Northern filmmaker premieres new locally produced short film

Shot in North Bay, Powassan and Callander with a local cast and crew, Ian Pozzedon’s ‘Skin Face’ follows a filmmaker, played by Haley Leach, whose delusions grow while making a backwoods horror movie

With Halloween fast approaching, director Ian Pozzebon is contributing to the spooky season with the premiere of his short film, Skin Face.

The film revolves around a passionate filmmaker, played by Haley Leach, whose delusions escalate while making her backwoods horror movie. The film was developed, produced, and shot in North Bay, Powassan and Callander with help from a local cast and crew. Viewers will recognize some of the film’s locations, including the interior dining room scene, which was shot at Churchill’s in North Bay.

The entire production was a labour of love, the director told BayToday, and the film marks the culmination of many years of development. It was filmed in November of 2025, and the short was recently released to YouTube for all to see.

“Literally, anything can go wrong while making a film; the weather’s against you, the forces of nature are against you, and it’s so hard to make a movie,” Pozzebon said. “I’m really happy with this one, and I’m very proud to send it out, and I’ve been working in the industry long enough to know what I like.”

Indeed, Pozzebon has been working in the film industry for nearly 20 years. Hailing from Sault Ste. Marie, the director attended film school, and then began working with producer David Anselmo, who founded and runs Hideaway Pictures Inc., based in Sudbury. Pozzebon works as a location manager and splits his time between Toronto and North Bay and other Northern climes, depending on where the next shoot is occurring.

When BayToday reached Pozzebon, he was on set in Powassan working on another film, and he reflected on how happy he felt to be making films close to home. When he was a kid, he figured he’d have to move to Hollywood to get involved in the industry, but given the amount of productions filming in the north, the industry has come to him. “How often do your dreams come to you?”

There’s a lot of work that goes into materializing those dreams, and Pozzebon’s Skin Face was a project he had been working on for a few years. It began with script ideas he developed with Demetri Portelli, a camera operator Pozzebon had worked with in the past.

“We always talked about doing something together,” the director recalled. The two began working on a short film script, and it kept growing until eventually it was a feature-length film. “And we just kept developing it, and we worked on it for about five years, so we finally decided to shoot a proof of concept for a future film.”

With the film made, Pozzebon is hopeful the short can attract interest to help finance a feature. He decided to release it to YouTube so everyone has a chance to see the work. “It’s about getting it in front of the right eyes,” he said, not about the numbers.

Actress Haley Leach, who has also worked on her share of productions, was thrilled to work with Pozzebon to bring Skin Face to life. With roots in Sudbury, Leach also spends much time in Toronto, and through her film work, was quite familiar with the director and was eager to collaborate.

She told BayToday how the cast, which includes Tina Star, Kostas Kolios, Jacob Stickles, Jacob Brett and Michael Napham, had a great time on set—despite the November chill. Regardless of the weather, spirits remained high throughout the shoot, as all were excited for the final result.

“It’s a proof of concept,” Leach explained. “It’s to show people what we can do and hopefully get financing to make a bigger one.”

Pozzebon also has a film he helped to produce screening next weekend at Cinefest in Sudbury. It’s called Forward, and it screens at 7:30 on Saturday, September 26. He’s looking forward to attending the event and is eager to promote Skin Face as well.

“I think a lot of people will be able to relate to it,” he said of his new short. “Especially in the film industry, because it’s like having a dream that turns into a nightmare. That’s kind of what Skin Face is all about. And as mentioned, it’s so difficult getting one’s vision on the screen, because it’s so hard making independent movies.”

“When you end up with something that you’re happy with, you need to be really proud of it.”

Skin Face is available to watch for free through the ReelPozz YouTube channel.

David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.