Swedish Director Stefan Blomquist shows his film ‘Miss D’ at the Short Film Corner at the Cannes Film Festival

Stockholm-born, New York-based director Stefan Blomquist says he gets inspiration from directors Pedro Alm?ovar and Woody Allen. Photo from the first table reading. From the left Stefan Blomquist, actors Scott Speiser, Lori Tan Chinn and Zuzana Stivinova.

SWEDISH-BORN and New York-based director and freelance artist Stefan Blomquist is taking his latest work, “Miss D,” to be shown at the Short Film Corner at the Cannes Film Festival – May 16 through May 27 — which will be the world premiere of the film. The story is about a lonely cross dresser in New York City’s glam punk 1990s, who after receiving a call from an ex-lover threatens to rekindle memories from a time far gone by and rupture the balance of a healing heart.

MAKING THE RIGHT CHOICES for yourself in life, in relationships and deciding you’re going to be happy has little to do with luck. It is a universal story,” says Stefan, who gives high praise to his team of fabulous actors Lori Tan Chinn, Scott Speiser and Zuzana Stivinova. The producer of the film is Mai Izsak-Niimura.

STEFAN BLOMQUIST, originally from Stockholm, moved to New York in 2001 when he was accepted at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA). He graduated from AMDA in 2002 with the Conservatory Diploma.

SINCE COMING to New York, he has worked with various aspects of visual and performing arts, including photography, film, design and creative writing. Among his prestigious clients are Wilhelmina Models and New York Times T Magazine, both in New York.

IN 2004 he returned to Sweden, but was back in the United States after one year. Through a friend from Turkey he landed a well-paid job at a hospital, which made it possible for him to pursue his dream career with photography and art, and the following years he traveled a lot.

“I THOUGHT THAT I wanted to do cultural photography, I visited San Francisco, Los Angeles, Thailand, India, Cairo and Istanbul, among other places. But it is a field with few career opportunities and little money.”

A FEW YEARS LATER Stefan returned to school, first The City University of New York, where he in 2008 received an Associate Degree in Applied Arts & Sciences. And in 2010 he was awarded a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the New School University’s Department of Film and Media Studies. Last May he earned the Film Production Certificate also at New School University.

“EVERYTHING is intertwined – people, history, travel,” Stefan says. He is currently focused on doing short films, and his plan for the future is to continue doing films and commercials.

“TO MAKE LONG films is very costly. I admire the Spanish director Pedro Alm?ovar and Woody Allen, and my goal is to become a mixture of the two. I would like to do something with Swedish culture, and I get inspiration from Swedish director Lucas Moodyson.”

MUCH OF HIS work is influenced by his passion for other cultures and his interest in human rights.

STEFAN, along with colleagues Lauryn Garza and Kojenwa Moitt, has a production company, which is called Interdisciplinary Arts Production.