Charlie Polinger

Charlie Polinger is an American writer and director Polinger first emerged on the festival circuit with Fuck Me Richard 2023 a 15minute dark comedy short codirected with Lucy McKendrick that premiered at SXSW Film Festival 2023 and screened at festivals including Seattle and Melbourne Polingers breakthrough came with his first feature film The Plague 2025 which he wrote and directed as a psychological dramathriller The film premiered in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and received widespread critical recognition Polingers 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