Scott Aharoni

Aharoni was born in Great Neck, New York, on January 4, 1994. He grew up studying the art of sleight of hand magic and even performed on stage and at special events. He was introduced to moviemaking in middle school.

During his time in high school, he participated in the school district's public television news station, which featured a full production TV studio and mobile film truck. He directed and produced several forms of content under the GNPS TV banner, including the school's morning news show, sporting events, concerts, and graduation ceremonies. After graduating from the William A. Shine Great Neck South High School, he attended Hofstra University on a Presidential Scholarship. He pursued his bachelor of science in film and television production and graduated with summa cum laude Latin Honors from the Honors College at Hofstra University in 2016.^[3]

While doing his bachelor's, Aharoni worked as a freelance director and editor, working on experimental short films, commercials, and music videos.

In 2015, in his final year at Hofstra University, Aharoni produced, directed, and edited his senior thesis short film, Bardo.^[4]

Bardo won the 1st Annual Golden Lion Award, which was awarded to the filmmaker of the year, at the 20th Annual Hofstra Film Festival in 2016. It also won awards for best director, producer, and editor.^[5] Bardo premiered at The Dolby Theatre in New York City in 2016.

After graduating from Hofstra University, Aharoni continued to work on music videos and commercials as a freelance director and producer. In 2017 he directed, produced, and edited his next short, The Untimely Gift.^[5] The film premiered at the Directors Guild of America Theatre in New York City and received critical praise.

In August 2020, Aharoni directed, produced, and edited his next short film, Leylak,^[6] during the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The film was executive produced by Colman Domingo and Oscar nominee Doug Roland. The film held its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 12, 2021, and won the Special Jury Prize.^[7] In 2020, he served as the Executive Producer for the film The Criminals,^[8] which was shortlisted for the 94th Academy Awards.^[9]

After the success of Leylak, Aharoni co-founded Curious Gremlin, an American independent entertainment company specializing in film and television development, production and financing. Curious Gremlin produced their first feature film titled, Psycho Therapy: The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer, which stars Steve Buscemi, John Magaro, and Britt Lower won an Audience Choice Award at the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival.

Since then, Aharoni has served as an Executive Producer on various projects, including Kristen Stewart's directorial debut, The Chronology of Water, which stars Imogen Poots and held its world premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival; Lofty Nathan's The Carpenter's Son, which stars Nicolas Cage and Noah Jupe; Oscar Boyson's directorial debut, Our Hero, Balthazar which stars Jaeden Martell, Asa Butterfield and Noah Centineo, and held its world premiere at Tribeca Film Festival; Dylan Meyer's directorial debut, The Wrong Girls, which stars Kristen Stewart, Seth Rogen, LaKeith Stanfield, Kumail Nanjiani and Alia Shawkat; and Mona Fastvold's The Testament of Ann Lee, which stars Amanda Seyfried, Thomasin McKenzie, Lewis Pullman, Stacy Martin, Tim Blake Nelson, Christopher Abbott and Matthew Beard, and will premiere at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival.