Ariel Sinelnikoff

Ariel Sinelnikoff fell in love with cinema after being introduced to Hitchcock's Psycho at the age of 11. Following her passion, she pursued a career in film directing at San Francisco State University, where she received her Bachelor's degree in Film Production. It was there that she began to explore socio-political issues - such as women's and LGBTQ+ rights - that were close to her heart through the lens of darker genres, particularly horror and psychological thrillers. Genre filmmaking allowed her the freedom to communicate the nuanced experiences endured by members of these communities to a larger audience through accessible metaphor. It was through this work that Ariel received the Ronald A. Jacobs Scholarship and a nomination for the Princess Grace Award for her feminist horror thesis film, Enceinte (2014), which went on to premiere at the 2014 SF IndieFest Another Hole in the Head Film Festival.