Samantha Nell is a filmmaker from South Africa. She completed her MA at New York University’s Tisch School of Arts Asia in Singapore in 2014 and has gone on to direct and produce short films on four continents. In 2012 her short film “Stiff” was selected for the Focus Features’ Africa First Program. It premiered at the 2014 Palm Springs International Shortsfest and won Best Short Film at the Africa International Film Festival in Nigeria. She participated in the Cannes South Africa Film Factory in collaboration with Michael Wahrmann from Brazil and their short film “The Beast” premiered at the Directors’ Fortnight in the 2016 Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for a Brazilian Academy Award. Her most recent short film “Love Motel”, shot on location in South Korea, premiered at Durban International Film Festival in 2017. She has just completed her debut feature film as a director; "Do Your Worst" which will premiere on Netflix in 2023. She is currently developing her second feature: “Miles from Nowhere”. She has participated at several development labs including: Realness Screenwriter's Residency, La Fabrique du Cinema du Monde, TIFF Talent Lab and Locarno Filmmaker's Academy.
