Stella Velon

Stella Velon is an actress, writer, and director, who works in both English and French-language productions.

She first studied acting in Paris before moving to New York City (and later Los Angeles) to pursue her career in the arts, enrolling as a full-time drama student at the HB Studio. Velon established herself as a talented performer, scoring leading roles in stage productions ("Miss Julie" by August Strindberg, "Saint Joan" by George Bernard Shaw), and readings ("Uncle Jack", a contemporary adaptation of Anton Chekhov's "Uncle Vanya" with Reg E. Cathey and John Cullum, independent films (Shutterbug (2009)) and making appearances on popular television shows such as Gossip Girl (2007) (alongside Blake Lively and Sam Page), and Baskets (2016) with Zach Galifianakis. She simultaneously worked as a professional model, appearing in editorials, commercials, and advertising campaigns. She succeeded Catherine Zeta-Jones and Téa Leoni as the face of an international jewelry campaign.

In addition to her acting work, Velon has been developing several original projects. She wrote, directed and starred in the psychological thriller The Critic (2018), which was among the five winners of Amazon Studios' inaugural All Voices Film Festival (judged by top executives at Amazon Studios and the founder and CEO of IMDb, Col Needham), and also earned her a Webby Award nomination in the Best Individual Performance category and a Best Director win at the UK Film Review Awards.

Other accolades include the Annual Grand Jury Prize, and the Best Actress Award at the Queen Palm International Film Festival, the Best Short Film Award at the Method Fest Independent Film Festival, and the Best Breakout Performance Award at Festival Angaelica at Catalyst Content.

Her performance, writing, and direction of the film were met with critical acclaim, earning multiple 5-star reviews, with many complementing Velon's direction and the performances of the cast.

UK Film Review called Velon's portrayal of the main character of the Actress "one of the best leading performances of the year so far," her dialogues "exceptional," and the film "a particularly poignant piece of cinema in the current social climate." Indie Shorts Mag elected The Critic (2018) their Editor's Pick-"The Best Of All, From 2018!".

The audience's reaction was also overwhelmingly positive, with Academy Award winner A.R. Rahman among those praising the film.

One of Velon's greatest strengths as a filmmaker has been said to be her ability to tell deeply personal stories that resonate with audiences on a universal level. She is working on expanding the short into a full-length feature film, and is also developing a NY-Paris dramedy series loosely inspired by her experiences in the fashion world.

Velon is also an advocate for gender, and race equality and diversity in the arts. In addition to her artistic pursuits, she is also a dedicated philanthropist. She has worked with several non-profit organizations, including the Hearts of Gold Foundation (a New-York based non-profit presided by Deborah Koenigsberger, with CNN's Soledad O'Brien, and actor, and activist Marcia Gay Harden, whose mission and purpose is re-imagining the future of homeless mothers and their children), Larger Than Life (helping seriously ill children with cancer), #WashTheHate (raising awareness around hate crimes committed against Asian communities since the outbreak of Covid-19), and starred in a PSA as a battered mom to raise awareness against domestic violence.

She is a dual (US/EU) citizen and the co-founder of The Punk Floyd Company (Los Angeles).

Stella splits her time between Los Angeles, New York, and Paris, and is a member of SAG-AFTRA, BAFTA and Free the Work Pro.