Founders
GARY ROGERS
Gary is a freelance Director of Photography and owner of Country Star Productions and Creative Cog Commercial. Gary has lensed over 20 feature films, many music videos, TV and corporate including Netflix productions.
In recent work Gary has lensed a feature film staring Jason Flemyng, Bruce Payne and Scott Wright called 'The Stoic' and 'Watch me Sleep' for Midlands filmmaker John Williams, a film currently picking up many awards on the festival circuit.
As someone that has experience in setting up other film festivals in the past he is now turning his attention to making the artistic capital of the country, Stratford On Avon, into a major showcase for the arts.
With new partners and interested parties in areas of filmmaking and screenings it is our goal to find new ways of lowering the barriers to entry for new filmmakers and enabling more accessible platforms for filmmakers to showcase their work.
CARMEN CAPUANO
Carmen Capuano is a published author, screenwriter and producer and is CEO of Emmeline Productions. She works with a variety of production partners to deliver pitches and scripts across all genres to global broadcasters and streamers. Currently she has a BFI Network supported film in development and a variety of other film and TV projects in pre-production/development with key industry figures.
She has been commissioned to polish Hollywood scripts, develop NHS teaching apps and to write projects for ‘A list’ talent and directors and has recently been an invited panellist for Book Week, Scotland.
To date she has penned 29 novels in every genre from dystopian sci-fi to contemporary realism, reflecting the ills, joys and tribulations of the human condition, as well as dealing sympathetically with issues of transgender, LGBTQ+, autism and Tourette’s and has performed a number of book to screen and screen to book adaptations.
Her book reviews include:
'5 Stars - Brilliant and brutal!'
'5 Stars - … began and finished in one night.Incredibly hooking story and very well written.’
'WOW! Had to sit and read the last few chapters in one go, so gripping, such a different story from the usual, well done.'
'...couldn't put it down until I'd finished it"
"One of the very best modern writers out there."
LALIT BHUSAL
Lalit Bhusal, a multifaceted filmmaker, writer, director, and producer, has been shaping compelling narratives since 1992 that resonate with audiences worldwide. "Leeches," Lalit's acclaimed work addressing human trafficking, took center stage at the Jakarta Film Festival in 2015. This film, recognized in the presence of Indonesian minister Imam Nahrawi for Youth and Sports Affairs, showcased Lalit's ability to captivate audiences while shedding light on pressing societal challenges.
With a diverse portfolio of film projects under his belt, Lalit's career highlights include the poignant feature film "Crushed Wings" in 2022. This groundbreaking narrative explored the sensitive subject of FGM, uniting a global team of over 200 volunteers to bring the story to life. The film received over 40 awards at international film festivals and is now available on more than 21 OTT platforms.
Currently, Lalit is in pre-production for two international feature film projects, In addition to his filmmaking endeavors, Lalit is the visionary behind the annual film festival "Filmmakers United," launched in 2015, and the enlightening "My Name Is Climate Film Festival" in 2022.
These platforms serve as mediums for showcasing films that advocate for human rights, animal rights, interfaith dialogue, mental health, and climate change, fostering community engagement and dialogue through interactive Q&A sessions.
Patrons
MICHAEL MCKELL
SOAFF are proud to have Michael McKell on board as a Patron to the festival.
Michael studied acting for three years at the Lee Strasberg Institute and began on stage, in classical roles, making his West End debut in the musical Blood Brothers. After years of television supporting roles as villains, in the mid-2000s he has been a leading player in a police series Murder Investigation Team and became a regular in the popular Midlands series Doctors. Soap fans will also recognise him as DC Nick Henshal from Emmerdale Farm and also appeared in Eastenders as hitman Carter.
Michael's many film roles now totalling 30 plus include 'Allied' 'Essex Boys' 'Essex Vendetta' 'Guard Of Auschwitz' 'Prizefighter' 'Abatement' to name but a fraction!
Michael's talents don't stop there though. He started his working life as a musician. He was the singer/songwriter for the band The Park, penning hits for Toyah, Dollar and Julien Clerc, and is no stranger to the stage appearing in West End hits such as blood brothers and recently Michael's acting and singing talents were combined as a lead role in the touring Hit Musical 'We Will Rock You'.
JOHN ALTMAN
SOAFF are proud to have John Altman on board as a Patron to the festival.
