JULIE SHARBUTT (Writer/Director) is a female-forward genre and comedy filmmaker who comes from the worlds of theater and improv comedy. Her work explores contemporary social issues with character-driven stories filled with warmth and dignity, even and especially within Genre. Recent credits include 2021 Tribeca Film Festival World Premiere short comedy film CUPIDS, which she co-wrote with director Zoey Martinson for Tribeca Studios' 8:46 Films Program. Her 2021 horror comedy feature screenplay GHOSTIES was a 2021 Nantucket Film Festival Tony Cox Screenplay Competition, FilmQuest and Other Worlds Finalist. Her feminist horror feature screenplay RETREAT is currently in development for production in 2022. Prior to her career in filmmaker, Julie was a full time theater, film and television actor in New York, with an MFA in Acting from NYU. Julie’s 2019 short horror film 3 DAYS screened at over thirty film festivals including 2019 Fantastic Fest, San Francisco Indie Fest and Atlanta Shorts Fest (Best Screenplay), and is now streaming on premiere horror channel ALTER. Her debut feature film debut as a writer and director, MOVED, was distributed by 1091 in 2015. With additional background in comedy writing and performance from the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater and The Peoples Improv Theater, Julie's comedy writing has been featured in The New Yorker: Shouts & Murmurs, McSweeneys, Funny-Ish and more.