Filmmaker. Storyteller.
Bay Area–based director with a visual edge.
Billy Higgins
FILMMAKER / DIRECTOR / WRITER
PRODUCER / EDITOR / VFX & GFX
My work spans branded content, narrative film, and the spaces where they intersect—always chasing what stays with you.
Scroll down to explore the work…
I’m Billy Higgins, a USC-trained director with a background in high-end post-production and a passion for telling emotionally charged, visually bold stories. My work spans award-winning independent film and branded content.
THREE
Winner - Best Thriller - Marina Del Rey Film Festival 2025
Winner - Best Feature Film - Oakland Film Festival 2025
Winner - Best U.S. Feature Film - Washington Film Awards 2025
My directorial feature debut - now playing in film festivals.
A survival thriller set in the eerie aftermath of a nuclear attack.
OTHER WORK
TITLE & MOTION GRAPHICS DESIGNER
RAOUL’S, A NEW YORK STORY
Official Selection - Tribeca Film Festival 2025
Directed by Greg Olliver and Karim Raoul
DIRECTOR / CO-WRITER / EDITOR
SHEPHERD’S GATE
Winner - Best Message - Shore to Shore Film Festival
Best Drama Nominee - First Glance Film Festival Philadelphia
Based on the actual women’s and children’s shelter in Livermore, CA. A corporate drama about legacy, power, and reinvention.
Starring Michelle LaRue, Alisha Mullally, Dorian Lockett
EDITOR / ASSISTANT DIRECTOR / SCRIPT SUPERVISOR
Death Blood 4
Directed by Chris De Pretis
ABOUT BILLY HIGGINS
I’m a USC film school graduate with a deep love for character-driven stories that haunt, connect, and stick with you. My creative journey has taken me from working at Industrial Light & Magic to producing editorial video for The Wall Street Journal, and now to directing and editing award-winning independent films.
My work has premiered at festivals including Tribeca, Marina del Rey, and Sonoma and spans narrative features, short films, and branded storytelling. I thrive in the tension between emotion and craft—whether that’s behind the camera or in the edit bay.
By day, I work in video production at a global Fortune 500 firm. By night (and weekends), I make films that hit you in the gut.
CREDITS
2024-2025
DIRECTOR, CO-PRODUCER, CO-WRITER, EDITOR - “THREE” (FEATURE LENGTH THRILLER)
Winner - Best Thriller - Marina Del Rey Film Festival 2025
My feature-length debut as director, Three tells the fictional story of three women who find themselves in a dangerous world as they trek across the Central Valley of California after a nuclear blast has destroyed San Francisco.
Info and tickets at: three-feature-film.com
2025
TITLE & MOTION GRAPHIC DESIGNER - “RAOUL’S, A NEW YORK STORY” (FEATURE LENGTH DOCUMENTARY)
A history of the famous SoHo restaurant. Matthew Broderick, Kate Spade, and Thomas Keller are among the interviewees.
2022-2025
CO-EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - “EAST BAY CONFIDENTIAL” (FEATURE LENGTH NEO-NOIR)
Premiering at Festival of Cinema New York - August 2025
A disillusioned Iraq War veteran is framed for a murder by a beautiful social media influencer. He must track down the only person who can testify on his behalf: a former sex worker on the run from a murderous gangster.
Info and tickets at the festival website
2019
DIRECTOR/WRITER/EDITOR - “SHEPHERD'S GATE” (SHORT FILM)
Based on the Shepherd’s Gate women’s shelter in the East Bay Area.
Winner - Best Message - Shore to Shore Film Festival - Glendale, CA
Best Drama Nominee - FirstGlance FilmFestival Philadelphia
Go to shepgatefilm.com to stay updated on future screenings and info.
2018-2019
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR / SCRIPT SUPERVISOR / EDITOR - "DEATH BLOOD 4" (FEATURE LENGTH SCI-FI/HORROR/COMEDY)
Available on Amazon Prime Video! My colleague Chris De Pretis wrote and directed this wonderful tongue-in-cheek feature sci-fi/horror film over the summer of 2018.
