Your Stage : Greetings! by Laura Steponchev

Good afternoon, everyone, and Happy December 1st!

This is my first time posting in this lounge, and I'm thrilled to get to know you all a bit better. I am a filmmaker from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and the Co-Founder of Caprius Films, the new independent Canadian film production company.

Through Caprius Films, I wrote, produced, and performed in our award-winning short film, Reasons. It is a story about a couple finding a reason - any reason - to fight for their relationship! It has its world premiere TODAY! It is now streaming on our website, www.capriusfilms.com if you’d like to give it a watch, and learn more about the cast, crew, and film, itself!

We are also in the Development stages, bordering on Pre-Production stages, of two other short films that I wrote, titled To My Grave and Proper. The former is sweet and tragic little piece about a young girl named Emily who, on the day of her father's funeral, meets an aloof and mysterious woman named Kate, with whom she develops an unlikely bond through surprising similarities. It's very near and dear to my heart, and I'm thrilled that it will be my directorial debut.

Proper is an highly ambitious piece; set in Regency England, a young woman named Victoria wades through a sea of eligible young suitors, but none catches her eye like the handsome and mysterious Alexander. It is a proof-of-concept tale of love and lust - and propriety - with an ending that alludes to a dangerous and fantastical secret.

You can read more about both on our company website (again, www.capriusfilms.com).

We are also beginning a co-production for a feature film titled The Science of Fear in January 2022, which we are very excited about.

Other than that, I have been working tirelessly with my business partner and co-director, Cesar Erba, in preparations for the Crystalline Film Festival. We are in our first season, and due to Covid-19 it will be held on our virtual platform, from January 3 to 7, 2022, but we are thrilled to have been able to create this opportunity for filmmakers all over the world during this frustrating and frightening time.

Please check out our website for more details! www.crystallinefilmfestival.com

We are so proud of the dozens of incredible films we’ve selected for this season, as well as the inspiring and informative workshops, roundtable discussions, interviews, and live panelist we have scheduled! And tickets for the festival are now on sale! With a variety of package options, you can choose what kind of festival experience you’d like! They can be purchased at www.filmfreeway.com/crystallinefilmfestival/tickets or you can head to the festival website to learn more!

Thank you for your time, everyone, and I can't wait to learn more about you and potentially work with you someday!!

Laura