Vanessa Rose Bristol/London, United Kingdom

Vanessa Rose is a queer screenwriter and director who creates gender and genre-bending stories about unlikely heroes and magical misfits. She recently graduated with a Masters from the National Film and Television School in the UK, where she wrote two successful animated short films that continue to tour festivals and garner awards including being BAFTA shortlisted, jury awards from SXSW, TIFF and the Austin Film Festival, and most recently voted a Vimeo staff pick (2023). One of said shorts is now being developed by Nexus Studios into a TV series. Additionally she won an emerging talent award for a play produced in London at Chiswick Playhouse and Soho Theatre, which is now being funded by the British Film Institute to be made into a film. She wrote and directed two short films last year that are touring internationally, and has been a finalist in several large writing contests including PAGE Awards and the Sundance Lab.

Drawing from her previous career as a professional dancer, Vanessa brings with her an understanding of creative collaboration, unorthodox narrative, and an enduring fascination with the physical power and limitations of the human body. She writes plays, films, television, and poetry. Hand-stands help keep her sane (ish).