LOS ANGELES—Award-winning adult director and editor Claudia Ross took home three major honors at the 10th annual DSN Awards for her Elegant Angel feature Through Her Lens, marking a major career milestone for the Italian-born moviemaker.
At the ceremony, which took place last Sunday, May 17, at the New 1000 Lire event venue in Preganziol, Treviso, Through Her Lens was awarded Best International Feature, Best International Screenplay and Best International Editing (Ross having handled both the writing and editing duties, in addition to directing).
Ross, the daughter of the late director Ugo Ross, has a connection to the adult industry that is both deeply personal and professional. She grew up with adult cinema in her DNA, sharing a rare distinction with industry legend Axel Braun: both are Italian-born, second-generation adult directors who inherited a legacy, learned the craft from the inside, and carved out their own creative identities behind the camera.
For 25 years, Ross was Braun’s closest collaborator, contributing to some of the most acclaimed and commercially successful productions of his career through her work in editing, art direction, production design and creative development. That experience gave her a complete understanding of the moviemaking process, from concept and visual style to pacing, performance and final execution.
Two years ago, Braun wrote the script for Ross’ debut feature, The Hunger, giving her the opportunity to step fully into her own role as a director. The result introduced her as one with a refined visual sensibility, a strong command of mood and atmosphere, and an instinctive understanding of sensual storytelling.
Her latest feature, the Elegant Angel release Through Her Lens—which recently received an Editor's Choice review from AVN—builds on that promise with a stylish, emotionally charged production that showcases Ross’ ability to blend eroticism, atmosphere and character-driven storytelling. The DSN Awards recognition reflects not only the strength of the feature, but Ross’ continued evolution from longtime creative collaborator to award-winning moviemaker in her own right.
“I am incredibly grateful to DSN for recognizing Through Her Lens in such a meaningful way,” Ross said. “This movie was very personal to me, and I wanted to create something elegant, sensual and cinematic. To see it embraced like this means more than I can say.”
Braun praised Ross’ achievement as both overdue and well-earned.
“Claudia has been an essential part of my creative life for 25 years,” offered Braun. “She has an incredible eye, tremendous instincts, and a real understanding of how to tell a story visually. Watching her step into her own spotlight and receive this kind of recognition makes me extremely proud. She earned every bit of it.”
Through Her Lens is available now from Elegant Angel.
