Sarah Gross is an award-winning director based out of Los Angeles who has directed, written, and produced commercials and short films for clients, such as Pepsi, UGG, Fashion Rocks, Jaunt VR, and others. She is known for crafting character-driven work with emotional resonance, arresting visuals, and provocative themes. Her interest lies in developing action, horror, and science-fiction films with psychologically rich characters and female-centric narratives. Sarah began her journey working in the camera department on independent features, and later transitioned into the assistant director’s department, staffed on various television shows, including GOTHAM, THE BLACKLIST, and PERSON OF INTEREST. Sarah’s USC thesis short film BOLÉRO was a finalist for the 2019 Student Academy Awards, nominated for “Best Narrative Short,” and was also honored at this year’s SAG-AFTRA Foundation Short Film Showcase. It was an official selection at this year’s Telluride Film Festival and Fantastic Fest, as well as a number of other Oscar Qualifying festivals, such as Palm Springs International ShortFest. The film won “Best Thriller/Science-Fiction” at UTA for USC’s First Look Industry Award, one of USC’s top honors. Sarah is currently attached to direct THE STRANGE FASCINATIONS OF NOAH HYPNOTIK, a hyper-stylized teen adventure film set up at Paramount Pictures with The Gotham Group attached to produce. Sarah is also attached to direct the science fiction/thriller ROGUE PLANET set up at Broken Road Productions, as well as the feature-length adaption of her short film, BOLÉRO, set up with Kyle Benn at Creator Media. Sarah received her M.F.A. in directing from USC’s School of Cinematic Arts and is represented by WME.