The Critic
World premiere at the 2018 Boston Film Festival, First Prize at Amazon’s inaugural 2019 All Voices Film Festival, Winner Best Director at the 2018 UK Film Review Awards and Best Short Film at the 2019 Method Fest, as well as Indie Shorts Mag's Editor's Pick - "The Best Of All, From 2018!". The Critic offers a glimpse into the darker side of fame, as a starry-eyed actress, fresh off a major win embarks on an interview that proves to be a lot more than just that.
-
Stella VelonDirector
-
Stella VelonWriter
-
Jean Gabriel KaussProducer
-
Stella VelonKey Cast"Actress"Baskets, Men in Black 3, Shutterbug
-
Alan SmythKey Cast"Interviewer"Persons Unknown, Castle, Poor Behavior
-
Todd KarnerKey Cast"Director"
-
Ivan AndrijanicEditorI.T. , No Way Jose
-
Akis KonstantakopoulosCinematographerThe Late Bloomer, Running for Grace
-
Asaf SagivComposerDrugged, Homefront, Last Summer
-
Project Type:Short
-
Genres:Drama, Psychological, Thriller
-
Runtime:14 minutes 55 seconds
-
Completion Date:June 16, 2018
-
Country of Origin:United States
-
Country of Filming:United States
-
Language:English
-
Shooting Format:RED
-
Aspect Ratio:16:9
-
Film Color:Color
-
First-time Filmmaker:Yes
-
Student Project:No
-
Spyflix Film Festival | SPOTLIGHT SERIESNew York
United States
Honorable Mention -
The Webby Awards | NOMINEENew York
United States
May 19, 2020
Best Individual Performance (Stella Velon) -
Amazon Studios' All Voices Film Festival | WINNERNationwide
United States
August 27, 2019
Amazon Prime Video USA Premiere
First Prize/Runner-Up Award -
The W3 Awards | WINNER
United States
October 6, 2020
Gold Award: Best Individual Performance (Stella Velon) -
Festival Angaelica at Catalyst Content | WINNERDuluth
United States
October 11, 2019
Minnesota Premiere
Best Breakout Performance (Stella Velon) -
Annual Queen Palm International Film Festival | WINNERPalm Springs
United States
July 14, 2019
Palm Springs Premiere
Grand Jury Prize 'Couronne d'Or' -
Annual Queen Palm International Film Festival | WINNERPalm Springs
United States
July 14, 2019
Palm Springs Premiere
Best of Fest 'Queen Supreme' Award for Best First-Time Filmmaker (Stella Velon) -
Annual Queen Palm International Film Festival | NOMINEEPalm Springs
United States
July 14, 2019
Palm Springs Premiere
Best Actress - Short Film (Stella Velon) -
Method Fest Independent Film Festival | WINNERLos Angeles
United States
March 26, 2019
West Coast Premiere
Best Short Film -
Method Fest Independent Film Festival | NOMINEELos Angeles
United States
March 26, 2019
West Coast Premiere
Best Actress (Stella Velon) -
UK Film Review Awards | WINNERLondon
United Kingdom
December 21, 2018
Best Director (Stella Velon) -
UK Film Review Awards | NOMINEELondon
United Kingdom
December 21, 2018
Best Short Film -
Indie Shorts Mag | EDITOR'S PICK
"The Best Of All, From 2018!" -
Manchester Kinofilm | WINNERManchester
United Kingdom
November 26, 2018
International Premiere
Women in Film Award (2nd place) -
Boston Film Festival | NOMINEEBoston
United States
September 22, 2018
World Premiere
Best Short Film / Official Selection -
Short of the Year | WINNER
Spring Edition / Special Jury Mention -
Women's International Film & Arts Festival | OFFICIAL SELECTIONNew York
United States
June 7, 2019
New York Premiere
Not a competition -
Arpa International Film Festival | NOMINEELos Angeles
United States
November 20, 2020
Best Short Film -
Sunscreen Film Festival | NOMINEESt. Petersburg
United States
April 28, 2019
East Coast Premiere
Best Breakout Short -
London Independent Film Festival | NOMINEELondon
United Kingdom
April 12, 2019
London Premiere
Best Short Film / Official Selection -
Filmatique Talents | OFFICIAL SELECTION
Online Film Showcase (April 2019) -
The HB Film Festival | WINNERPaisley
United Kingdom
October 21, 2019
Scotland
Best Story -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | WINNERPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Royal Gem Diamond Award - Festival Standout) -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | WINNERPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Gold Award for Best Short Film — First-time Filmmaker -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | WINNERPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Gold Award for Best Actress - Short Film (Stella Velon) -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | WINNERPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Silver Award for Best Trailer -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | WINNERPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Bronze Award for Best Producer (Jean Gabriel Kauss) -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | WINNERPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Bronze Award for Best Editor (Ivan Andrijanic) -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | WINNERPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Bronze Award for Best Cinematography (Akis Konstantakopoulos) -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | WINNERPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Honorable Mention for Best Director (Stella Velon) -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | NOMINEEPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Gold Nomination for Best Actor (Alan Smyth) -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | NOMINEEPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Gold Nomination for Best Music (Asaf Sagiv)) -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | NOMINEEPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Gold Nomination for Best Poster (Sylvere Azoulai) -
Queen Palm International Film Festival | NOMINEEPalm Springs
United States
December 15, 2018
Gold Nomination for Best Writer (Stella Velon) -
Oaxaca Film Festival | NOMINEEOaxaca
Mexico
October 7, 2019
Mexico Premiere
Finalist -
Worldfest Houston | WINNERHouston
United States
Remi Original Dramatic -
Best Shorts Competition | WINNER
Award of Excellence: Short Film -
Best Shorts Competition | WINNER
Award of Excellence: Actress Leading (Stella Velon) -
Best Shorts Competition | WINNER
Award of Excellence: Women Filmmakers (Stella Velon) -
Global Shorts | WINNER
Award of Excellence
Distribution Information
-
Amazon Prime VideoDistributorCountry: United StatesCountry: United Kingdom
-
UK Film ChannelDistributorCountry: Worldwide
-
OmeletoDistributorCountry: Worldwide
Stella Velon is an award-winning actress and filmmaker currently based in Los Angeles.
