The release of Low Rider has generated attention not only for its storytelling but for the way it foregrounds place and identity. In conversations timed with the film’s screening at BFI Flare, actors Emma McDonald and Thishiwe Ziqubu reflect on what drew them to the project and how the work feels both urgent and tender. The film follows a London-based millennial, Quinn, whose trip to Cape Town to find her estranged father becomes a circuit of discovery — intimate nights out, fireside conversations and an unexpected connection with Harley. Through that arc the film examines belonging as a lived experience shaped by history, geography and personal loss.
At its centre, Low Rider is a character-driven odyssey that treats queer lives as ordinary and emotionally rich. Emma describes Quinn as messy, searching and relatable; Thishiwe sees Harley as gentle and complex, someone whose compassion softens a tough world. The performers and director Campbell X built a collaborative set in which exploration was encouraged and actors were invited to bring personal truths into their portrayals. Their discussion emphasizes how creative choices — from cinematography to location scouting — are part of the film’s effort to depict queerness not as a theme but as a lived context that interacts with culture and place.
The film’s approach to place and identity
Rather than treating the Western Cape as mere backdrop, the production makes location an active element of the narrative. The film uses Cape Town’s landscapes and urban rhythms to interrogate how diaspora, memory and social histories shape identity. This is especially significant because it shows queer experiences grounded in a specific cultural environment: the characters’ choices and tensions are inseparable from their surroundings. Emma and Thishiwe underline that such rooted storytelling expands representation by showing that queer lives exist in a variety of cultural contexts, not just in familiar Western settings. The result is a richer portrayal of queer identity within national narratives.
Quinn and Harley: a study in mutual healing
The relationship between Quinn and Harley unfolds as a two-way process of learning and repair. Quinn arrives with expectations and unresolved grief; Harley brings a quieter resilience and a kind of soft masculinity that challenges stereotypes. Thishiwe mentions that playing a trans man in this context was personally transformative: the role offered a model of masculinity anchored in care, tenderness and spiritual depth. The chemistry between the leads allows the audience to witness how intimacy can catalyse growth. The performances invite viewers to find reflections of their own struggles and comforts, while the film refuses easy categorization of their bond as purely romantic or purely platonic.
Collaboration, craft and the director’s vision
Working with Campbell X, Emma and Thishiwe describe an environment that balanced rigorous preparation with creative freedom. Campbell’s method involved clear intentions about tone and worldbuilding, but he also encouraged improvisation and personal input from actors. The production team — from cinematographer Robo Wilson to location crews — sought to harness both the grandeur of landscape and the intimacy of small moments. That mix of scale and subtlety helps the film feel cinematic and grounded at once. The actors point to a sense of trust on set that allowed for risk-taking, which ultimately strengthened the film’s emotional impact.
Visibility, trans representation and social impact
Both performers stress why seeing stories like this matters now: visibility can be restorative. Thishiwe highlights how South African trans people have responded to early images with gratitude, noting that representation can counter harmful myths about trans identity and refute the idea that transness is a foreign import. Emma adds that when queer stories are led by people from within the community, they open new pathways for empathy and understanding. Across interviews they repeat a simple phrase as a guiding principle: representation is healing. The film’s layered depiction of relationships, identity and local culture aims to offer dignity and nuance rather than tokenism.
Festival details and how to watch
Low Rider premieres at BFI Flare during the festival running 18 – 29 March at BFI Southbank, with the film’s screening on 21 March. If you are aged 16-25 you can access £6 tickets for the 40th BFI Flare with a free BFI 25 and Under account. The project has also resonated with readers of DIVA, which now operates as a charitable trust supporting queer media. For audiences wanting both a moving story and a conversation about where representation can lead, Low Rider presents a thoughtful invitation to witness healing in motion.