Based on the harrowing and ultimately life-affirming memoir by Kevin Lewis, The Kid (15) is a shocking portrait of child abuse and neglect set in 1980s and 1990s south-east London. Actor turned director Nick Moran continues to flourish behind the camera, pulling few punches with his depiction of the brutality suffered by Kevin in the council estate house that became his prison. Locked in his room, the battered and bruised youngster sought refuge in his imagination, honing the storytelling skills that would sow the seeds of a best-selling literary career.

Moran’s film opens on a bleak note with the lead character’s attempted suicide then rewinds to 1980 to chronicle the catalogue of errors that condemns a helpless boy to the tirades of his parents.