Parity Pipeline

Parity Pipeline

Shapeless

Directed by Samantha Aldana

Ivy, a struggling singer in New Orleans trapped in the hidden underworld of her eating disorder, must face her addiction - or risk becoming a monster.

  • ABOUT
  • BIO
  • SCREENINGS
  • AWARDS
  • PRESS
  • GALLERY

Genre

Director Identity

Bio

Samantha Aldana is an award-winning Belizean-American director/writer. Her perspective is influenced by the magical realism and folklore storytelling traditions of her multicultural upbringing in Mississippi and the Caribbean. She is inspired by stories that use genre elements to explore the human condition and is most drawn to characters and stories that have often gone unseen. 

Samantha is the recipient of the Belize Film Commissioner’s Emerging Storyteller Feature Film Award for her feature in development, LITTLE LYING WILD. This film won the WomeninFan Pitch at the Sitges Film Festival and was selected as a Breaking Through the Lens finalist. LITTLE LYING WILD has also participated in the Berlinale Talents, Tribeca Film Institute Network, Tribeca Writing in Unreal, and the Emerging Voices Program.

Samantha is an alum of the 2023-2024 Warner Brothers All Access Directors Program and the NBC Female Forward TV Directing Program. Samantha was selected to direct an original short film titled ANGELS for Disney/HULU’s Season 3 Bite-Size Huluween. The film is currently streaming on HULU and SHUTTER. ANGELS was invited to screen at over a dozen film festivals worldwide and was awarded the Best Supernatural Horror Film at Fear Fest and the Audience Award at Dark Bridges Film Festival. 

Her previous short films have won numerous honors and have screened at festivals worldwide. Samantha holds a BA in Film Directing from Columbia College Chicago and is a Film Fatales and NALIP member. She is currently based in LA.

Screening History

World Premiere - Tribeca Film Festival 2021

International Premiere - Raindance 2021

Awards History

Winner of "Blood Thirsty Award" at Wench Film Festival - 2021

Press

""The gnawing omnipresence of an eating disorder becomes the source of body horror in Samantha Aldana’s accomplished, visually impressive debut.""
The Guardian
"“...Shapeless is, ultimately, an immersive, intoxicating experience where the sensory trumps more orthodox narrative storytelling elements, a perfect fit when it comes to the film’s challenging subject matter.”"
Alliance of Women Journalists
"“Comparisons to Lynch are inevitable as Aldana’s directing style takes on a life of its own and creates a truly unique movie-going experience. (…) Kelly Murtagh is absolutely fabulous in the leading role.”"
Film Book
""Shapeless is wonderful at creating a sense of dread, an environment that you’re worried about and worried to be in.""
Flixist
"“This dark tale of a woman losing an internal battle is told in a sensitive light and takes up important space in the horror realm.”"
View From the Dark