Erin Brown Thomas - SeriesFest Women Directing Mentorship

Erin Brown Thomas grew up as a tom-boy in Akron, Ohio. Her early love of competitive sports helped her gain comfort in traditionally dominated male-arenas… literally. In high school she wrestled on the boy’s team and was the first female to pole vault at the state-level.

Academic and athletic scholarships landed her on the track and field team at Malone University where she double majored in Theology and Philosophy and gained reputation for asking questions that challenged the status quo. When a friend was expelled for drinking on a school-sanctioned trip, Erin picked up a camera for the first time and made a short film challenging the school’s decision. The Chair of the Media Communications department saw potential in Erin’s storytelling instincts, and mentored her through her senior year. After graduating, Erin quickly realized that her sense of humor was wayyyyyyyyy to irreverent to land her a job at a church, and so she moved to Los Angeles with a mini-DV camera in hand.

A director at heart, Erin has earned a living as a multi-hyphenate freelancer for the past decade. Thus, she’s also a dynamic writer, producer, and editor who has collaborated with heavyweight talent including Selena Gomez, Eminem, Tony Hale, Lena Dunham and Emmy Rossum. She proudly cut the 2017 HBO release “Tokyo Project” starring Elisabeth Moss for Emmy-Winning Director Richard Shepard and Producer Jenni Konner.

Erin has amassed an impressive directing portfolio comprised of independent film and digital series (both independent and studio-funded). Her vivacious short comedy “Rekindled” played 12 Oscar-qualifying film festivals, winning 14 awards. “Feeling Flush” charmed audiences at high-profile LGBTQ Film Festivals across the world, including Inside Out (Sponsored by Netflix). She was selected as an “artist in residence” during the 2019 Palm Springs International ShortFest for “But First...” which also received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, was curated by Vimeo, and won “best music video” at Cinequest. Her for-hire work involves eight episodes of Peacock Kids’ “Teensy Tiny DIY” show, three episodes from season two of “Adopted The Series,” and the upcoming independent pilot “A Question of Service.”

Erin’s training includes Judith Weston’s directing labs, a decade’s long involvement with Upright Citizen’s Brigade, and various director shadows (mostly in cinema) including Nickelodeon’s “All That.” Erin was selected as a 2019 workshop participant in the AICP and DGA’s Commercial Director Diversity Program and was a finalist for Shondaland’s Women-In-Film mentorship through SeriesFest. Her YouTube channel “Versatile Assassins” has 90 thousand subscribers and 13 million views.

The process of creating is just as important to Erin as the product, and thus, she fosters an ego-free on-set environment that’s focused on solutions and innovation, and values every person’s contribution. For Erin, the process of creating meaningful work in community is infinitely more important than clout or comparison. Therefore, in efforts to build a community of kind and talented peers, Erin co-founded Salute Your Shorts Film Festival in 2017 where she continues to oversee a programming team as Artistic Director. Curation has deeply impacted her curiosity and voice as an artist.