Cast
AARON
EMMANUEL
CREATOR & DIRECTOR
Aaron Emmanuel, a poet and musician, is making his directorial debut with this production of Donuts & Stardust.
Emmanuel has had a love of words since his early years in school where, to the dismay of his teachers, he would use class time to write poetry and stories rather than to do class work. It was later, while attending Morgan State University as a vocal performance major, his fire for music was ignited. He was chosen as the Musical Director for the University's yearly production of Black Nativity, where he wrote and directed 14 songs based on the iconic story written by Langston Hughes. He continued writing songs, forming bands to perform everything from gospel to alternative rock. He learned piano, guitar, bass, drums, and studio production in only a few years. After college, Emmanuel focused his fire for music into realizing his lifelong dream of scoring films. Translating a film's emotions into expressive music has afforded him the opportunity to score over two dozen short films, garnering nominations for best score in two international film festivals.
As a student of life and a person who is never satisfied with the status quo, Emmanuel is always looking for deeper ways to connect to the world around and within him. These varied experiences in theatre, music, writing, storytelling, and emotional exploration have coalesced in the form of this new work.
Crew
SAMANTHA ROSE VALLETTA
PRODUCER
Beginning dance classes at the age of 3, Samantha has spent her life dedicated to storytelling on stage and screen. Most recently awarded Best Actress at the LA Indies, Samantha got her start in commercials, quickly rising to become one of Boston's top commercial actors, represented by elite agency AWA. Owner of Hedy Films, Samantha hopes to continue to collaborate with other artists to bring to screen authenticity that finds shelter in the simplicity.
SHAWN GAUVAIN
PRODUCER
After watching The Shawshank Redemption at age 16 in a high school business class...for some odd reason, overnight Shawn turned into a restless, and motivated filmmaker. One who loves collaborating with others that share the same love and dedication for the art of cinema.
When he's not gaffing commercials, he's editing music videos. When he's not directing narrative shorts, he's running his company Apophis Films, and when he's not doing any of the above, he's walking his dog at the park pondering what he wants to be when he grows up.
MIKE SUN
CINEMATOGRAPHER
When Mike is not on the prowl for tacos and ramen, he works as a commercial and a narrative cinematographer. He fancies himself as a generous collaborator that prioritizes story and character in his work.