Darius Shu

Biography

Darius Shu is a London based British cinematographer and director working across high-end narrative drama, music promos and commercial. With 10 years of experience, his practice is rooted in arthouse cinema, with a distinctive visual language that blends poetic atmospheric imagery and socially conscious storytelling. He is particularly committed to championing underrepresented voices, with a focus on Asian narratives. His cinematography credits include the BAFTA-nominated television film Always, Asifa; Netflix documentary Peach Paradise and Queer Parivaar (BFI Flare 2022, Iris Prize Best British Film), directed by Shiva Raichandani. Recent work includes Cuddle (2026), starring Mark Gatiss directed by Arron Blake, The Algorithm of Loss (2025), directed by Levi Eddie Aluede, Where We Came From (2024), starring Emmy Award-winner Archie Panjabi, directed by Nick Virk, and serving as 2nd Unit Director of Photography on Justin Lin's Last Days, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival 2025. His first feature as cinematographer is, Slim, directed by Sky Yang and produced by Chi Thai. Alongside his cinematography work, Darius is an award-winning director whose films have screened at BAFTA, BIFA, and Oscar-qualifying festivals worldwide. His debut short His Hands (2019) premiered at the Tribeca Festival and was nominated for Best Narrative Short. I Am Norman (2021) premiered at the Oscar-qualifying Rhode Island International Film Festival, while his sci-fi short PLOP (2025) had its world premiere in competition at the BAFTA-qualifying Manchester Film Festival, followed by screenings at multiple BIFA-qualifying festivals across the UK. His upcoming romantic drama Molly marks his debut original screenplay as a writer-director, and will premiere at the BAFTA and BIFA qualifying British Urban Film Festival 2026. Across both disciplines, Darius is drawn to humanistic stories and his work is defined by a refined, emotionally led visual approach and a belief in cinema's power to shift perspective, create empathy, and drive meaningful cultural conversation.