The Ballad of Laura Foster

The story of Tom Dooley, and the mystery surrounding the murder of Laura Foster, told from Laura’s perspective over the last few days of her life. Proof of Concept short for the upcoming feature film.

To watch this, and all other films of our 2026 selection for FREE online, just send us a blank e-mail to register@history-filmfestival.com and automatically receive this year’s code. Availible from 1st to 7th of October 2026. For more details see Take Part.

Director Biography – Steven Hancock

Steven Hancock grew up with two unique passions in his life: history, and film. After performing on stage for a few years, he brought his acting to the screen in 2013 for Joey Martin’s “Entangled,” playing the brief role of the Assistant in the film’s final scene. The same year, he was seen in “Merger: Making the Twin City,” portraying the Salem Pastor in the tale of the formation of Winston-Salem. Other roles include that of the Villain in JD Mayo’s “The Protector,” the Road Worker in Joey Martin’s “Levon,” and as a featured extra in season two of “Legends & Lies.”

In 2012, Steven made his directorial debut, directing the Unit Recruitment Video for the Southern Piedmont Historical Reenactment Society, a Civil War reenacting group of which he was a member. The video premiered in April of 2013, and was received well. Later in 2013, Steven announced his first major film project: “Doctor Who: A Dame to Kill,” a fan film based on the popular BBC series. Steven co-wrote (with Lila Wilde), produced and directed the film, while making a cameo appearance as the Drunken Night Watchman. Released in July of 2014, the fan film was well-received, and led to the development of “Doctor Who: The Ginger Chronicles,” continuing the adventures of the ginger-haired female Doctor and her companions. Episode two, “A Loud Hush,” was filmed in the Spring of 2015, and was released on May 1st, 2016 to similar acclaim. Steven served as associate producer, co-writer (again with Wilde) and co-director (with Rebecca Larken) on the second episode.

Following the release of “A Loud Hush,” Steven left the web series to focus his attention on other film projects. He co-wrote and produced the Civil War-era drama “Our War” with director JD Mayo. Released in 2017, the film received considerable acclaim on the festival circuit, winning five awards in total. The film was recently screened by the North Carolina Civil War & Reconstruction Center, where it received a powerful response.

In 2018, Steven returned to the director’s chair for two short films: The horror-comedy micro-short “A Grim Dinner” (Which has been well received on its festival run, and has won two awards), and the sci-fi found footage short “A Too-Close Encounter.”. He also wrote and directed the script for the short film, “The Fountain by the River,” the proof of concept for a feature film currently in development. That same year, he served as Assistant Director on JD Mayo’s films “The Sheep and the Wolf” and “Fire in the Forest.” He also served as script editor on BCM Productions’ “The Holy Heist,” released in 2020. He was also commissioned by Brigham McNeely to write the script for BCM Productions’ feature film, “Airborne.” Released in 2022 to various streaming platforms, “Airborne” became his first feature film script to be produced. He has also written the script for Gabe Tufano’s horror feature, “The Cries,” which is now in production.

In 2018, he was recruited by Charles Soots to work on a film project about the true story behind the legend of Tom Dooley, and the murder of Laura Foster. Originally envisioned as a short film, the screenplay was long enough to become a feature film. Development then began on a short film that would serve as a Proof of Concept for the feature film. Following Charles’ tragic death in 2020, Steven took over the running of the project, serving as co-writer, executive producer and director. After several years of setbacks and delays, “The Ballad of Laura Foster” was completed in June of 2025.

Steven has a Masters Degree in American History from American Public University, and loves to share his passion for history with others. He currently works as a Social Studies Teacher for Caswell County Schools.

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Steven Hancock Director, Writer, Producer Our War, Doctor Who: A Dame to Kill Charles Soots Writer Joanna Lower Producer Conditions, Hope Song, Underneath the Mistletoe, Smoke Will Rise Sheila Lower Producer Conditions, Hope Song, Underneath the Mistletoe, Smoke Will Rise Elise Kimple Key Cast “Laura Foster” A Second Chance to Die, Akrasia, Alyssa Jake Collison Key Cast “Tom Dooley” Murder Comes to Town, Visitations, Limbo Joanna Lower Key Cast “Ann Foster Melton” Conditions, Hope Song, Underneath the Mistletoe, Smoke Will Rise Art Parsells Key Cast “Wilson Foster” The Rush Call, Broken Church, The Callback Tinsley Tillman Key Cast “Perline Foster” Ben Swilley Key Cast “Walt Winkler” The Good Lord Bird, True Terror, The Madness Taylor Parrish Key Cast “Shop Keeper’s Wife” Our War, Levon, The Haunting of Four Points Steven Hancock Key Cast “Shop Keeper” Our War, The Protector, Doctor Who: A Dame to Kill, Levon Jeremy Carr Key Cast “Narrator “ The Rush Call, Fly Me to the Moon, Radio Hope Brady Jacquin Cinematographer Reed Vrooman Editor Robert Mason Sandifer Composer Jessica Hagens Costume Design Linda Hancock Costume Design Michael Peeples Sound The Fountain by the River Cameron Wofford Sound Reed Vrooman Sound Design Drazz Zhay ADR Recordists Jeremy Carr ADR Recordists Reed Vrooman Gaffer Joanna Lower Key Makeup Sheila Lowe Hair Stylist