"Stampila"
American filmmaker David Larson helped to remove a Moldavian corrupt government from power with for his first feature film "Stampila", a compelling political satire. Armed with a fake screenplay copy, a real secret script, and a plan to shoot an entire feature film confidentially in 21 days, David was able to navigate his production clandestinely until it wrapped. The next day, he managed to smuggle the footage out of the country.
"Stampila" tells the story of a middle-aged woman who decides to overthrow the powerful oligarch who controls her tiny Eastern European country of Moldova. Armed with only her wit and some stolen government stamps, she must outsmart the oligarch’s henchmen, evade the secret police, and trick her countrymen into sparking a revolution. Facing off against armed riot police, water cannons, and deep fakes, she risks everything to stop the oligarch from oppressing her people. Along the way she’ll need to face her past and uncover the secret weakness that can stop an oligarch.
Director David Larson recalls: “At the time, the Moldovan government was under the control of a powerful oligarch who had robbed the people of over 1 billion euros. He stayed in power because people were afraid to speak out against him. During our last week of shooting, the internal security ministry became suspicious and canceled our locations and threatened all our Moldovan actors. Fortunately, our Moldovan producer convinced the government that our 'love story' was almost finished and we only needed a couple more days to shoot."
On the final day, Larson and his cast & crew filmed the revolution scene in the main square with over 400 Moldovan extras playing the role of protestors against the oligarch.
"The local news picked up our fake 'revolution' and many people heard about us, helping to shatter the real oligarch’s untouchable reputation. We snuck out of the country with our film the very next day in a van to Romania. 6 months later, the Moldovan people really did rise up against their oligarch and actually remove him from power (he is now wanted for his crimes in Moldova). On July 1st, 2024 our movie premiered in Moldova’s main theater to a packed auditorium of cheering people. Sometimes film really does help change the world,” director David Larson adds.
"Stampila" recently won 5 awards at the Jersey Shore Film Festival: Best of the Fest, Best Feature, Best Director, Best Supporting Actress (Ana Maria Cobileanschi), and Best Ensemble Cast. The film is presently touring in the film festival circuit and available for World Rights distribution.