by Teri Kinne
Los Angeles, CA (The Hollywood Times) 10/14/2025
Among this year’s LA Femme International Film Festival selections is Alterations, a moving feature drama written and directed by Canadian filmmaker Jen Romnes. The story follows Anna, a mother desperate to find her missing teenage daughter, Taylor. When the police are slow to respond, Anna turns to the people around her for help, including Ron, an unhandy handyman man living in her alley, and Clara, her daughter’s stepmother. What begins as a desperate search becomes a story of community, resilience, and strength.
Romnes drew the emotional core of the film from her own life. “The very basic seed of the story of Alterations is a part of my own story,” she said. “My mother went missing, and I felt that desperation Anna feels when her daughter goes missing and being unable to get the help that you need. In my case it ended up going through civil litigation and it was horrible and messy.” The experience, she explained, became a catalyst for exploring themes of helplessness, belief, and support. “If ever somebody you know is in a situation like this, you will believe them and support them,” she said.
For Romnes, filmmaking is not just storytelling but a form of advocacy. “I’m a mother of two daughters and a feminist myself, a soft feminist,” she shared. “I want to tell stories that are realistic, that show women’s journeys in an honest way, which I feel is largely missing in a lot of films. This last chapter of my life’s goal is to create strong female-led stories that tell powerful messages about what women live through and go through in their daily lives.”
Alterations stars Diana Studenberg as Anna, a Montreal-born actor, musician, and Juno Award-winning songwriter. Studenberg, known for her work with the alternative rock band Trope, brings an emotional intensity to the role of a mother navigating fear and determination. Vanessa Verdeaux plays Clara, the stepmother who becomes an unexpected ally in the search, while Joe Hippen portrays Ron, a man living on the margins who helps Anna uncover the truth. Dwayne Bryshun appears as Lawrence, and Madeline Sadai plays Taylor, the daughter whose disappearance anchors the story.
Behind the camera, the film was produced by Nason Markwell of Ambition Studios and Romnes herself. Markwell, based in Toronto, assembled a strong team that included cinematographer Michael Cao and composers Derek Stocking and Tyse Burrows. The musicians, who perform as Cedar and Pine, also contributed two original songs to the soundtrack, adding to the film’s emotional tone and sense of place.
Romnes describes the creative collaboration that developed as rewarding. “Everyone on set brought something personal to the story,” she said. “The film’s combination of personal storytelling, social comentary, and dark humor allows it to move between moments of tention and unexpected lightness.
Although Alterations began as an exploration of Romnes’ own experience, it has evolved into something larger. It is a reflection on community and connection. Its screening at LA Femme feels like a fitting debut for a project centered on women’s voices and collective strength. As LA Femme continues its mission to support women in film, Alterations represents exactly the kind of intimate, emotionally honest work that the festival was founded to promote.
Now in its 21st year, the LA Femme International Film Festival continues its mission to celebrate, support, and advance content created by women producers, writers, and directors from around the world. Founded in 2005, the festival was born from a need to amplify women behind the camera and has since helped launch and support the careers of more than 3,000 artists. Each year, LA Femme brings together filmmakers, industry professionals, and audiences for a dynamic weekend of screenings, panels, and networking events in a nurturing indie environment. The 2025 festival runs October 16–19 with screenings at the Regal LA LIVE Theatre and virtual presentations through Eventive. With its long-standing motto “By Women, for Everyone,” the festival continues to expand opportunities for women in film through education, mentorship, and international exposure.
The film will screen at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 18, at the Regal LA LIVE Theatre, 1000 W. Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles. For more information about the LA Femme International Film Festival, including schedules and tickets, visit LaFemme.org.
To learn more about filmmaker Jen Romnes and her upcoming projects, visit her production company, Glass Ceiling Creative.
She discusses Alterations more deeply in an interview with The Hollywood Times here:
