Clare Cooney

Clare Cooney is a filmmaker, SAG actor, and Senior Programmer at the short film channel Omeleto. Her feature directorial debut DEPARTING SENIORS made its domestic premiere on Opening Night of the Chicago International Film Festival and screened with BFI Flare, FrightFest UK, Screamfest LA, Nightmares Film Festival, and at the inaugural Fantastic Pavilion at Cannes. After a limited theatrical run and digital release on Apple TV, the film made the Top 10 on iTunes on both the Horror and Independent charts and made Dread Central’s Top 10 Hidden Horror Gems of 2024 list. Her award-winning short films RUNNER, PICK UP, and AFTER (A LOVE STORY) have played at major U.S. festivals, including Academy-Qualifying festivals such as Cleveland International, LA Shorts International, Indy Shorts International, and Atlanta Film Festival, where Cooney received a “Filmmaker to Watch” nod. RUNNER and PICK UP, both written and directed by Cooney, went viral on Omeleto. Cooney originally hails from Detroit, has trained extensively in Chicago, and is a dual citizen of the U.S. and Ireland.