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

Laura, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

I think we never truly know which moment in our lives will become the beginning of something much bigger.

For me, it started with a small bird my son and I tried to save. The experience deeply changed both of us. After that, I kept thinking about the idea that maybe this story could also change the way other people see empathy, responsibility, animals, and the fragile connection between people and the living world around them — especially children and families.

At first, it existed only as a story on paper. But later, when I shared it with my colleague and creative partner Anton Krasavin, he said something that stayed with me:

“Captain can fly much further than just remaining a story on paper.”

That sentence became the beginning of something much larger.

We started developing “My friend Captain” not only as an animated short film, but as a broader storytelling and educational project built around empathy, environmental awareness, and the emotional connection between humans and animals.

What makes this project especially meaningful to me is that it combines both creative and social impact. At its core, “My friend Captain” is a story about friendship between a boy and a bird — but emotionally, it is really about compassion, care, and the idea that even small acts of kindness matter.

Since then, “Captain” has truly started to “fly.” We’ve built an international team with collaborators from different countries, and even while still being in development, the project has already started receiving interest and positive responses from organizations in the United States and Europe.

For me, storytelling is one of the most powerful ways to speak to people. Art can create emotional connection in a way that statistics and lectures often cannot. I hope “My friend Captain” becomes a starting point for reflection — a story that encourages people to look differently at animals, nature, empathy, and their relationship with the world around them.

I truly believe meaningful creative work can make the world a little kinder.

Laura, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’m a creative producer and talent manager working in film, storytelling-driven projects, and creative development. My work exists at the intersection of storytelling, talent development, and socially meaningful creative projects.

A major part of my work today is connected to actor Anton Krasavin, whom I represent as a talent manager and creative producer. When we first started working together, my focus was primarily on helping develop his international acting career, identifying long-term opportunities, shaping strategy, and building the kind of creative positioning that allows an actor to grow sustainably within the industry.

But over time, our collaboration evolved into something much bigger than traditional talent management. We realized that we shared many of the same values, creative instincts, and ideas about the future of storytelling, film culture, and the importance of emotionally meaningful projects.

That eventually led us to co-found Liora Creators — a developing creative alliance and studio focused on storytelling, artistic collaboration, and projects with both creative and social impact.

What makes my work especially meaningful to me is that I don’t see creative production as simply “making content.” I’m interested in building long-term creative ecosystems around people, stories, and ideas. For me, developing an actor’s career is not only about finding roles — it’s about helping shape artistic identity, creating opportunities for meaningful collaborations, and developing projects that can emotionally connect with audiences.

Alongside talent development, we are also creating original projects. One of them is “Captain,” an animated short film and educational initiative centered around empathy, environmental awareness, and the emotional connection between humans and animals. Another is “BAR 404,” a more experimental storytelling project exploring technology, artificial intelligence, and human emotion through dark comedy and surrealism.

For me, working in film and creative industries has never been only about career or ambition. I see storytelling as one of the most powerful ways to speak to people about things that truly matter.

Films, animation, and creative projects can help people notice something they may have overlooked before — empathy, emotional connection, mental health, the way we treat each other, the way we treat animals, or even the way we see ourselves.

That’s one of the reasons why I care so deeply about meaningful creative work. I believe stories are capable of changing perspectives, starting conversations, and sometimes even changing lives.

My mission is not simply to produce projects, but to help create stories and creative spaces that leave a real emotional impact on people.

This philosophy is also at the core of Liora Creators. We want to build projects and creative environments where art, humanity, and long-term vision can exist together.

Because sometimes the best way to change the world is through storytelling.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

First of all, I truly appreciate questions like this. I think this conversation is incredibly important, especially now.

People who work in creative industries often use something very personal as their main instrument — their inner world, emotions, sensitivity, and ability to emotionally connect with others. It’s difficult to create meaningful art without opening some part of yourself in the process.

That’s one of the reasons why emotional sustainability in creative industries matters so much to me.

This became even more clear to me while working closely with actors, filmmakers, and creatives — especially through my collaboration with actor Anton Krasavin and the projects we’ve been building together through Liora Creators.

I believe one of the most important forms of support for creative people comes from the people around them. Artists need environments where they feel understood, supported, and believed in — whether that support comes from family members, creative partners, managers, agents, or collaborators.

Creative industries can be incredibly inspiring, but they can also be emotionally demanding in ways people outside the industry don’t always see. This is not a traditional “9 to 5” environment. People work long hours, often under emotional pressure, carrying creative responsibility while constantly being expected to perform at a high level.

And unfortunately, burnout is often treated as something normal — or even romanticized.

I think the industry needs to remember that behind every film, performance, script, or creative project, there are human beings with emotional limits, fears, difficult days, and personal lives.

Artists should be allowed to remain human.

I don’t think people in creative industries should feel pressured to appear emotionally “perfect” all the time, especially in an era where social media and public attention often erase the boundary between public work and private life.

That’s also one of the reasons why we created Liora Creators Alliance.

Through online conversations, creative collaborations, and discussions with people from the industry — including actors, casting directors, producers, and filmmakers — we try to create a space where creative people can feel more supported, informed, connected, and emotionally grounded.

For me, supporting artists is not only about funding projects or creating opportunities. It’s also about creating environments where people can continue creating without losing themselves in the process.

Because healthy creative ecosystems create healthier art — and ultimately, healthier stories for society itself.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

For me, one of the most rewarding parts of being a creative producer is seeing how something that once existed only as an idea slowly becomes real.

It’s incredibly inspiring to watch a thought, a story, or even a small emotional moment evolve into an actual project through collaboration, creativity, persistence, and the right people coming together around it.

I love seeing how projects grow beyond their original form. A story that once existed only on paper becomes an animated film and eventually grows into a much larger creative ecosystem. An actor you’ve been working with develops, grows professionally, finds new opportunities, and starts reaching larger audiences.

That transformation process is probably the most exciting part for me.

Creative production often looks glamorous from the outside, but in reality it involves an enormous amount of invisible work, problem-solving, emotional investment, and long-term development.

And yet there’s something incredibly meaningful about watching an idea that once existed only in your imagination become something real that can emotionally connect with other people.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laura.romanoff

Image Credits

Margarita Naumova
Maria Zaharova
Alla Khorulskaya