Experience
Stella is a 2026 graduate of Kent State University, where she graduated with Honors with a Sachlor’s of Science in Digital Media Production and a minor in Theater Performance. She led the independent student organization, The Female Filmmakers’ Initiative (FFI) as the Director, and helped establish a student-led start-up production company associated with LaunchNet at KSU. Most notably, she completed her capstone short film, titled One Last Thing, that was accompanied by a 50 page honors undergraduate thesis, which is currently doing a festival circuit. She has also produced a pilot episode titled “Bunkers,” that won Best Editing and Best Actor at the Flash Film Festival. She shot a short film for FFI titled “A Positive Outcome,” which received an Award of Excellence through the Broadcast Education Association. She has also participated in countless other student and local productions in various roles, including as a writer and assistant director for local 48-hour film projects such as “Wilted,” in Cleveland’s chapter of the competition which took home the award for Best Cinematography and third place overall in 2024.
Learn more about Stella’s notable projects in the Portfolio section.
Stella has also studied Italian cinema abroad in Florence, Italy, and documentary filmmaking under guidance from 1895 Films in Monte Carlo, Monaco. She has also interned with The Greater Cleveland Film Commission, Shape Cleveland, and the National Film Festival for Talented Youth. She is now a part-time employee at Shape, and freelances for PBS Western Reserve on occasion. This summer she will be heading to a film residency in Calabria, Italy.
To see Stella in action, click here.
Stella is a go-getter. Stella is a creative but also a realist— she excels in her writing and directing but also her producing.
