AN ARTIST'S SOUL | ON NOX PICTURES

SYNOPSIS

Squeezing out every drop of opportunity she has left, a young actress in the final rounds of her dream drama school audition is willing to risk and sacrifice everything (and everyone) to get what she desires.

THE DIRECTOR

Johan Stavsjö has been working in the film and TV industry for over seven years. During that time he has been working on several of Swedens largest production companies such as FLX and SF Studios. As a 1st AD on theatrical feature like The Abyss and as Assistant Director/2nd unit director on the feature film Trouble and our upcoming TV-series Golden Boys about the Trustor affair for TV4.

In addition, Johan is a educated director & screenwriter from Pace University, Stockholm Film School, Biskops Arnö & currently studying for a master in film directing from Stockholm University of the Arts and Stockholm University. In 2022 he was part of Film Stockholm's talent initiative “New Voices”.

He has since directed and produced several high-quality short films through his own company Canelake Films, which have been screened at film festivals worldwide. For example, "Debut" which is available to stream on Amazon Prime and has screened at over 20 film festivals including Bushwick Film Festival and Chain Film Festival in NY, where it also won “Best International Short Film”.

Most recently he directed and wrote the short film "An Artist's Soul" with Matilda Källström, Oskar Laring, Johannes Kuhnke, Filip Berg & Liv Mjönes, which world premiere will take place at Santa Fe International Film Festival in October 2025.

As a director, Johan's focus is on character-driven stories, which capture the pain of everyday life but evoke a sense of hope. A cineaste who averages more than one movie a day and two cinema visits a week.

DIRECTOR'S VISION

The idea for “An Artist’s Soul” came after I was told I had advanced to the final round of a master’s program in film directing—only to be corrected four minutes later: it was a mistake, I hadn’t been accepted. Rejection is part of our industry,

and I knew nothing could stop me from becoming a director. However, I couldn’t help myself from being curious about the narrative of someone who can’t handle rejection.

“An Artist’s Soul” is a story about dreamers, told from the perspective of someone who goes too far—driven not by inspiration, but by jealousy and insecurity. It asks what remains when a dream becomes so tied to one’s identity that you lose yourself. How far is someone willing to go for their dream?

The film explores obsession in a culture addicted to work and success, where career often outweighs individuality. It reflects on our fixation with “making it” while avoiding the harder questions of who we really are.

— Johan Stavsjö, director