Adam Deacon with the Orange Rising Star award

Londoner of the Day goes to film auteur Adam Deacon for his win at the prestigious BAFTA awards last night, which marked out the young cinematographer as a promising talent – one who insists he is still in touch with the streets of Hackney where he was raised.

Deacon went to the Royal Opera House for the smart bash, where he was clasped to the bosom of the UK film Establishment, which handed him the Rising Star Award.

Scooping the prize was no mean feat for the actor and director, who beat off stiff competition from four other rivals for the gong,

Collecting the award, the director and star of Kidulthood and Adulthood gave a big nod to his corner of the capital city, stating: “It’s not just a win for me, it’s a win for the underdog.”

The 28-year-old, who went to Stoke Newington School and grew up on the former Kings Crescent Estate as well as Brighton Road, was up against four other nominees for the award, the winner of which was decided by a public vote.

Deacon had previously spoken of his desire to bring the award home for the youngsters who looked up to him for being focused upon getting famous and being successful.

“To have a possibility of taking a BAFTA back to Hackney, back to the estate, means so much – not just for me but for a lot of young people in general,” he said.

“They are getting a lot of hope from this - to know that it doesn’t matter where you are from or where you are living or what your background is, if you keep working on something, you never know what will happen.”

For making films which try hard to avoid the tired clichés which cling to many movies that claim to be ‘true reflections’ of urban young people’s lives, Deacon is Londoner of the Day.