Whilst most widely recognised for weaving in and out of the East End in ITV's EastEnders over the years, John's TV career is as diverse as you can get. He's appeared in a staggering 51 TV productions between 1982 and 2017, ranging from children's favourite Balamory, via popular quiz shows The Weakest Link and Pointless Celebrities, to Celebrity Coach Trip and 2020's The Real Marigold Hotel. Other TV credits include Harry Hill’s Soapington Way, Knight School, No Sweat, Adams Family Tree, Cold Lazarus, The Famous Five, Black Hearts in Battersea, Seekers, Minder, Bouncing Back, Lucky Jim, Life After Death, Take Two, Gentlemen & Players, The Paradise Club, Up Your News, The Ghosts of Oxford Street, TV Squash, Monster TV, Coral Island, Bo’Selecta! and A Child in The Forest.
His acting career hasn't been limited to the small screen however, including 'The First Great Train Robbery', he starred as George Harrison in Beatles biopic The Birth of the Beatles. From there he'd appear in 1982's Remembrance as Steve (which was also Gary Oldman's first film) and, perhaps his biggest production, Star Wars: Return of the Jedi as a Rebel Pilot. His last film appearance was as the voice of Reverend William Willoughby in 2016 animated film I Am Khama, which explores the colonial past of Botswa. Horror fans might be able to spot him in the classic American Werwolf In London too.
STANISLAV YANEVSKI
SOAFF are proud to have Stan Yanevski on board as a Patron to the festival.
Stanislav Lanevski, is a Bulgarian actor and producer who is best known for playing Viktor Krum in the 2005 fantasy film Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Stan was born in Sofia. He lived in England for five years, as well as in Israel.
Since stealing Hermione Granger's heart away in the massive Harry Potter franchise, 'The Goblet of Fire' Stan went on to appear in Hostel Pt.II and many other TV programs and films.
One of Stan's great loves are motorbikes and when not working can be found adventuring around the world.
We are lucky to have Stan as a patron to the festival and also look forward to working with him in the near future!
Jury Members
CAMERON MOON
Cameron Moon is a multi award winning UK based filmmaker & actor who via his production company 'Hazel Tree Pictures' specialises in creating short films without dialogue, shifting emphasis instead on visuals, ambience and mood. His films 'The Beauty of It', 'Petrichor' & 'The youth of nature' have all garnered international acclaim worldwide, winning numerous awards at various film festivals across the world. Cameron see's filmmaking as an art and is particularly inspired by the work /directors of European cinema from the 60s and 70s although he always advises budding filmmakers to watch films from every genre and decade as he see's it as crucial training. He is currently nearing completion on his latest project 'Saudade'
HILGROVE KENRICK
Hilgrove’s professional career started out with song writing alongside performing café jazz and function music in restaurants and bars, eventually leading to a chance to score his first film at 21. The itch was scratched, and performing went west in lieu of more composing to picture.
Now based in Worcestershire with periodic sojourns in Los Angeles, Hilgrove has composed music for a wide variety of films and TV and two huge computer games franchises, Need for Speed: Shift (2009)and The Walking Dead: Assault (2012). TV credits have included 12 Monkeys for NBC Universal and Shadowhunters for Freeform/Disney as well as documentary and theatre scores.
Alongside his music for media, he writes choral commissions both sacred and secular and has a successful series of albums of piano music.
NICHOLAS DAVID LEAN
Nicholas David Lean is a multi-award-winning writer, director, producer and photographer with over 26 years experience in the Film and TV industry. Under the banner of his production company, Oceanstorm Films, and its VFX subsidiary Oceanstorm Films VFX, he has accumulated a back catalogue of commercial feature script credits that straddles film, television, and commercials in a wide array of genres and lengths, including short and feature, and TV pilot production, supporting fresh narratives in unusual settings. He has consulted on major productions and film festivals, as well as developed distribution / packaging strategies for smaller independent filmmakers in his role as an Executive Producer. Whilst developing his own unique slate of feature and television series, he is OSFVFX’s inhouse VFX Producer and Business Development Executive, liaising with client productions to deliver a full array of VFX support on low, medium, and high budget features as well as Tier One commercials, with brands such as Nike, GMC, Hummer, McDonalds, Marvel, and Mercedes on his client list. In his spare time he owns and operates BoatPhotos.co.uk, the southern region’s premiere Yacht and Maritime Photography company of 2023..