Shane Stanley’s Stories, Lessons & Insights

We recently had the chance to connect with Shane Stanley and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Shane, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
What’s been bringing me joy outside of work is intentionally unplugging between projects and respecting those transitional spaces. I was in Montenegro before writing a true crime thriller novel called “Breaking Jenny” with co-author Nic Fairbrother, and then went straight into filming Without Prejudice, an incredible biopic about Canada’s first openly gay judge Harvey Brownstone starring David Arquette (Scream, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) Rachelle Lefevre (Twilight , Under the Dome) and David Mazouz (Gotham, Touch). That period of rest really allowed me to find myself again and replenish the creative well. Now, before starting my next film this spring, I’m looking forward to going to Spain and taking time to reset, reflect, live a little, and let inspiration come from experience rather than urgency.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m a filmmaker, writer, and storyteller whose work is driven largely by character, truth, and lived experience. I’ve made a career navigating both intimate narratives and larger cinematic worlds, yet try to approach each project with a deep respect for the spaces between those moments of reflection that shape the stories worth telling.

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
For the longest time, I was focused on being what the world and others told me I had to be. I measured success not just by what I was doing, but by how others thought it should be done. That external pressure shaped many of my early choices and how to move, how to speak, how to create which often prioritized expectations over instinct.

Over time, and through experience both personal and professional, that began to change. Stepping away between projects and allowing space for reflection helped me recognize that clarity doesn’t come from chasing approval, but from listening inward. Today, I work guided less by obligation and more by authenticity, creating from a place of self-trust rather than conformity, and letting my voice, not the noise around me, lead the way.

What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Suffering taught me what success never could. Success kept me moving, chasing momentum, outcomes, and validation. It rewarded effort, but it never asked me to stop and look inward. Suffering did. It forced stillness. It stripped away illusion and confronted me with who I was when there was nothing left to prove.

Through those difficult seasons, I learned resilience, humility, and honesty in ways achievement never demanded. Pain clarified my priorities and deepened my empathy. It showed me that identity isn’t built through applause or accomplishments, but through endurance, reflection, and the choice to keep going with integrity. Those lessons now quietly shape how I live and how I create far more than success ever did.

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Is the public version of you the real you?
I’d like to think so, yes. Fortunately, I’m not a celebrity, LOL. My work is known, but I’m still pretty accessible, and that matters to me. Because of that, I think a lot of people who know my work genuinely feel like they know me, not just a version of me that’s been packaged or filtered.

What you see publicly is rooted in who I actually am. I don’t have much interest in creating a persona that I then have to maintain. The older I get, the less energy I have for that. I show up the same way in rooms that don’t have cameras as I do in the ones that do.

That doesn’t mean everything about me is public, but what is public is honest. And I think that’s why the connection feels real. The work reflects the person, and the person hasn’t had to disappear behind the work.

Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. Have you ever gotten what you wanted, and found it did not satisfy you?
I’ve gotten what I thought I wanted, and it didn’t satisfy me the way I believed it would. I hit milestones early… winning Emmy awards (way) too young, reaching levels of success, recognition, and financial stability that are supposed to mean you’ve “made it.” And for a moment, they do feel validating. But that feeling fades faster than anyone wants to admit.

Fame is fleeting. Press comes and goes. Number one films, awards, money, none of it stays in the way you think it will. Chasing those things can keep you busy, even admired, but it won’t make you whole. What matters most is something much quieter and harder to fake: being good with the skin you’re living in.

Can I look in the mirror and like what I see?

Can I live with myself when the noise dies down?

Do the people closest to me love me regardless of success or failure?

That’s the real measure. You’ll always have more friends when things are going well, when you’re winning and visible. But the truth shows up in the hard moments… who’s still there when things fall apart, when you’re not useful, impressive, or on top.

That’s what lasts. And that’s what actually matters.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.shanestanley.net
• Instagram: TheShaneStanley
• Twitter: ShaneStanley
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ShaneStanleyOfficial/

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