In 2024, Kailee’s film CAN premiered at SXSW and won the Audience Award for Best Narrative Short Film. Her music video My Idea was also an official selection, making her the first director to showcase two projects at the SXSW Film Festival in the same year.
Kailee’s body of work includes commercials, music videos, short films, and long films. Her films have screened at festivals such as Tribeca, Raindance, SIFF, and Palm Springs ShortFest, and on platforms like NOWNESS, Director’s Library, Short of the Week, and Vimeo Staff Picks. Kailee first garnered attention in 2019 with The Person I Am When No One Is Looking, a short film that she wrote, directed, produced, and performed in. Vulture hailed Kailee as the “ultimate multi-hyphenate,” praising her for masterfully balancing comedy and tragedy while layering personal storytelling with incisive commentary.
Kailee was born in Tucson, Arizona and raised in Laguna Beach, California. She studied at NYU Tisch School of the Arts and now lives in Los Angeles.
Further Reading:
The Creative Independent - Interview
Director’s Library - Influential Works
Photo by Patrick Jones