Back to top

Photograph of Claudia Myers

Claudia Myers Associate Professor Film and Media Arts

Additional Positions at AU
Head of Fiction Concentration
Interim Director Graduate Producing Program
Degrees
BA Yale University
MFA Columbia University's School of the Arts

Bio
Claudia Myers was named one of "10 Filmmakers to Watch" by Independent
Magazine in 2015. She has written and directed four features, won multiple
awards, was twice a finalist for the Sundance Screenwriters Lab, and is an
alumna of the Hamptons Screenwriters Lab.

Claudia wrote and directed ABOVE THE SHADOWS, a supernatural drama starring
Olivia Thirlby, Alan Ritchson, Jim Gaffigan and Megan Fox. The film opened
the 2019 Brooklyn Film Festival where it won the Audience Award for Best
Narrative Feature. After a theatrical release, the film was acquired for
streaming on Amazon Prime. Prior to this, Claudia wrote, directed, and
produced the military drama FORT BLISS starring Michelle Monaghan, Ron
Livingston & Pablo Schreiber. The film won several awards and top critics
for The Washington Post and Philadelphia Inquirer both cited Fort Bliss
among the best films of 2014. Prior to this Claudia wrote and directed
KETTLE OF FISH with Matthew Modine and Gina Gershon, which premiered at the
Tribeca Film Festival and won a Nickelodeon Screenwriting Award. Claudia
also co-wrote WILD OATS which won second place at the Slamdance Screenplay
Competition. The film stars Shirley MacLaine, Jessica Lange and Demi Moore.

Although Claudia works primarily in fiction, she also has experience in
documentary. Claudia recently co-directed THE TEST, a short documentary
offering a unique look at one man's journey towards US citizenship. The
film has screened at over 15 festivals and won several jury awards for best
short documentary. Earlier in her career, Claudia made a number of TV
documentaries about the military community. Among these, THE LONG ROAD BACK
about wounded soldiers returning from Iraq, won two Telly Awards, an Aurora
Award, and was nominated for a regional Emmy.

Claudia is currently in development on several projects, and recently
directed the TV drama THE BAD GUARDIAN with Melissa Joan Hart and Lala
Anthony.
See Also
Claudia Myers Films website
SOC's Myers Is Making Media That Matters
Claudia Myers interview
"The Test" documentary website
Hollywood Reporter announces "Shadow Girl" (released as "Above the Shadows")
For the Media
To request an interview for a news story, call AU Communications at 202-885-5950 or submit a request.

Teaching

Fall 2024

  • COMM-464 Directing Actors for Camera

  • COMM-506 Writing the Short Film

Spring 2025

  • COMM-464 Directing Actors for Camera

  • COMM-506 Writing the Short Film

  • COMM-702 Master's Portfolio Capstone

Scholarly, Creative & Professional Activities

Honors, Awards, and Fellowships

Screenwriting

  • "Fort Bliss" Hamptons Lab
  •  Fort Bliss" Sundance Screenwriters Lab Finalist
  • "As You Are" Screenplay Festival Finalist
  • "The Fourth Trimester" Page Screenwriting Awards Quarter Finalist
  • "Wild Oats" Winner Slamdance Screenwriting Competition (2nd Place)
  • "Kettle of Fish" Nickeolodeon Screenwriting Award
  • "Clinical" Sundance Screenwriters Lab Finalist

Fiction Film

  • "Above the Shadows" Brooklyn Film Festival Audience Award
  • Pitch to Screen Festival: Best Director, Best Film, Best Actress, Best Actor
  • "Above the Shadows" TIVA Awards Gold Award for Best Independent Feature
  • "Above the Shadows" University Film & Video Association Gold Award for Best Feature
  • "Fort Bliss" TIVA-DC Best Independent Film
  • "Fort Bliss" Champs Elysees Franco-American Film Festival Audience Award 
  • "Fort Bliss" Newport Beach Film Festival Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking 
  • "Fort Bliss" San Diego Film Festival Excellence in Acting Award Michelle Monaghan 
  • "Fort Bliss" GI Film Festival Best Narrative Feature 
  • "Below the Beltway" Newport Beach Film Festival Audience Award 
  • "The Kindness of Strangers"Rosebud Film & Video Festival Best of Show
  • "The Kindness of Strangers"New Line Cinema Development Award 
  • "The Kindness of Strangers" Angelus Awards Finalist
  • "Buddy & Grace" Silver Images Film Festival Best Student Film
  • "Buddy & Grace" DC Shorts Audience Award
  • "Buddy & Grace" National Board of Review Award,
  • "Buddy & Grace" Lifetime Student Filmmaker Award 

