Trace Pope is a writer, director, and editor originally from the oil-cracked fields of East Texas. Blending his experience as a performer and musician with his love for language, Trace’s work explores the way memory refracts and shapes our identity in the context of a rapidly evolving world. He holds an MFA in Film/TV Production from USC, an MA in Classical Theater from LAMDA, and a BA in English from UT Austin. His thesis film, “A Fugue,” won the USC Faculty Award for Best Screenwriting and premiered at the Academy Award-qualifying LA Shorts Film Festival. His second short film, “SILENCE = DEATH,” won the Sloan Foundation Production Grant, the USC Faculty Award for Best Producing, and is touring the world on the festival circuit. Trace is currently developing his debut feature, a Queer ensemble comedy about death doulas, surrogacy, and the end of the world.