HWS News
16 February 2026 Thrillogy Debuts at the Finger Lakes Film Festival
A film by HWS students will be shown as part of the Finger Lakes Film Festival on Feb. 28.
Absurdist horror/comedy Thrillogy, directed by Ryan Brady ’26, has been selected for the Finger Lakes Film Festival. The annual festival features worldwide filmmakers, with a special focus on upstate New York. The festival will be held on Saturday, Feb. 28 at the Smith Opera House and the Dove Block Project.
The festival is free and open to the public. Learn more about the event and showtimes here.
Inspiration for Thrillogy struck during Brady’s junior year after watching a funny Tik Tok. Her short film portrays a group of teenagers who must face their wildest fears when trapped in a surreal, supernatural hellscape.
“My favorite part of the project was having the chance to work with my friends on something so fun and meaningful. Not only this, but we were able to be outside and film on campus during such a beautiful time of the year,” says Brady.
In September of 2025, Thrillogy premiered at the Amazing Fantasy Fest in Buffalo, where it earned a finalist spot in the “Western New York Student Film” category.
Brady says Puccini has been an important mentor. “I’ve been lucky enough to take Instructor Puccini’s class and hold a student worker position in the Digital Learning Center. I couldn’t have done this without his help and support,” she says.
During Puccini’s editing course, filmmaker and visual artist Lindsay Denniberg was an invited guest lecturer. The connection led Denniberg to visit the set of Thrillogy, where she contributed to the film’s production. Brady describes Denniberg’s involvement as a “dream come true.”
Up next, Brady is working on a new short film, which she hopes to show at the 2027 FLX Film Festival. Brady is also completing an Honors project on campus, advised by Associate Professor of Media and Society Leah Shafer. Brady will complete a feature-length script titled Crush Hour and film a scene. Brady began writing the script during her junior year while taking "Screenwriting" and continued over the summer as part of a summer research project.
In the above photo, Instructor of Practice Casey Puccini of the Media and Society Department (left) sits behind the camera on set.
