With an M.F.A. in Screenwriting, Matt Vancil is a graduate of the prestigious American Film Institute in Hollywood.  As an undergraduate at Pacific Lutheran University, he wrote and executive-produced two low-budget horror comedies with Dead Gentlemen Productions, Demon Hunters and its sequel Dead Camper Lake.

His debut as a writer/director resulted in the wildly successful cult fantasy comedy The Gamers, which won the 2003 Gen Con Film Festival and has screened at fantasy conventions and festivals worldwide.  Matt wrote the satirical short film Campaign Ad, which won Current TV’s $15,000 Video Challenge in 2005.

Matt’s feature debut, The Gamers: Dorkness Rising, premiered at Gen Con in 2006, and screened at Comic Con in 2008.  Matt worked in as a development intern on Masters of Horror and Masters of Science Fiction for Industry Entertainment in 2006.  Margaret Weis Productions adapted his Demon Hunters movies into a role-playing game in their award-winning Cortex System, which already hosts games based on Battlestar Galactica and Joss Whedon’s Serenity.  Matt created the zombie survival horror show Alive with Star Trek: Enterprise veterans Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens.

In August of 2008, Anthem Pictures released The Gamers: Dorkness Rising on DVD.  The film is available on Netflix and Amazon.com.