For first time directors Tom Kingsley and Will Sharpe, Black Pond marks an incredible foray into the film industry, kicking off what will surely be a widely successful career for both of them. As relatively recent Cambridge graduates, the film is their first bash at a feature release; a first bash that any established director would be proud of.

Already described by The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw as a “deeply eccentric, haunting marvel” the dark comedy is a triumph for British independent cinema, boasting a budget of just over £20,000 – though you wouldn’t realise this on watching it. Filmed primarily at one of the directors’ family homes, it centres chiefly upon the complexities of the characters, avoiding any special effects or location changes which would have required unmanageable funding. Yet, rather than being detrimental to the film, the sparseness of the ‘cinematography’ lends itself perfectly to the style and tone, adding to the sense of realism and integrity.

Black Pond, fashionably filmed in a documentary-style format, follows the lives of a stereotypical upper-middle class family, the Thompsons. For fear of giving too much away this seems an adequate description; suffice to say that, as events unfold, their stereotypical lives are tested in an unexpected manner.

Yet despite the sinister underside of the film, it is unarguably a comedy, and a comedy which is – unusually - genuinely funny, from start to finish. Set in a gorgeous country house in rural suburbia it explores the monotony of upper-middle class life, in a style reminiscent of 2010’s Archipelago – particularly memorable is the line from Chris Langham’s character: “The downside of having a tedious life is that you have a tedious life; the upside is you have a swimming pool in the summer.” This pretty much sums up the tone of the film; a sense of resentment and boredom underpins the family, giving a kind of justification to the bizarre turn of events which subsumes them.

The film marks the re-launch of the greatly-missed Chris Langham, who, after a lengthy respite from his career, comes back in full force as the unlikely protagonist. In a Q&A session following the preview screening at the Arts Picturehouse, Langham spoke openly about his recent circumstances, lauding the film, and its directors, for giving him such an appropriate route back into the industry. Playing Tom Thompson, the father of the family, the character seems acutely apt for Langham; as Thompson says at the start – with regards to the drama at the heart of the film – “I lost my job because of the publicity.” Remarkably appropriate, and subtly poignant.

The rest of the cast, too, are phenomenal: I say cast, though crew is more fitting, as it seems – from watching the end credits – that the meagre crew really worked themselves into the ground to finish the film. Director Will Sharpe also plays one of the main characters, Tim. The film feature a brilliant cameo from Simon Amstell, marking his film debut, as well as fantastic turns from the supporting cast, Helen Cripps, Amanda Hadingue, Anna O’Grady and Colin Hurley.

Sadly Black Pond is screening at very few locations, due to the inevitable obstacles involved in distribution when dealing with such a limited budget; if you can grab a chance to see it, do it! You will not be disappointed. If not, fingers crossed for the DVD release soon …