ABOUT | Virat Pal

I am an Indian writer/director currently based in Los Angeles. I'm an avid cinephile with over a decade of experience making narrative films, especially in the

horror genre.

A graduate in Advertising from Mumbai University, I began my career in Marketing and Sales working for Google, before making the transition to films. (In my time at Google, I learned not to judge people by their words, nor their actions, but by their search history. Also, my email id was virat@google.com - The highlight of

my time there.)

From Google, I made my way to UCLA, where I did a Professional program in Screenwriting and Cinematography. One of my scripts, ‘Beyond The Depth’, was nominated for the prestigious Nate Wilson’s Joie De Vivre Awards at UCLA. (Sadly, my script about submersibles trapped underwater didn’t win. The UCLA Jury was looking for dramatic scripts with a strong social message. They did remark, however, that a place where this script would’ve definitely won was at the box office. Praise sounds great but is there a sweeter sound than KA-CHING? Yes, Producers, we’re both on the same page.)

Shortly after that, being an ardent Sci-Fi enthusiast, I wrote and directed my first short, DOXPARA - a 14 minute Science Fiction film that premiered at the FilmQuest Film Festival in Utah. (I think of this film the way parents think of their firstborn child. If they knew what they knew when their third child came along, they would’ve done things quite differently.)

I followed this up with the herculean task of finishing my first feature film - RECAPTURE - a No Budget Noir Thriller, shot on 16MM Black and White Film that I wrote, directed and produced. (Yes! You read that right. On FILM! Some people still use it. It’s not extinct. You can add as much film grain to a digital video as you’d like, but a dressed up chicken is never a peacock.)

My third film was a proof-of-concept horror short titled THE BELLS. The film, contrary to our expectations, went viral on YouTube and has since raked in more than 8.5 Million views along with generating a plethora of reaction and review videos online from all over the world. (Seeing people be frightened is truly hilarious. I mean it. They’re almost as terrified as I am when I receive a phone call from my in-laws. I’m only kidding, of course)

My fourth film was FACELIFT. It had its world premiere at Nightstream, the biggest genre festival in the US in 2020. It was also part of the official lineup of ScreamFest Horror Film Festival, HorrorHaus Film Festival, Grimmfest in UK, MonsterFest in Australia, and Fantafestival in Italy, to name a few. (I wish I could’ve gone to these exotic locations, but unlike what Swedish House Mafia told us, Heaven didn’t have a plan for me. The pandemic did.)

My most recent film is a short I made in India. While I was back home last year, renewing my visa (a process a lot of legal aliens to America can hopefully relate to!), I decided on making a short which mixed a pulpy genre sensibility with a very heavy subject matter like forced marriages. The result was a short titled NIGHT OF THE BRIDE. It’s about arranged marriages but with a twist. If horror doesn’t show you other cultures in a cool, genre style, then what will!

(And NO! it was not inspired by any personal experience!)

An official selection at Fantasia 2023, where it won an Audience Award for Best Asian Short, NIGHT OF THE BRIDE has had screenings at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival, and the Overlook Film Festival where it won the Jury award for the Scariest Short Film. Upcoming screenings include Celluloid Screams and Mayhem Film Festival in the UK, Terror Molins in Spain, Razor Reel Flanders in Belgium, Monster Fest in Australia and

MAMI Film Festival in Mumbai, India's biggest film festival..

And lastly, if you're wondering what I'm up to these days? - Well, I’m developing a number of horror feature projects, with high hopes that one of them goes into production soon. I’m also researching various different ways of terrifying and tormenting people. (For screenwriting purposes only, I promise!)

- Virat