Kate Winborne

Growing up an artist, Writer-Director Kate Winborne was born in the trees of Auburn, California, to a small family of Irish-German and 4th-generation Polish immigrants. Her childhood, following a work opportunity for her father, then transitioned from the San Francisco and LA coasts to the suburbs and mountains of Colorado, where she worked her first job at the local movie theater while attending high school. During her college career and following the publication of her first three books and a sold-out book signing, she became known professionally as "The Rotten Girl," founded a writers' retreat for the online horror community, The Slaughterhouse, and directed her debut short film, A Girl Emerges (2025). She was later named the University English Department's Spotlight Student and commemorated with Magna Cum Laude honors for her Bachelor of Arts in English Literature, Film, and Media Studies and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a concentration in Neuroscience. Since then, she has written scripts for both feature and short films, worked alongside other filmmakers on a variety of projects, received certifications from the Sundance Collab program, joined WIF and Blacklist, and, in an effort to spark further discussion on the significance of women in horror cinema, launched the feminist horror production company Women on Top that advocates for women-centered narratives, women-led sets, and the recognition of previous women's achievements in the genre. Kate is known among her audience and fellow creatives for having one of the most original, stylistically unique, and eccentric voices as an author, artist, and filmmaker; she is praised for her vivid, dreamlike imagery, sharp commentary, and visceral, nonlinear narratives that redefine the meaning of storytelling and challenge the boundaries of human consciousness.