Ellie and Martina
2023 | short film | dark comedy
Two women who have very different lives find they have a lot in common when one finds the other’s abandoned baby. Created through a collaborative process from script through post.
The script for Ellie and Martina was born from conversations between writer/director Lila Yomtoob, and actors Elise Sievert Bhushan and Stacie Capone. Together they workshopped nine drafts of the script, finding the details that make this film unique. They had restrictive rules while making the film; rules that enhanced creativity by alleviating options. The DP, editors, and colorist had creative control and minimal feedback, creating further synergy.
– Micheaux Film Festival – World Premiere
– Cine Pobre Film Festival Honorable Mention
Screening at:
Micheaux Film Festival
Los Angeles, CA
Thursday July 13th @ 7:35pm
Regal Cinemas L.A. Live Theater #3
Lila Yomtoob, Writer/Director/Producer
Lila Yomtoob is a writer, director and producer. Her most recent short film America 1979 screened at more than twenty festivals and markets, and is distributed by Gravitas Ventures. The tv pilot script based on “America 1979” was a selection of IFP Film Week. and since then she’s been shortlisted for AFI DWW, Sundance Episodic, and Macro Episodic. Previously she made “High Life,” a feature that Variety called “razor sharp” and “perfectly honed.” Lila has produced 9 feature films and over 15 shorts that have screened worldwide.
As a former member of IATSE 700 and 871, she worked below the line for 20 years and received an Emmy Award for sound editorial. Since then, her goal has become creating a culture of collaboration and kindness around her productions. Social justice and the human condition are at the core of her work, whether it’s comedy, drama or documentary. Lila is attracted to stories that that make us who we are and the “what ifs.” She believes that the moving image has the power to bring people together, and increase empathy and understanding. Lila is of Iranian, Iraqi and Jewish heritage and was born in Chicago, raised in L.A., and grew up in New York City. She currently lives in L.A. with her partner and the best dog ever.
Stacie Capone, Actor/Producer
Stacie Capone is an actress and creative producer based in Los Angeles. She produced and starred alongside Alexa Swinton in the 70’s coming-of-age comedy Love’s Baby Soft, which is finishing up its festival circuit and played at Bentonville and Tallgrass. Stacie and her team are working to develop it into a series. She recently appeared as one of the moms on Chicken Girls, a much beloved tween series on Brat TV. Stacie is attached to act in three features, Loved Ones, The Ghost in the Attic and The Spirit of Detroit (an Academy Nicholl Semi-Finalist) slated to film this year. Stacie’s producing credits include award-winning films, numerous commercials, short films, television, animation, and web series. She and her husband own the production company Small Media Extra Large, whose list of media and tech clients includes Sesame Street, theSkimm, TED, Nickelodeon and Meta. Stacie is the founder of the FilmmakeHers, a monthly salon for women+ creators of film, television, and digital content, with chapters in New York and Los Angeles.
Elise Sievert Bhushan, Actor/Producer
Elise Sievert Bhushan is a bicoastal writer/actor/director. She has been recognized as an ABC Discovers Finalist, Sundance Episodic Lab Finalist and Sundance New Voice Lab Finalist. She has written and directed several short films on the festival circuit and stars in the pilot “Greenport” written by Tony Spiridakis and Directed by Shannon Goldman and Udrive Me produced by Steve Carr starring opposite Jonathan Kite. Elise also hosts the podcast www.NothingShinesLikeDirt.com featuring up and coming Filmmakers. www.ELISESIEVERT.com
Don Downie, DP/Producer
Don is a highly accomplished creator in film, television, and digital with nearly 2 decades of professional experience. He recently directed 6 episodes of Kid Correspondent, a YouTube Originals series produced by Participant Media; directed, produced, and shot the digital series Exit Strategy for TeenNick; won the New York Television Festival Critics Award for direction of the series Royally; and wrote and directed two award-winning short films: Pepper and the Salt Sea, and Le Creuset. TV credits include Sesame Street, Saturday Night Live, and Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation.
Recently, Don founded the LA chapter of Filmshop – a creative community that helps filmmakers develop projects and find innovative ways to get them done. Don was born in Detroit, forged in Brooklyn, and resides in Los Angeles, where he and his wife Stacie Capone run their production company, Small Media Extra Large.
Roberto Drilea, Editor/Producer
Roberto Drilea is a Romanian-American director and editor working at the intersection of technology and storytelling to create experiences that reflect and refract human complexity. His student feature Dead Tongues was a 2016 HP Lovecraft Film Festival “Best Feature” winner. His VR musical Use Your Imagination premiered at SXSW 2017. Since then, he has developed several shorts in workshops with luminaries including Lucrecia Martel and Apichatpong Weerasethakul. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Roberto works as a freelance video editor and is currently in development with his writer-director debut feature Fidelity.
Shanna Maurizi, Colorist
Shanna Maurizi began her art career in a black and white darkroom as a teenager, and has been experimenting with images ever since. Her work as a colorist is informed by an engagement with how images communicate and how they tell a story. She brings two decades of experience with photochemical processes and color theory as well as a depth of technical expertise to the color suite, and her creative approach has led to rewarding collaborations with many directors, showrunners and agencies in NYC and beyond. Currently she teaches Color and Storytelling in the Dept of Film and Televison at NYU.
Eric Stapleton, Sound Mixer
Eric is a sound editor and mixer based out of Freeport, Maine. After attending Savannah College of Art and Design, he moved to New York City to pursue a career in audio postproduction. He worked for several years mixing advertisements for TV broadcast and web, but has recently switched gears to pursue film and television in a freelance capacity. Recent film credits include Lowndes County and the Road to Black Power (dialogue editor) and Wild Life (sound effects editor).
Allen Linsey, Sound Editor
Allen Linsey is an Atlanta-based Audio Specialist and Sound Designer with a passion for creating captivating audio experiences. He has expertise spanning the entire audio pipeline, from Production Audio to Post Audio Editing and Mixing. Allen has collaborated with a number of independent filmmakers, documentary productions, and award-winning animators. His technical proficiency, combined with a keen artistic sensibility, allows him to seamlessly enhance storytelling through sound. With a meticulous attention to detail and a commitment to excellence, Allen consistently delivers exceptional results, ensuring that his work leaves a lasting impact on his work through films, animation, and podcasts.”
