Johnny Coffeen is a Student Academy Award-winning director who received the honor while attending the David Lynch Graduate School of Cinematic Arts. His work leans toward surreal, psychologically driven storytelling and is grounded in a highly collaborative process. Early in his career, he worked in the editing room on the SXSW Grand Jury Prize-winning film Short Term 12, an experience that shaped his approach to performance and rhythm. Following his Student Academy Award, Coffeen’s master’s thesis film, The Swan Girl, premiered at David Lynch’s Festival of Disruption, earning a personal endorsement from Lynch himself: ‘Pretty damn good.’ His short films, The Circle Game and The False Mirror, further refined his voice. The Sleeper’s Twin marked Coffeen’s third collaboration with renowned stop-motion artist John Frame, whose work has been exhibited in fine art museums around the country and remains a recurring creative touchstone. Coffeen recently completed his debut feature film The Avalanche.