ALEE RUGGIERI is a writer, director, and set decorator based in New York City. After graduating from NYU Tisch School of the Arts with a B.F.A in Film & Television and a minor in Cinema Studies, she has worked in the set decoration department on major television shows like American Horror Story: Delicate and Power Book II: Ghost, and production designed short form content. She has directed several short films, including Woe is Mary, which won the Audience Choice Award at Soho International Film Festival in 2022. Her short sci-fi screenplay Dawn was a finalist in Screencraft’s Shorts Competition and an Official Selection at Hollyshorts. Bloodletting, her first pilot script, was a quarterfinalist in Screencraft’s Horror Competition 2021. If she’s not at home with her cat Mercy, she can probably be found at a karaoke bar.
Growing up in Florida, Minnesota, California, and New York exposed me to many different types of life and fueled my interest in diverse character stories. It also helped me develop the sense of empathy and imagination needed to assimilate as a 'new kid.' Finding great escape in imagined worlds led to an undying love of the genres, particularly horror and sci-fi. As a storyteller, I’ve found that packaging character-driven, humanist stories into a recognizable genre allows me to reflect, subvert, and challenge ideas while honoring the excitement and entertainment that comes from going to the movies—the latter of which I find indispensable given all the times movies have shepherded me through my own growing pains.
While I’ve pursued creating my own writing and filmmaking, I’ve been lucky to exercise this exploration of character through set decoration. I love getting inside of a character’s head and applying that to choosing the simplest objects: what kind of laundry detergent would they have? Are they messy? Do they collect wine corks? Everything we surround ourselves with is a reflection of the person we are.