A gifted girl silences her imagination
to survive — until one forgotten object reawakens a past that was never truly gone.
The Skin I’m In is currently screening on the international festival circuit.
Creative Note on Costume Design
Short Film | Magical Realism | 2025
Written and Directed by: Elena Vialykh
Executive Producer: Stellakis Miltiadous
Art Director: Marina Freeman
Director of Photography: Zoran Veljkovic
Costume Design: Elena Vialykh
Editor & Visual Effects: Antonio Rui Ribeiro
Produced by: Get All Dolled Up
The Skin I’m In is a poetic short film exploring childhood trauma, the unconscious mind, and the emotional return to the inner child.
- London Independent Film Festival
- Angel Film Awards (Monaco International Film Festival)
- Ffilmic Festival (Wales)
- Atlanta Movie Awards
- Athens international monthly art film festival
- New York International Women Festival
- Cine Paris Film festival
Best Shot
Best Costume Design
Best Female Actor
Best Newcomer
Angel Film Awards — Monaco International Film Festival
All costumes were designed by Elena Vialykh. Drawing from her background in couture and deep personal resonance with the film’s themes, the wardrobe serves as a symbolic and emotional layer of the character’s arc.
Through the rediscovery of a handmade jacket from her childhood, a woman reconnects with the part of herself she abandoned — and begins to unravel memory, identity, and emotional truth.
Emotional neglect and generational silence
Subtle societal manipulation of women’s choices
The possibility of creative and personal reclamation
The quiet cost of self-abandonment
Audience Award — Atlanta Movie Awards
Semi-finalist — Athens International monthly art film festival
Best director — New York international Women Festival
Award winner — Cine Paris Film Festival