DIRECTOR STATEMENT
My first film came about pretty unexpectedly. I’m an Italian citizen, and I spent the past year living in Canada on a work visa. While in Toronto, I was hoping to get some experience in the SFX department. My mentor, filmmaker and Toronto-based producer Lisa Kannakko, helped set up a few meetings for me, but with very little experience, I quickly realized how difficult it was to get my foot in the door. Then one day Lisa said, “Just write me a script and I’ll make it happen. I have so many friends I can bring onto the project. Let’s give it a shot”. So I did. She asked me to write something short and clever that we could shoot in a day or two, and I came back with a three-page script. She liked it enough to take me through the whole process and bring together an incredible team to make it happen. I’d never really thought of myself as a writer, but I’m always making up stories in my head, so writing felt surprisingly natural. I trusted the process and learned as I went. I couldn’t have made the film without the amazing people around me, and together we made the film I had
imagined—only better. Now I’m back in Italy and I’ve continued writing. This experience opened my mind to a whole new way of being creative and made me realize how much I love telling stories. This is my first film, and I’m very excited to share it with you.

DIRECTOR BIO
Stefano took on a scriptwriting challenge set by his mentor, filmmaker Lisa Kannakko, who encouraged him to craft a short, clever story that could be shot in just a day or two at a free location. Rising to the occasion, he wrote a script so fresh and fun that Lisa upheld her end of the bargain—pulling together a crew to help him shoot his very first short film.

“The words came easily to the page,” Stefano recalls, and from there the adventure began. On set, he felt instantly at home in his new role, embracing the process with ease and enthusiasm. This first step marks the beginning of something beautiful for Stefano, an Italian writer on a year-long exploration of Canada.

We can’t wait to see what he creates next.