aliza brugger
screenwriter // director
Aliza Brugger is an award-winning screenwriter and director based in Los Angeles, originally from rural Nebraska. They received an MFA in Film from Columbia University, where their work was recognized internationally. Their thesis film Soma screened at the 2024 Maine International Film Festival, the 2024 Los Angeles International Short Film Festival, and the 2025 Houston International Film Festival, where it won a Remi Award. Their short Ain’t No Mercy for Rabbits played at Torino, In the Palace, and the Female Eye Festival, winning Best International Short Film. Roadkill, which premiered at Outfest Los Angeles and won Best Screenplay at Out at the Movies, later became the basis for their feature script of the same name.Roadkill and television pilot Trashy were both selected for the university’s prestigious Selects awards ceremony, with Trashy winning Best TV Comedy Pilot.
Since graduating, they’ve been hired to direct a range of narrative projects, including The Casting Couch on Greenwich St., which screened at the NYC Indie Film Fest, Fort Lauderdale Film Festival, and Citrus Circuit Film Festival, where it won Best Picture and earned them Best Director. They also directed Hole in the Wall, a short film set to be released alongside the new album of an acclaimed musician, currently in post-production.
In addition to narrative work, Aliza has directed music videos, branded content, and commercials. Their upcoming slate includes two narrative short films they were hired to direct, as well as their first feature-length documentary, A Little Gay on the Prairie, which begins production in June and explores the lives of queer folks who choose to find home and happiness in rural America.
Aliza is most fulfilled when exploring themes of class, queerness, family dysfunction, nature, and the subconscious. Their goal as a filmmaker is to create empathy and connection.