Julia Verdin
Alias:
Octavia Taten
Octavia Verdin
Veteran filmmaker Julia Verdin is a multi-hyphenate - she is known as an accomplished producer, award-winning Director and has written a number of screenplays. Having been in the film business for 30 years, Julia has established herself as one of Hollywood's leading independent producers, with over 36 critically acclaimed feature films produced to date. She founded and has been running Rough Diamond Productions since 1995. Julia's films have been selected for many major film festivalicluding Sundance, Toronto, Venice, AFI, Raindance, Vancouver International, and London. As a director, her former acting background has given her the tools to support her actors and bring out amazing performances, and her producing background enables her to stay on budget while bringing out the best creative results. Her directorial debut, Lost Girls, starring Bar Paly, Marisol Nichols, and Jamie Harris did well on the festival circuit and won several awards including Best Social Impact film at The Culver City Film festival. The film has also been broadcast as part of an educational program on sex trafficking of minors and has been screened by organizations and communities and is currently in distribution. Her first feature that she directed, wrote and produced, Angie: Lost Girls, had a limited theatrical release in December 2020 at a drive-in due to Covid-19 and distributed by Freestyle in the U.S. and Jinga Films worldwide. Set around the world of child sex trafficking again, this time focusing on a victim's difficulty re-integrating with her family, re-finding her self-worth whilst combating ongoing threats to herself and loved ones from traffickers. The film stars Olivia d'Abo, Dylan Sprayberry, Anthony Montgomery, Randall Batinkoff, Jane Widdop, M.C. Lyte and Amin Joseph. Her second feature, MAYA, is currently in post-production and showcases how young, vulnerable teens with no support at home can be lured by traffickers online. It stars Patricia Velasquez, Rumer Willis, Gian Franco Rodriguez, Rena Owen, Anthony Montgomery and newcomers Isabella Feliciana and Billy Budinich. She directed a short promo for GIFT (Global initiative fighting Trafficking) and 2 short films, Brown and The Inheritance, in partnership with non-profit Kids in The Spotlight, which were stories written by and acted in by foster youth. Brown screened at Paramount Studios in November 2019 and screened at several film festivals. The Inheritance premiered at the Orpheum Theater in November 2021. Julia founded and serves on the board of directors of Artists For Change, a 501c non-profit with a mission of raising awareness on key social issues through film and media.