Shannon Young began his filmmaking career by producing feature length VHS horror movies and directing large-scale stage productions at his suburban high school, where he received several awards. He was subsequently accepted to the Bachelor of Arts in Media Arts at RMIT where he co-directed his first 16mm feature, the low budget action-horror film Stygian with James Wan (of Saw fame, where Stygian is actually referenced during the film). Stygian became an award winner and screened at local and international film festivals, including Dead By Dawn in Scotland.