Meet Lilia Doytchinova | Film Director, Writer, Producer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lilia Doytchinova and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lilia, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Honestly, the thought process behind starting my own creative path came down to this: I didn’t want to wait for permission anymore.

After years of working on big Hollywood sets — incredible projects like The Expendables, Creed II, and Ray Donovan — I realized I was constantly helping make someone else’s vision real while my own stories sat in my head. I’m an immigrant — I came here alone at 17, studied film at USC, worked every kind of job to survive — and it hit me one day that if I could figure all that out, I could figure out how to make my own film too.

Starting my own ‘business,’ in my case, meant betting on myself as a filmmaker and storyteller. It meant putting my name behind the kinds of raw, psychological stories I believe in — stories about ambition, identity, outsiders, and the parts of ourselves that haunt us.

Of course it’s scary — there’s no steady paycheck or safety net when you strike out on your own. But the freedom to build something honest, something that feels like me, makes every risk worth it. And the best part? Every project connects me to other bold people who want to make something real too. That community — artists, producers, writers, local audiences — is the true ‘business plan.’ We build each other up, we bring our visions to life together.

So the short answer is: I did it because I knew no one else was coming to do it for me.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My art lives in the space between dreams and nightmares — the parts of ourselves we try to hide but can’t escape. I make psychological dramas and thrillers that ask, What does it really cost to want more? To reinvent yourself? To chase something that might destroy you in the process?

What sets my work apart, I think, is that I don’t soften the edges. I’m not afraid of messy, raw characters or uncomfortable questions. I’m an immigrant — I left Bulgaria at 17 with a single suitcase and a head full of stories. Everything since then — USC film school, working on huge Hollywood sets, directing my own feature — has been me trying to turn that suitcase of ideas into something real people can feel.

I’m proudest of The Haunting of Hollywood, my first feature film. We made it on a shoestring budget, in the empty streets of Hollywood during pandemic, in borrowed rooms — no big investors, just grit and a belief that the story mattered. Seeing it stream worldwide now — Amazon Prime, Fandango at Home, and soon to more platforms — reminds me that you don’t need permission if your story is honest enough to reach people.

Was it easy? Never. I’ve been broke, exhausted, second-guessing myself more times than I can count. But I kept going because every challenge was also proof that this dream is real enough to fight for. I learned to get scrappy — to pivot when a location fell through, to rework a shot when gear broke, to trust that the imperfections sometimes make the work stronger.

If there’s one thing I want people to know about me, it’s this: I believe the shadows tell the truth. The darker corners of our minds, the parts we think we should hide — that’s where the universal stuff lives. I want my films and stories to say, “Hey, you’re not alone. You’re not the only one who’s felt this”.

And I’m always looking for new collaborators — actors, producers, writers, dreamers — who believe in making stories that are raw, real, and a little haunting. If you feel that pull, reach out. Let’s make something that lingers.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If my best friend was visiting LA for a week, I’d want them to taste every side of this wild, sprawling city — the iconic, the hidden, the classic, the weird.

Day 1: We’d kick things off with breakfast at Sqirl in Silver Lake — the ricotta toast is a ritual — then wander Sunset Junction for vintage shops and local coffee. Later, we’d grab street tacos at Leo’s Tacos Truck — because street tacos are an LA staple and Leo’s never disappoints. Nighttime? Drinks at Good Times at Davey Wayne’s — you walk through a fake garage fridge to get in, it’s a whole vibe.

Day 2: Morning hike in Griffith Park — you can’t beat watching the sun come up (or set!) over the city from the Observatory. We’d catch a movie at Hollywood Forever Cemetery if there’s a screening — there’s nothing like watching a film surrounded by old Hollywood legends under the stars.

Day 3: Time for theme park energy — spend the whole day at Universal Studios Hollywood, ride the classics, eat terrible theme park food, feel like a kid. We’d probably balance that out with sushi in Little Tokyo after.

Day 4: Beach day — hit Manhattan Beach, rent rollerblades or bikes and cruise the boardwalk all the way to Redondo. Stop for fish tacos or a beer on the sand. LA beaches really do heal your soul.

Day 5: Downtown adventure — brunch at Grand Central Market (pupusas or Eggslut), art wandering at The Broad or Hauser & Wirth, maybe explore a few hidden gems in the Arts District. Sunset rooftop drinks at Perch or Spire 73 to watch the skyline light up.

Day 6: Malibu day — burritos or brunch at Malibu Farm Cafe, El Matador Beach for dramatic coastline photos, sunset at the pier. Fancy dinner at Nobu Malibu if we feel like treating ourselves, or hit Neptune’s Net for shrimp baskets and local surfer vibes.

Day 7: Wrap it up with some pure LA. A flea market in the morning (Melrose Trading Post), vintage hunting, coffee at Alfred, then a live performance somewhere intimate — maybe a comedy show at The Laugh Factory, a small gig at The Echo, or a spoken word night somewhere off the beaten path.

More than any one place, I’d want my friend to feel the real LA — the dive bars, the corner taco trucks, the hidden staircases in Silver Lake, the secret rooftops, the strangers you meet who tell you their life story in five minutes. That’s my LA — full of raw edges and tiny surprises. And I love showing it off.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Oh, I love this question — because the truth is, none of this happens alone. I have to shout out my family first. I grew up in Bulgaria and when I moved to the U.S. alone at 17, my parents couldn’t give me a roadmap for this dream, but they gave me something better: permission to believe it was possible, even when it sounded crazy. Their quiet faith — and a thousand late-night calls reminding me I could figure it out — got me through so many moments of doubt.

I also have to give huge credit to my friends and collaborators here in LA. Making an indie film like The Haunting of Hollywood with no big studio backing meant leaning on people who showed up for the love of the story — climbing hills at 4 a.m., pulling all-nighters, sharing gear and coffee and a belief that we could actually pull it off.

And finally, I want to shout out all the mentors I’ve never met — the filmmakers, writers, artists whose work cracked me open when I needed it most. Sometimes it’s a book, a single line in a film, a scene that sticks with you for years. That’s the magic of art — it makes you feel less alone.

I think the biggest lesson I’ve learned is that it really does take a village — not just to make the work, but to believe in yourself long enough to keep making it. I owe so much to the people who kept reminding me: you got this.

Website: https://www.venuslightent.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lilia.directs/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lilia-d-4a2209b3

Twitter: https://x.com/hauntingOfHwood

Soundcloud: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0rIIROwCzlRPEUW2ROKScs

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556100097844

Yelp: https://letterboxd.com/film/the-haunting-of-hollywood/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@hauntingofhollywood

Other: https://www.amazon.com/gp/video/detail/B0DR9DHSTP/ref=atv_dp_share_cu_r

https://athome.fandango.com/content/browse/details/The-Haunting-of-Hollywood/4095180

@hauntingofhollywood

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt29508975/?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaZe_fsE8JNsBd9vihbBr3fXr6CS6rWl7JA6mFQhxhvAAIawROJAfLpoN2o_aem_vdTYJ5AubsXTZKjk3UcQAw&ref_=ext_shr_lnk

https://beacons.ai/hauntingofhollywood

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https://letterboxd.com/film/the-haunting-of-hollywood/