Five years ago, I was dealing with multiple painful family losses back to back while traveling all the time to improve my acting skills and to work internationally. I couldn’t be close to my family, so I was using screenwriting as a tool for my mental health because, as an actor and interested in learning more about finding my voice, I found it through screenwriting, and later on, I discovered directing and producing too.

I have always been somebody who trains himself to improve skills and tries to be the best version of the past without competing with anyone as the real competition is with themselves only at the end of the day. These events led me to have a certain mindset, giving more value to the work and voice I was finding along the way to help inspire audiences. And at the same time, acknowledging that everyone has their clock to follow and things come your way at the right time.

I discovered Stage 32 in 2014, referred by a friend when I was living in the middle between Montreal and New York for my acting studies, my first classes in English as an Italian with NO international experience at the time, lonely, without family…is not easy!

Then, while traveling abroad to London and after seven years of dividing myself between London and my hometown for family and work, I never used it because I forgot about it, as I focused on other things in the middle. But, later in 2022 and this year, I found myself in a proper decision process because I was thinking of quitting the industry and starting teaching only as I also graduated with a BA as a drama teacher, screenwriter/playwright, and director in London almost two years ago as well.

So, in the meantime, I kept going during the years, and that screenplay I developed with my fellow co-writer in a Feature Film won “Special Mention - Best Screenplay” at an Italian Festival in 2022, so we both saw some light again, and we never lost HOPE.

These moments of hope led me, as a business owner of my production company, to find partnerships with other producers and filmmakers who are kind, humble, and understand the issues of being an indie filmmaker these days. I put up a posting on Stage 32 Jobs to find a great partnership.

While not all submissions were of the same high caliber, but ultimately, I made some great connections. Through Stage 32, I found a partnership for my feature film with a producer/screenwriter, Judd Cherry, a Stage 32 Script Consultant who also has hit Hollywood movies under his belt, and we are now in the development process to make it happen with other international companies as well for the best version it can be. As a filmmaker, I am grateful for this connection I made with just making a job posting and looking for a producer for my Feature Film.

Therefore, I will certainly look out for more connections on Stage 32 and try to help build a community of genuinely kind, humble people, as well, who are in search of the same values and want to improve themselves to become the best version of themselves and not compete with one another but to help each other out as we are all human beings with the same goal of success within this passion of the arts we carry on to achieve social change.

Let's hear your thoughts in the comments below!

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