Her directorial debut, the psychological drama THE CRITIC (which she also wrote and starred in as the female lead opposite Alan Smyth) was among the five winners of Amazon Studios' inaugural All Voices Film Festival (amazon.com/allvoices) for U.S. filmmakers from underrepresented backgrounds. The festival judges included top executives at Amazon Studios and the founder and CEO of IMDb Col Needham. Most recently, Stella earned a 2020 Webby Award nomination for Best Individual Performance in a final selection of only five nominees alongside FKA Twigs and Emily Hampshire in the same category, among others. The finalists of the 2020 Webby Awards (dubbed the Webbys from Home) were selected by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS) and singled out as one of the five best in the world in its category out of 13,00 entries from around the world.
Focused on personal and visceral storytelling, Velon garnered stellar reviews for her work on the film as a performer, writer and director. In addition, and since its launch at the 34th Boston Film Festival, 'The Critic' has amassed over 20 festival awards, including Best Breakout Performance at Festival Angaelica + Catalyst Content, the coveted Best Director prize at the 2018 UK Film Review Awards (in the company of Oscar-winning heavyweights such as Alfonso Cuarón's 'Roma' and Bradley Cooper's 'A Star Is Born'), Best Short Film at the 2019 Method Fest (celebrating outstanding performances in independent film), Best Actress & Annual Grand Jury Prize at the Queen Palm International Film Festival (alongside 2019 Emmy-winning documentary 'Crime + Punishment' in the feature category) and also became Indie Shorts Mag's Editor's Pick.
UK Film Review’s Editor-in-Chief and lead film critic Chris Olson, described Stella's portrayal of the main character of the Actress as "one of the best leading performances of the year so far", her dialogues “exceptional”, and the film “a particularly poignant piece of cinema in the current social climate”. Indie Shorts Mag wrote: “From her writing & direction to acting, she has done it with such finesse, that it’s a pity that we can’t rate her any higher.” The film even broke a record by becoming the first short to receive a full 5-star rating on the latter and was dubbed "a sublime piece of indie film magic" by One Film Fan, among many other accolades.
As a performer, Velon has appeared in film and TV shows such as 'Baskets' (FX), 'Men in Black 3', 'Gossip Girl' (CW), etc., and has trained at some of the most prestigious drama schools in Paris, New York, and Los Angeles. She also holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of Paris X-Nanterre.
As a creator/screenwriter, she is currently working on a GIRL-POWERED DRAMEDY SERIES, loosely inspired by her modeling years in New York City, among several other projects in various stages of advancement. The show is fully fleshed out and is in active development in collaboration with fashion super agent, and former president of JGK Inc., Jean Gabriel Kauss.
Stella is perfectly bilingual (English/French) among others, and is a proud member of SAG-AFTRA, the Alliance of Women Directors and Alma Har’el’s curated talent discovery platform Free The Work. She grew up obsessively watching Baz Luhrmann's 'Strictly Ballroom', and 'Romeo + Juliet' and her latest work as a filmmaker has been influenced by the likes of Christopher Nolan and Darren Aronofsky.
stellavelon.com
instagram.com/stellavelonofficial
'The Critic' is a short film about facing one's inner demons, with which I wanted to explore the psychology of what it is like to be confronted with one’s harshest, most merciless critic: one’s own self, and how destructive that little voice in our heads can be.
As an actress myself, I also wanted to weave in elements of what is happening at the moment within the entertainment industry and explore the perils and pressures of the profession while leaving the message of the film open to individual interpretation as I am a firm believer that how we perceive the world is how we experience it.
My intention with this piece is to fire up people's imagination, make them think and not spoon-feed the audience the answers like a lot of movies do.