Charlie Polinger
Directing
Biography
Charlie Polinger is an American writer and director. Polinger first emerged on the festival circuit with Fuck Me, Richard (2023), a 15-minute dark comedy short co-directed with Lucy McKendrick that premiered at SXSW Film Festival (2023) and screened at festivals including Seattle and Melbourne. Polinger’s breakthrough came with his first feature film, The Plague (2025), which he wrote and directed as a psychological drama-thriller. The film premiered in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and received widespread critical recognition. Polinger’s work on The Plague earned significant awards and nominations across major film festivals and critics’ associations. At the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, the film was nominated in the Un Certain Regard category and for the Golden Camera. It also garnered nominations at the Sitges – Catalonian International Film Festival (2025), was awarded the Grand Special Prize and Critics Award (Prix de la Critique) at the Deauville Film Festival (2025), and won the Breakthrough Director Award at the Denver Film Festival (2025). Additional recognition includes the Best International Feature at the Calgary International Film Festival (2025), an Austin Film Critics Association nomination for Best First Film, a New York Film Critics Online nomination for Best Debut Director, and further nominations from the Indiana Film Journalists Association (2025). The Philadelphia Film Critics Circle Awards (2025) honoured Polinger with Best Directorial Debut. In awards season extending into 2026, The Plague received nominations from the Directors Guild of America for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a First Theatrical Feature Film, the Oklahoma Film Critics Circle Awards, and the Hawaii Film Critics Society for Best New Filmmaker.
Known For
A socially awkward tween endures the ruthless hierarchy at a water polo camp, his anxiety spiraling into psychological turmoil over the summer.
The Plague
A noblewoman's exile leads her twin to assume her identity in a plague-sealed medieval kingdom. As she navigates deadly court intrigue with her daughter, she questions whether safety behind castle walls is worth the price of brutality.
The Masque of the Red Death
An anxious and ungainly teenage boy struggles against bullies, puberty, and his fears of mortality when his parents send him to a summer water polo camp.
Sauna
Teddy, the daughter of a private prison mogul, becomes obsessed with a charismatic inmate, Fangs. Consumed with desire for the self-proclaimed ‘psychopath,’ Teddy risks everything as her life spirals spectacularly out of control.
Fangs
Unsure of his future after college, James returns to his small rural hometown before his senior year begins. He unexpectedly begins working on the dairy farm his father once owned, befriending an eccentric twenty-something farmer and, to his surprise, a grieving cow. As James connects with his past, he opens old wounds about his father's sudden death.
Muckland
Kansas City 1959: When Andy's boyfriend leaves, Andy goes on a trip to confront him and discovers his lover's double life.
A Place to Stay
Recovering from a broken leg, a romance-obsessed loner finds herself swept up in a passionate long-distance love affair. Richard is perfect in every way, except that he may be a scammer.
Fuck Me, Richard
Overwhelmed by guilt after an intense affair, Emma returns home to her family hoping to reconnect with her husband.
Good People
What if you decided to become... a super hero?
Notes from the Rogues Gallery
College student Fred, wakes up totally hung over after having blacked out the night before. When his roommate, Jacob, brings him breakfast, revealing that Fred came out the night before, Fred goes back into denial, despite Jacob’s acceptance of Fred’s sexuality. Will Fred finally accept the truth about himself?
Not Gay
A live-action movie revolving around the Bratz doll line.