Press

Violinist.com

On February 6, I had the pleasure of attending the premiere of the documentary film Dear Lara at the 2026 Santa Barbara International Film Festival. The film, by world-class violinist Lara St. John, explores sexual abuse and its repercussions in the classical music world.

Ludwig van Toronto

Acclaimed Canadian musician Lara St. John recently premiered her first feature documentary at the prestigious Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

Screen Space

DEAR LARA (Dir: Lara St. John; featuring Robie Brown, Lisamarie Vana, Mascha van Sloten, Zeneba Bowers, Katherine Needleman, Heather Bird, Samuel Schultz, Scott St. John, Marci Hamilton, Anne Midgette, Sammy Sussman and Okke Westdorp). As a teenage violin prodigy, Lara St. John was feted by classical music’s most prestigious learning institutions. Once within their walls, however, she became one of the many students sexually abused by some of the most revered senior figures in the field. In her heartbreaking, enraging documentary, St. John fearlessly names names - the survivors, who bravely speak out; the degenerates, who exploited them; and the web of spineless collaborators, who guarded the reputation of the musical community instead of protecting those in their care. The global network of abusers is horrific; the spirit of St. John and her fellow survivors, heartening. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Grunge Cake

Premiered at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, Dear Lara is already positioning itself as one of the most urgent and emotionally devastating documentaries of the year. Directed by world-renowned Canadian violinist Lara St John, the powerful social justice film made its debut, followed by a post-screening panel Q&A featuring St John and several of the film’s courageous subjects.

The Movie Buff

In the 2015 film “Spotlight,” Editor Marty Baron, played by Liev Schreiber, instructs his journalists to show that child sexual abuse by priests was part of a larger system. “Show me this was systemic,” he says, “that it came from the top down.”

The National Law Review

The time has come to put the lives of survivors above the protection of power as filmmaker & world-renowned violinist Lara St. John debuts DEAR LARA trailer

Unseen Films

"This is a really good film. It's a film that will open your eyes about the darker side od something that has always been viewed as being above board. Its a film that reveals the damage done by some evil people to people who trusted them,"

The Black Cape

All eyes are on the White House after the end of January’s quiet drop of yet another Epstein files release. A quiet drop that echoed around the world. They are not the only record of sexual assault hidden in a professional space. The documentary Dear Lara invites viewers into the world of professional music and music education.

Violin Channel

We sat down with violinist Lara St. John to learn more about the film and the impact she hopes it will have

Santa Barbara Independent

A Small Selection of Recommended Films at SBIFF Represents the Program’s Built-in Diversity of Offerings

Violinist.com

Violin Channel

Classic 107

The Strad

Gold Derby

CBC

Reporter Robyn Doolittle and violinist Lara St. John discuss classical music’s reckoning with sexual assault.

CBC Radio One

'I find it to be incredibly moving because so many of these people trusted me with their stories. Misery doesn't love company in this respect, but at the same time, I then knew that I had so many sisters in arms…'

Philadelphia Inquirer

The fruit of that labor is a film she and producer Patrick Hamm are in the process of finishing and getting onto the film festival circuit. Dear Lara, a full-length documentary, explores not just St. John’s experience at Curtis, but also those of others at schools and in orchestras internationally.

Your Classical

'Finally, I decided the only way to do it right was to scream from the rooftops.'