Andrew Dimitrov is a Seattle based writer and director whose previous short, The Corruption, won Best Director at the Scumdance Film Festival, among other accolades.

Andrew Klaus-Vineyard is of Inuit, Icelandic, and Jewish descent. An openly queer filmmaker Klaus-Vineyard is heavily influenced by a mix of New Queer Cinema, underground art house experimentation, and regional folk horror. His work includes Unknown, At Large, Motel, Like Lightning, Welcome to Tool Shed (co-directed by Daniel Talbott) which recently had its international premiere at the American Pavillion at the Cannes Film Festival, the upcoming feature documentary Stand Tall, Go Higher and as a producer on the upcoming tv series Lay All Your Love on My Door. He releases music as Lovers of the Arctic Circle

IG: @andrewklausvineyard

Anthony Gavis is a writer/director in Portland. His films, Surplus Terminal, Retriever, and I Only See You In The Dark, rely on DIY production and gritty textural visuals to bring his ideas to life.

DIRECTOR

Ari Grubb (he/they) is an interdisciplinary artist, stop motion animator, and director from Boston, Massachusetts. Ari’s work compares queer culture with natural ecosystems and environments, seeking out the many parallels between societies who value freedom, creativity, transformation, and love. Ari Grubb holds an MFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and received their BFA in Animation and Motion Media from Lesley University’s College of Art and Design. He currently holds a position as Assistant Professor of Digital Media and Animation at Pacific Lutheran University, and lives and works in Tacoma, Washington, where he continues to be inspired by the natural world and his cat, Falafel.

IG: @ari.grubb

Brandon Brumm is an independent filmmaker based out of Brooklyn, NY. He grew up only a short train ride away on Long Island, but was drawn out of the suburbs by an interest in the cinema and other bohemian cultural elements.

IG: @brandon_brumm

SCREENPLAY FINALIST

Brendan is a nonbinary mixed race writer, musician, and educator living in the Pacific Northwest with degrees from Pomona College and USC, who has worked in a number of unique environments, including inside of a Los Angeles County Jail, as well as in a migrant shelter for unaccompanied minors picked up at the border. They have also toured around the West Coast playing with various bands, including the cumbia/doom metal fusion project Doombia. Since studying screenwriting as an undergrad and spending a semester interning in a Hollywood production company, Brendan has been refining their craft as a writer, while incorporating their lived experiences into the themes and characters in the stories they write.

Dillon Chase Graves is an actor/creative based in Portland. For over a decade, they have offered their talent and training to various short films, music videos, and a feature film, as well as ventures into voice acting for animation and games. They often seek roles that involve darker parts of the psyche, enjoying the deep work it takes to breathe life into each character.

IG: @spacegraves

Hayes Tufts is a queer identified filmmaker based in Portland, Oregon. Hayes is passionate about telling stories that depict true human emotional experiences in surreal situations. He hopes to help audiences relate to those they otherwise wouldn’t by sharing their stories told through juxtaposed genres, focusing on what we all have in common by showcasing what makes us all unique.

IG: @hayestufts.films

Kristen Laffey (they/she) is a director and producer whose primary focus is uplifting underrepresented voices. She acted as COO of Gaptoof Entertainment, Out Of Many Media, and Angel Number Films Inc. As a producer, Kristen has screened films at Sundance, Tribeca, Outfest, Inside Out, and Palm Springs. Kristen co-produced Ponyboi, which premiered at Sundance last year and came to theaters this summer. www.kristenlaffey.com

IG: @tildacanyouhearme

Nathan Koranda is an artist and animator based in Chicago, IL. During his graduate studies in London, he deepened his exploration of horror, memory, and the body. With a focus on character performance, Nathan strives to reimagine the expectations of animated form through distorting perspective, experimenting with color, and subverting classic horror conventions. While his practice extends beyond horror, Nathan often finds inspiration in the unsettling and grotesque.

IG: @glitchkura

Steve Flavin is a filmmaker and content creator in Los Angeles. His award-winning work has been selected by international festivals such as Fantastic Fest, Hollywood Horrorfest, Vancouver Horror Show, and the South African Independent Film Festival. He’s also the co-founder and artistic director of SpookFest in San Francisco.

IG: @steveflavin

Over the last ten-plus years, Steven K Jackley has Written, Directed and Produced up to 25 short films. Born in a small town in the Midwest, his love of filmmaking didn’t take off until he moved to Portland, Oregon, and met his second family of like-minded filmmakers. Steven is a genre filmmaker to the core. Creating character-driven horror films that delve deep into the root of what truly scares us.

IG: @sterlingfallsproductions