Meet Stefan Rollins

 

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Stefan Rollins. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Stefan, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?

I definitely inherited and learned resilience from my Mom. She went through some tough times while I was growing up. She was a musician and, one could say, took a risk in this path. But she always persevered with a positive attitude. She was my greatest cheerleader and taught me a lot about following my heart and certainly a positive influence on choosing to pursue the arts as an adult. But when she got cancer and passed in her 50s, that is where the resilience really shone through. She faced her sickness and death with a lot of dignity and strength, fighting to enjoy life until the very end. There is no greater example of resilience I can imagine. Here death was, of course, very impactful on me. I was 24 at the time. I have since, pursued whole heartedly my career in the arts as an actor, filmmaker, producer, and musician. I think the thing that has been most influential to me has been the idea of mortality and a desire to honor and live a full life and finding joy and gratitude in life is more important just about anything else. And to never give up, just keep going. Because that is a practice, a mental and emotional practice to choose resilience and strength and peace and love.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I would love to tell people about the film festival that Ive started and that’s coming into its 4th year. Naked Mountain International Independent (short) Film Festival.

NAKED MOUNTAIN International Independent (Short) Film Festival is here to honor, highlight, celebrate and uncover great storytelling that delves into what it means to be human. We want to find those great shorts that may have been passed over by more traditional festivals.

Submissions Internationally and of all race, creeds, and cultures welcome.

After an amazing few years so far in New York City and MIAMI, we are so excited to continue this important festival. We dont want to be locked into a single location, and we will continue to tap into various locations with strong film communities and a thirst for creative and deep storytelling. (with mountains or not 😉

We are proud of what the festival is and continues to become: a sanctuary for creativity and humanity. A place, a party, a home where culture, tradition, stories, secrets, dreams, and fantasies are shared. A sanctuary honoring humanity and creative storytelling.

NAKED MOUNTAIN is about stripping down to the raw essence of life. We celebrate creativity and unique perspectives. We champion humanity and unity. We are connection to our planet, our places, and to each other as part of the same creation. We are looking for stories that have a unique vision or perspective about what it is to be alive.

This is an INTERNATIONAL film festival for filmmakers by filmmakers. This is for those with passion and determination, dreamers with life experience and stories to tell. This is for those who are looking to share and connect with fellow artists and creators and producers ready to embrace our human connection.

Knowing how hard it is to make films and to get it “out there” and be seen. We want to remain accessibly priced while offering value for the creators and attendees.

We’ve had submissions and screened films from 30+ countries around the world.

Ive felt so proud to share these wonderful films from around the world that really highlight HUMAN stories and shrink the perceived gaps between us.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Definitely the most impactful and positive element along my journey has been a practice and desire to really know, love, and care for myself. As this has manifested in caring and staying aware of what i put into my body, continue to come back to the things that help me with my mental health, and cultivating positive self talk. Second, cherishing a sense of empathy for others. Its really just a guide what i feel is important. And along with helping me as an artist, it does help to “get out of my own perspective sometimes and try to be aware of what other people are dealing with. Next is a desire to learn. This is super important. It can mean learning new skills, listening to others to gain perspective, being open to new ideas, and just generally wanting to advance.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

I am always looking for potential collaborators. It is a big challenge to find people who you can really vibe with and trust with a creative project or business. Its very important to be on the same page when thinking about the scope and intention of a project. Currently Im looking to expand and grow with the film festival. I need to find some people who have a similar vision for the focus and intention of the fest and the direction its headed. Find out more about the fest at www.nmiiff.com. and you can email me at [email protected]

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