KaiSwanson
Films about pressure, performance, memory, and the elaborate stories people tell in order to survive each other.
Selected work01 / Selected work
Selected work
Atomic Fondue
At the height of the Cold War in 1973, when the President and Soviet premier disappear, a planeload of resourceful Air Force wives must avert World War III while contending with infidelities, spies, martinis, and fondue.
Hot Minute
When a broke rideshare driver is forced to drive two fraternity brothers’ getaway car, she turns their half-baked crime spree into an unlikely business opportunity and her best shot at escaping a dying North Carolina mill town.
god's favorite angels
After years of addiction and estrangement, a woman returns to her college town for a friend’s wedding, only to find her group chat of misfit friends dragging her into the same reckless patterns she is desperate to escape.
Trash People
In Los Angeles, a young woman overwhelmed by the debris of modern living is pulled into an unexpected game of cat-and-mouse after she catches a stylish stranger sorting through her garbage.
In the Search Bar of Lost Time
Blending Proustian memory with algorithm-driven mobile advertising, the film examines how digital systems manipulate desire, commodify time, and reshape the self.
The Tenth Circle
In the absurdly bureaucratic Tenth Circle of Hell, a carefree slacker and a tightly wound perfectionist clash and connect as they confront the flaws that landed them there.
02 / Practice
Practice
I came to directing as a performer. I care about what a scene feels like from inside it, and I want the camera to hold empathy for the people and the world it watches.
I work closely with cinematographers, sound designers, and actors to build that experience. I like clear expectations, useful notes, prepared departments, and room for people to surprise me.
Approach, influences + collaboration03 / Writing + Culture
Writing + Culture
Screenplays, essays, and a book about what makes us laugh—and what that laughter reveals.
Book / Author / Kendall Hunt / 2025
Behind the
Laughter.
History, Writing, and the Production of American Comedy
Read about the bookInquiries
I’m interested in directing features, television, and music videos; writing screenplays, books, and essays; and producing independent work with a point of view.
Directing, commissions + collaborations