ABOUT THE FOUNDER JOHN MARTOCCIA
Anthony Stella Productions is a catholic production company owned by John Martoccia, and it was established with the aim of making films that would provoke audiences to think about religion, spirituality, God, afterlife, and the true purpose of life.
John Martoccia is a filmmaker who wrote and directed the two films produced by his company. Being a man of extraordinary vision, he knew that he couldn’t let his talent of creative expression be wasted. After letting that idea lie dormant in his consciousness for many years, he finally knew that he could no longer live the life of simplicity that he was living because a greater cause was beckoning him.
Being a catholic filmmaker is challenging, and John has accepted this role with open arms. This is primarily because the predominant values and norms of today’s culture are in contradiction with what religious teachings aspire to. As a result, declaring oneself to be a catholic film maker can mean lesser acceptance not only in the larger audience but also within the film community. This could mean that a film has limited commercial success and perhaps not be eligible for any awards.
But John, his vision, and his company strive far beyond that. For John, even if his films can impact the mindset of a small number of people and nudge them to inspect their life and do some soul searching, he would consider his work a success. In a world littered with the allure of materialism, there is little incentive for anyone to embark on a religious journey. However, since everyone sees only the superficial, they are not able to think beyond that. They look only with the outer eyes, and what they see is an illusion that will dissipate with the departing of the body. But when all that is gone, it is the soul that remains, and with his films, John Martoccia hopes to nourish that thought and open the mind’s inner eyes.