a guiding voice disappears? The film became a meditation on unfinished work, mentorship, and artistic inheritance. It is inspired by true events, but it is not a literal retelling. A small number of my mentor’s words to me appear as voiceover, used sparingly and with intention, not as explanation, but as presence.
From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take you to make this film?
The script was written around seven years ago, at the very beginning of my writing journey. At the time, it was deeply personal, so I kept it private.
About two years ago, a group of my acting friends and I were talking about wanting to collaborate again. One of the actors who went on to play the protagonist remembered the script clearly and strongly encouraged me to return to it. He championed it as the project we should make together, and that recognition became the catalyst for bringing The Last Rehearsal back to life.
From there, the process moved very organically.
We shot over five days, wrapping principal photography at the end of November 2023. We went into post-production in January 2024, and the film was completed in March 2025. From shoot to final delivery, the process took roughly a year and a half.
How would you describe your film in two words?
Unfinished inheritance.
What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?
Stepping fully into directing.
I come from an acting background, and directing was not something I initially set out to do. It required trusting my instincts while holding the emotional and creative centre of the work. What made it possible was the generosity and trust and skills of the cast and a brilliantly supportive seasoned crew, who approached the material with care, intelligence and belief.
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