Documentary   

  • "The Test"  Flicker’s Rhode Island International Film Festival 
  • "The Test"  Austin Film Festival
  • "The Test"  Santa Fe International Film Festival, Jury Award: Best Short Documentary
  • "The Test"  United Nations Association Film Festival
  • "The Test"  Rocky Mountain Women's Film Festival
  • "The Test"  Justice Film Festival 
  • "The Test"  Big Sky Documentary Film Festival 
  • "The Test"  DC Independent Film Festival 
  • "The Test"  Atlanta Docufest (2024)American Documentary and Animation Film Festival 
  • "The Test"  Justice Film Festival
  • "The Test"  Annapolis Film Festival, Jury Award: Best Documentary Short
  • "The Test"  Manchester International Film Festival
  • "The Test"  Cleveland International Film Festival 
  • "The Test"  FilmFest DC 
  • "The Test"  Home is Distant Shores Film Festival 
  • "The Test"  DC/DOX 
  • "The Test"  Hill Country Film Festival 
  • "The Test"  Emberlight Film Festival 
  • "Women on the Wing" Worldfest Houston, Remi Jury Award, News & Documentary 
  • "The Long Road Back" 2009 Regional Emmy Award Nominee 
  • "The Long Road Back," Silver Telly documentary category 
  • "The Long Road Back" Classic Tellly documentary category 
  • "The Long Road Back" God Aurora Award documentary/bio 

Multi-Media/Gaming

  • 2008 CODiE Award "Outside the Wire," best workforce training solution  
  • Brandon Hall Excellence in Learning Award, "Outside the Wire" 

Work In Progress

Television screenings

 

  •    
  • "Below the Beltway" on Showtime 2010-present
  •    
  • "Women at War" on the Pentagon Channel March 2009-2010
  •    
  • "The Long Road Back" on the Pentagon Channel 2008-2009
  •    
  • "Kettle of Fish" on Showtime 2007-2008
    •  
  •  

 

Notable Film Festival Screenings

 

  •    
  • Newport Beach Film Festival, "Below the Beltway" (premiere)
  •    
  • GI Film Festival, "The Long Road Back"
  •    
  • Tribeca Film Festival, "Kettle of Fish" (premiere)
  •    
  • Sundance Film Festival, "Buddy & Grace"
  •    
  • Hollywood Film Festival, "The Kindness of Strangers" (premiere)
    •  
  •  

 

Screenplay Readings

 

  •    
  • Slamdance Reading Series, "Wild Oats" 
    •  
  •  

 

 

Work In Progress

Films/Documentaries

Fiction Film

  • Director "The Bad Guardian" starring Melissa Joan Hart and La La Anthony (2024)
  • Writer/Director "Above the Shadows" starrig Olivia Thirlby, Alan Ritchson, Megan Fox. (2019) Available on Amazon, iTunes, Tubi and elsewhere.
  • Writer/Director/Producer "Fort Bliss" starring Michelle Monaghan, Ron LIvingston, Oakes Fegley, Pablo Schreiber. (2014) Available on iTunes, Netflix and Amazon.
  • Screenwriter/Co-producer, "Wild Oats" directed by Andy Tennant. Starring Shirley MacLaine, Jessica Lange, Demi Moore. Released by Miramax. On Netflix.
  • Producer, "Below the Beltway" starring Tate Donovan, Sarah Clarke, Kip Pardue, Spencer Garrett, Noah Wyle, written by Jim Wareck & Brad Weir, directed by Dave Fraunces, produced by Jim Wareck, Claudia Myers, Spencer Garrett. DVD release by Otter Creek.   
  • Writer/Director, "Kettle of Fish" starring Matthew Modine and Gina Gershon. Premiered at Tribeca Film Festival, theatrical release by Aloha Releasing, DVD release by Screen Media. Available on Netflix.

Documentary   

  • Co-director, Producer "The Test" short documentary (2023)
  • Writer, Producer, "Women on the Wing" about the Women Airforce Service Pilots of WWII 
  • Writer/Producer, "Women at War" on the Pentagon Channel March 2009-2010   
  • Writer/Producer, "The Long Road Back" on the Pentagon Channel 2008-2009

Multi-media/Interactive

  • Writer, "The War Inside" developed for the U.S. Army with WILL Interactive
  • Writer/Director, "Outside the Wire" developed for the U.S. Army with WILL Interactive