Claire Gostin is a writer and director from Gig Harbor, Washington. She currently lives in Los Angeles, California and is a graduate of the USC School of Cinematic Arts with a major in Film and Television Production. Claire’s work has screened at many prestigious festivals including NFFTY (2019, 2021, 2022, 2023), Urbanworld, and Austin Film Festival, among others. Her work has been featured on platforms such as Directors Notes, Beyond the Short, Jubilee Media, and DUST, and has been viewed over 50 million times online. Her most recent short script, which wrapped production in September 2023, won the Best Screenplay award at NFFTY 2023. She is currently developing a feature that was a second-rounder at both the 2023 Austin Film Festival and the 2024 Sundance Development Track. When not working on her own projects, Claire has assisted a number of esteemed filmmakers, including the writer/director duo of Missing, the sequel to the 2018 Sony Pictures movie Searching. Currently, she works as an assistant to the producer of Crazy Rich Asians and Hell or High Water.

Writer and story editor Kat Montagu is the Head of Department for the Vancouver Film School Writing for Film, Television and Games program. Kat has taught screenwriting for over twenty years. Her Career Launch class has prepared countless VFS graduates to work on feature films, in the writers rooms of TV series, and in video game studios. Her students rave about her enthusiasm, wealth of knowledge, and the high standards she inspires. It’s no surprise that she’s been named a VFS Instructor of the Year three times.

Lily is a Japanese American filmmaker from Boise, ID. She has spent the last five years working in nonprofit arts management, and has chaired Boise Contemporary Theater’s BIPOC Playwright’s Festival since its launch in 2021. She previously served as the Festival Manager for Slamdance Film Festival. She wrote, produced and starred in her first feature film LIKE LOVE at age 21, which screened at festivals across the US and UK, and recently made her directorial debut with the short film NICE GUY. Although she wears many hats, writing is her preferred medium. She currently resides in Chicago with her partner and cat.