Macedonian Filmmaker Finds Success Amid Personal Crisis
Goran Stolevski, a Macedonian filmmaker, has been on a writing spree, producing three critically acclaimed features in just three years. However, his journey to success has been far from easy, marked by periods of personal crisis and professional uncertainty.
Stolevski, now 38, wrote four feature screenplays in a nine-month period while living in Bristol, England, after turning 30. Despite being an unemployed artist struggling to get his projects off the ground, two of those screenplays eventually became his recent features “You Won’t Be Alone” and “Housekeeping for Beginners.”
After his short film “Would You Look at Her” won a prize at the Sundance Film Festival in 2017, Stolevski faced another two years of unemployment, during which he wrote four more screenplays. It wasn’t until his feature debut, “You Won’t Be Alone,” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2022 that he began to gain recognition.
Stolevski’s films, including the 1990s-set Australian gay romance “Of an Age” and his latest release, “Housekeeping for Beginners,” all explore untidy emotions and feature ostracized characters asserting themselves on their own terms.
Born in North Macedonia and later moving to Australia, Stolevski draws inspiration from his experiences as a migrant and a gay man. He believes that being an outsider has been crucial to his artistic vision, allowing him to tell stories that center on marginalized characters.
Despite his success, Stolevski remains humble and focused on pushing the boundaries of his art. He is determined to continue exploring new horizons in his filmmaking, with no plans to revisit the Balkans or his adoptive home in his upcoming projects.
As his films gain recognition on the international stage, Stolevski’s unique storytelling and humanist approach have caught the attention of Focus Features, who have supported his unconventional art house films. His work is not only making waves in the industry but also helping to evolve Macedonian cinema by bringing diverse stories to the forefront.
For Stolevski, filmmaking is about living lives he wouldn’t otherwise experience and creating stories that resonate with audiences around the world. As he continues to break boundaries and challenge norms, his future in the film industry looks brighter than ever.
