CASEY WALKER
Casey Walker’s 26-year career has spanned Emmy Award-winning television, cult genre cinema, and Cannes-calibre historical horror. Casey Walker has consistently done things his own way — and consistently come out ahead. His is a filmography defined not by the path of least resistance but by the conviction that the stories worth telling are the ones worth fighting for. His latest feature, Ithaqua will hold its BC Premiere at VHS 2026.
RACHEL TALALAY
Rachel Talalay’s eclectic career spans four decades of directing and producing. She recently completely directing Yaga, a mini-series for Crave with the new superstar Hudson Williams and Carrie Ann Moss.
Her best known work includes directing classics of British television: eight episodes of Doctor Who, the acclaimed BBC Sherlock series, the final installment of Good Omens, and American television, including American Gods, Marvel’s Iron Fist, DC’s Doom Patrol, Quantum Leap, Riverdale, Sabrina, SuperGirl, and The Flash.
TIM RIEDEL
Tim Riedel is a Red River Métis filmmaker from Treaty 1 territory in Manitoba. Working across film, television, and streaming, he began his career in animation before moving into documentary filmmaking and developing a practice rooted in ethical storytelling and the representation of marginalized communities. His credits include the award-winning documentary Jackstones and the upcoming psychological horror feature Ancestral Beasts, which he wrote, directed, and produced. The film draws on Métis identity, intergenerational trauma, and the horror of mental illness.
ALEX MONTILLA
I've been making movies since high school. When my friends and I took over the morning announcements, we saw an opportunity to produce short films for a captive audience (and by that, I mean an audience that literally had to watch. The entire school was held hostage by our silliness).
ZACH LIPOVSKY
Emmy-nominated director Zach Lipovsky started his career on Spielberg's filmmaking competing "On the lot" where he placed 5th out of 12,000 directors worldwide. Zach has gone on to direct and produce projects many film and TV projects, most recently directing the reboot of FINAL DESTINATION for Warner Brothers, and is currently releasing the sequel to his film FREAKS.
KAREN LAM
Karen has worked full-time in the film and television industry since 1996. Starting as a producer and lawyer, Karen has written and directed ten short films, three music videos, directed a true-crime documentary series for Investigation Discovery (US), a TELUS web series, and five feature films, including “Stained” (2010), “Evangeline” (2013) and “The Curse of Willow Song” (2020).
KEN KABATOFF
Ken Kabatoff is an award-nominated writer, director, and producer with more than eighteen years of experience in film and television. His work has reached millions of viewers worldwide, including three seasons on the acclaimed Netflix science-fiction series Travelers, where he advanced to co-producer. In 2020, he received a Writers Guild of Canada Award nomination for Best Drama Series for his final episode of the show. As a director, Ken has created multiple short films that screened internationally. He received the Directors Guild of Canada BC Emerging Greenlight Award to direct The Doukhobor, a deeply personal horror film that became a key creative calling card. He recently completed his feature directorial debut, Remnant, an independently financed horror film that is entering the festival and international sales marketplace.
KURTIS DAVID HARDER
Kurtis David Harder is an award-winning filmmaker, writer, and producer whose acclaimed thriller Influencers hit theatres in 2025. The follow-up to his viral social-media horror film Influencer, the film cements Harder as one of the most compelling new voices in genre cinema.
ADRIAN GARCIA BOGLIANO
Writer, director born in Madrid, Spain, now residing in Mexico. For nearly two decades, Adrián García Bogliano has been an innovative force in Latin American horror cinema. Starting his directing career at just 19 years old, his filmography spans horror, thriller, and fantasy films that blend classic elements with a modern, unsettling sensibility. His most notable works, including Here Comes the Devil (2012), Late Phases (2014), and Scherzo Diabolico, have earned acclaim at prestigious festivals like Toronto, Tribeca, Fantastic Fest, Raindance and SXSW. Beyond feature films, he has successfully directed series for streaming platforms like Netflix and Vix+. His commercial appeal is reflected in box office successes like Come Play With Me (2021) and La Exorcista (2022), which both ranked in Mexico's top 10. Having worked across Argentina, Costa Rica, the US, Mexico, Sweden, and Colombia, his international reach is clear. His latest film, Talking to a Stranger, was the only Latin American film selected at Competition at the Rotterdam Film Festival 2026.
MICHAEL GABRIELE
Michael Gabriele is a Los Angeles-based filmmaker known for his compelling work in the horror genre. His career began in Chicago’s advertising industry, where he directed high-profile commercial campaigns before transitioning to narrative filmmaking. Gabriele has since directed an array of projects, including music videos, immersive 360° VR content, and several award-winning short films.
His storytelling has been recognized with multiple accolades, including three Midwest Emmys, one most notably for his horror short, Room Tone. His short film Get Away earned the Gold Audience Choice Award for Best International Short Film at the Fantasia International Film Festival and was selected for Frontières. Get Away is currently being adapted into a feature-length project. His debut feature film, Unholy Night, also premiered at Fantasia Film Festival and received the Gold Award for Best Canadian Feature.
MICHAEL DOUGHERTY
Michael Dougherty is a writer, director, and producer who has worked with some of the world’s most iconic characters, including the X-Men, Superman, Godzilla, and King Kong. Beginning his career as an animator for MTV and Nickelodeon, he then co-wrote the blockbusters X-Men 2 and Superman Returns before making his directorial debut with the Halloween horror comedy, Trick ‘r Treat.
BRAYDEN DeMOREST-PURDY
Brayden DeMorest-Purdy is an award-winning director, producer, and writer. He started his career in Toronto, Ontario at Rogers Television as a studio assistant, and worked his way to directing and producing segments for the station. His directorial debut Beyond the Woods won four best picture awards, a best directing award, and a variety of other awards and nominations. And is available to watch on Apple TV, Prime, Cineplex, and more.
MACKENZIE DONALDSON
Mackenzie Donaldson is a Toronto- and Los Angeles-based producer, director, and writer. She is currently Senior Vice President of Scripted Television at Blink49 Studios, where she oversees a slate of ambitious, globally minded scripted projects. Her producing credits include the Emmy-, Peabody-, and Canadian Screen Award-winning series Orphan Black, the Emmy-nominated series Snowpiercer, and the documentaries Citizen Bio and The Abnormal Beauty Company.
ELI CRAIG
Eli Craig wrote and directed the horror-comedy cult classic, Tucker & Dale vs Evil. Recently he co-wrote and directed the hit indie horror-comedy, Clown in a Cornfield, which premiered at SXSW 2025 and went on to break the opening weekend box office record for IFC/Shudder, and was the 3rd highest streamed movie worldwide on HBO Max.