BEHIND THE LENS #198: Featuring Melissa Stephens

On this episode of BEHIND THE LENS, we're welcoming another year of Slamdance Film Festival as we take a look at FINDING THE A**HOLE, an entertaining series of short films from writer/director/actor MELISSA STEPHENS which premieres at Slamdance on January 25, with the first three series chapters then released into the universe the same night. Our special live guest, take a listen as we dig deep with Melissa talking about the conception and development of FINDING THE A**HOLE, financing, her growth as a director as she moves through each of the first three short film chapters, casting and collaboration, and more. But before Melissa joins us, we're talking about ASHES IN THE SNOW starring Bel Powley. Adapted from the acclaimed novel "Between Shades of Gray" by RUTA SEPETYS, take a listen to our exclusive prerecorded conversation with Ruta, as she talks in-depth about her journey to write the book and her research and personal connection to the story of 15-year old Lina and her imprisonment in a labor camp under the Stalin regime in 1941. One of the few authors who has raved about an adaptation for the big screen of their fiction or non-fiction work, you'll hear Ruta's excitement as she talks about collaborating with screenwriter Ben Jones and director Marius Markevicius. But perhaps the most moving aspect of our conversation with Ruta are her experiences and the knowledge she gained from Lithuanian survivors of the Baltic genocide and their descendants. A powerful conversation about an oft-overlooked chapter in world history and the creative process in bringing it to light. http://behindthelensonline.net http://eliasentertainmentnetwork.com