I was very happy to step out of the director's chair to support his vision and the work of our teammates.
2017-2018
CO-DIRECTOR / EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - "SO I THINK MY BOSS IS A VAMPIRE" (ON-SPEC TV PILOT / SHORT FILM)
Go to the film's Facebook page for info!
The name says it all :) This was a very collaborative project with a few co-workers who wanted to make an on-spec TV pilot.
2012-2014
MULTIMEDIA PRODUCER - THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
I produced video content for WSJ.com and the newspapers QR code links.
My most successful video at over EIGHT MILLION VIEWS (and counting) was "Five Ways to Know Your Dog Loves You" featuring my yellow Labrador (at the time) named Violet.
Aside from producing content, I supervised the San Francisco bureau's production equipment and facilitated the building of a new studio set.
2013
DIRECTOR/WRITER/EDITOR/SOUND DESIGNER - “G.P.S.”
Check it out at www.gpsshort.com!
Official Selection - 2014 Sonoma International Film Festival and 2014 FirstGlance Film Festival Los Angeles.
G.P.S. is a short suspense thriller filmed in Napa. Grace's emotions are taken past the breaking point after planting a G.P.S. device in her husband's car and discovering where he has been spending his days.
Starring Michelle LaRue (The Middle, Workaholics).
2011-2012:
DIRECTOR/EDITOR/SOUND DESIGNER - “NOT ALONE”
An Official Selection of the 2012 FirstGlance Film Festival Online Short Competition. Not Alone is a short suspense thriller about a young woman coming home to find that there's a killer on the loose, and someone's hiding in her house...
Co-written and produced by Erica Bardin.
Special appearances by Elex Michaelson (Fox 11 Los Angeles) and Brittany Ishibashi (This Is Us, Grace and Frankie)
2011-2012:
ISDN ENGINEER - “LEFT, RIGHT & CENTER” - NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO (KCRW)
I engineered the mixing board whenever Robert Scheer broadcasted from the Annenberg Radio Booth at USC to KCRW over ISDN.
2011-2012:
PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR - ANNENBERG RADIO NEWS - USC ANNENBERG SCHOOL FOR COMMUNICATION & JOURNALISM - KXSC 1560AM
SPJ Award-winning radio newscast. Director: Willa Seidenberg.
2007:
WRITER / DIRECTOR / EDITOR – “MR. LUCKY EATS NACHOS” (COMEDY SHORT)
Inspired by an actual lunch break gone terribly wrong.
This short transforms a real-life mishap into a gross-out romantic comedy with heart.
WARNING: NSFW content (language, toilet humor, poor life choices).
Features music by Single File, used with permission from the bassist.
Watch it here: youtu.be/GJgpbUEmdOo
2005:
SCRIPT SUPERVISOR - “HUSTLER'S INSTINCT”
Comedy short produced by Omar Meza. Directed by Umberto Gonzalez.
Featuring Eva Longoria (Desperate Housewives, The Sentinel).
2004:
ASSISTANT EDITOR - “THE P.T.A.”
Short film/TV pitch for the ABC Family series. Produced by Gary Bryman.
This version featured Natasha Henstridge (Species, The Whole Nine Yards) and Conchata Ferrell (Two and a Half Men, Edward Scissorhands).
2003:
SOUND & TITLE DESIGNER - “OPPORTUNITIES”
Short produced by Shant Tutunjian. Directed by Katie Harrington.
Featuring Da'Vone McDonald (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Get Him to the Greek)
2001:
EDITORIAL INTERN - INDUSTRIAL LIGHT + MAGIC - LUCASFILM, LTD.
Shows: Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone, Pearl Harbor, The Time Machine, The Majestic, Minority Report, Gangs of New York, Star Wars: Attack of the Clones