Sepand Mashiahof
Sepand "Sepi" Mashiahof is a second generation Iranian-American immigrant and trans-femme filmmaker, screenwriter, and musician. She holds a BA in Literature from the University of California, Santa Cruz, where she wrote her senior thesis on Horror Film, using a feminist lens to explore the queer signifiers of canonized monsters throughout film history. After graduating, she moved to Oakland, CA where she cultivated relationships with the queer underground arts community through her work as Executive Director at Bay Area Girls Rock Camp, host of the cult Scream Queens Radio program, and member of industrial no wave band SBSM. These connections allowed her to pursue her passions as a filmmaker, where she directed a plethora of music videos before making her short film debut with Love You Forever, a psychological arthouse horror film which she wrote, directed, acted in, and composed the soundtrack for. Currently, Sepand is keeping a nest of nine feature screenplays warm while pursuing relationships with producers who love horror films and want to see queer/trans stories through them. As part of her own empowerment journey, she utilizes genre storytelling to create worlds of nuance in which trans protagonists can experience their arcs without the pressure of cissexist expectations.