Refractions

WriterDirector

Jun 4

Written By Paula Rossman

Screenwriter

Generational trauma is plumbed, when a young woman confronts her own mother’s mistakes as a reflection of her own. Paula is currently finishing her first screenplay, and looking forward to directing and producing this project in 2025.

Praise for Refractions

Writing Reviews

"The dialogue is rich with emotion and information about the characters..."

Screenplay Awards Network

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"a script worth considering..."

The Golden Script Review

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"Refractions tackles familial trauma with brilliant ease..."

Austin After Dark Film Festival

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"...Good job showing Jade’s cold vitriol..."

Slamdance Film Festival

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Awards

HGA_BEST SHORT SCRIPT - Hollywood Gold Awards - February 2026.png

FARO_Nominee Best Short Screenplay_Laurel Black.png

ESC__Laurels_Best Short Screenplay_Black.png

IndieMania Semi-Finalist Laurel_Black.png

SEMI-FINALIST - Prask filmov ceny IndieMania - 2025.png

Moonlight Winner__Best Short Screenplay__Black.png

AREA51 Laurels_Black_Best Short Screenplay.png

SEMI-FINALIST - Outstanding Screenplays Shorts Competition - 2026.png

Casino Film Festival.png

22 black winner.png

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BEST FIRST TIME SCREENWRITER - Frida Film Festival - 2023.png

BEST FIRST TIME SCREENWRITER - New York Neorealism Film Awards - April 2022.png

BEST FIRST TIME WRITER - 8 HalFilm Awards - March 2022 2.png

Nominee - BEST SHORT SCREENPLAY - CLIMAX Critics Awards - 2022.png

BEST SHORT SCRIPT - Indobali International Film Festival - 2023.png

BEST SHORT SCRIPT - Santa Barbara Screenplay Awards Diverse Writers Outreach - 2024.png

AWARD WINNER - Wild Filmmaker Festival - 2023.png

BEST SHORT SCRIPT - Sweet Democracy Film Awards - March 2022.png

BEST SHORT SCREENPLAY - Montreal Women Film Festival - 2024.png

BEST SHORT SCRIPT - Sydney World Fest - SPRING 2023.png

BEST UNPRODUCED SHORT SCRIPT - Texas Arthouse Festival - Spring 2022.png

SILVER AWARD SHORT SCRIPT - London Movie Awards - May 2022.png

HONORABLE MENTION - Vancouver Badass Film Festival - 2021 (1).png

PortlandScreenplayAwardsFinalist .png

Austin After Dark Finalist.jpg

FINALIST-NewYorkInternationalWomenFestival-July2021.png

Oregon Short Film Festival Winter 2021 Best Drama Screenplay Finalist Laurel Black.png

FINALIST-ParisInternationalShortFestival-August2021.png

FINALIST - RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL - 2021.png

FINALIST - Santa Barbara International Movie Awards - 2022.png

FINALIST - Santa Barbara Shorts Festival - 2022.png

SemiFinalist-CalgaryIndependentFilmFestival-October2021.png

SEMI-FINALIST - Cinequest Screenwriting Competition - 2021.png

SemiFinalist-DubaiIndependentFilmFestival-April2022.png

Dublin Film Festival.png

SEMI-FINALIST - Madrid Arthouse Film Festival - 2022.png

SemiFinalist-SanJoseIndependentFilmFestival-August2023.png

SemiFinalist-ViennaIndieShortFilmFestival-September2021.png

YETI_Semi Finalist_Laurel Black.png

QUARTER FINALIST - Atlanta Screenplay Awards - 2021.png

QUARTER FINALIST - Chicago Screenplay Awards - 2020.png

QUARTER FINALIST - CREATIVE WORLD AWARDS SCREENWRITING COMPETITION - 2021.png

QUARTER FINALIST - Miami Screenplay Awards - 2020.png

QUARTER FINALIST - New York City International Screenplay Awards - 2021.png

QUARTER FINALIST - San Francisco International Screenwriting Competition - 2020.png

QUARTER FINALIST - Your Script Produced Studios Season 2 - 2020.png

FilmHaus-NOMINEE-Unproduced%2BScreenplay.jpg

NOC__Laurels_Nominee_Best Short Screenplay_Black.png

Planet Cinema Nominee Laurel_Black_Best Short Screenplay.png

Berlin International Screenwriting.png

OFFICIAL SELECTION - Boston Independent Film Awards - 2021.png

OFFICIAL SELECTION - Florence Film Awards - March 2022.png

OFFICIAL SELECTION - First Frame International Film Festival - 2021.png

OFFICIAL SELECTION - Green Ciak Film Awards - 2024.png

OFFICIALSELECTION-NewYorkIndependentCinemaAwards-2022.png

OFFICIAL SELECTION - Oxford Script Awards - 2023.png

PALM SPRINGS LAUREL.png

OFFICIAL SELECTION - Paris Film Awards - March 2022.png

OFFICIALSELECTION-TorontoInternationalWomenFilmFestival-2021.png

Film Revolution Festival.png

Project Type: Short Film

Paula Rossman is an American actor, writer, director, and producer with work spanning five decades across film, TV, and theatre. She is currently based in NYC.

https://PaulaRossman.com

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A Nice Girl Like You