# Stella Velon

Stella Velon is an actress, writer, and director who works in both English and French-language films. She made her directorial debut with the psychological drama The Critic, which she wrote and starred in as the female lead, and which earned her multiple award nominations and wins, including in Amazon Studios' inaugural All Voices Film Festival.
She was nominated for a Webby Award for Best Individual Performance for her role in The Critic.

## Education

Velon attended the Paris Nanterre University, where she studied Economics and Business Management, while simultaneously taking acting classes in Paris and Copenhagen, before moving to New York to study at the HB Studio, to further pursue her acting career.

## Career

While in drama school, Velon worked as a professional model appearing in various ads and commercials for Calvin Klein, Oribe, Lacoste, and others.
She also made appearances on television shows and films such as Gossip Girl (alongside Sam Page and Blake Lively) and starred in independent productions such as Shutterbug, short films and music videos.
Velon co-founded her production company The Punk Floyd Company with former fashion and beauty photography agent Jean Gabriel Kauss (president of JGK Inc.). Their inaugural production was the short psychological drama The Critic written, directed, co-produced and starring Stella Velon opposite Alan Smyth as the two leads.
Velon filmed The Critic over the course of two consecutive days in one location in Los Angeles, California. The film deals with topics ranging from impostor syndrome, mental health, and substance abuse, to artists' and women’s place in Hollywood.
She was named Best Director at the 2018 UK Film Review Awards. She was also nominated for Best Individual Performance at the 2020 Webby Awards for her work in the film. She won the Best Short Film award at Method Fest Independent Film Festival, one of the four first prizes in Amazon’s first All Voices Film Festival for the film and was runner-up for the Women in Film award at the Kinofilm Manchester International Short Film Festival.

## Filmography
### Film and television

Key
| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
| Title | Year | Actor | Writer | Director | Notes |
| Vive la vie | 2005 | Yes | No | No | Feature film (France) |
| R.I.S. Police scientifique | 2006 | Yes | No | No | TV series (France) |
| A Girl and a Gun | 2009 | Yes | No | No | Shot on film |
| Shutterbug | 2009 | Yes | No | No | Feature film |
| Gossip Girl | 2010 | Yes | No | No | TV series |
| Dead End | 2010 | Yes | No | No | Short film (silent) |
| Hoppus on Music | 2011 | Yes | No | No | Promotional |
| Asylum | 2011 | Yes | No | No | Short film |
| Far Rockaway | 2011 | Yes | No | No | Feature film |
| Men in Black 3 | 2012 | Yes | No | No | Feature film |
| Video Game | 2013 | Yes | No | No | Short film |
| Sruggleing | 2017 | Yes | No | No | Web series |
| Baskets | 2016 | Yes | No | No | TV series |
| 79 Parts | 2016 | Yes | No | No | Feature film |
| Stella | 2017 | Yes | Yes | No | Short film |
| The Critic | 2019 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Short film |
| Erase & Rewind † | TBA | Yes | Yes | Yes | Feature film based on the short The Critic |
| Untitled Stella Velon Comedy Series Project † | TBA | Yes | Yes | Yes | TV series |

## Music videos

| Year | Title | Artist | Notes |
| 2011 | "Secret Window” | Dusty Wright | Performs “Soleils couchants” by Paul Verlaine at the top |

## Awards and nominations

| Award/Festival | Year | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| UK Film Review Awards | 2018 | Best Director | The Critic | Won |
| Kinofilm Manchester | 2018 | Women in Film (2nd place) | The Critic | Won |
| Boston Film Festival | 2018 | Best Short Film | The Critic | Nominated |
| Queen Palm International Film Festival | 2018 | Best Actress - Gold Award | The Critic | Won |
| Queen Palm International Film Festival | 2019 | Annual Grand Jury Prize | The Critic | Won |
| Queen Palm International Film Festival | 2019 | Annual Best Short Film - First-time Filmmaker | The Critic | Won |
| Festival Angaelica X Catalyst Content | 2019 | Best Breakout Performance | The Critic | Won |
| London Independent Film Festival | 2019 | Best Short Film | The Critic | Nominated |
| Sunscreen Film Festival | 2019 | Best Breakout Short | The Critic | Nominated |
| Amazon Prime Video’s All Voices Film Festival | 2019 | Runner-up / First Prize recipient | The Critic | Won |
| Method Fest Independent Film Festival | 2019 | Best Short Film | The Critic | Won |
| Method Fest Independent Film Festival | 2019 | Best Actress | The Critic | Nominated |
| The Webby Awards | 2020 | Best Individual Performance | The Critic | Nominated |
| W3 Awards | 2020 | Best Individual Performance - Gold Award | The Critic | Won |
| Arpa International Film Festival | 2020 | Best Short Film | The Critic | Nominated |