Photo by Michael Arthur Aguirre

Photo by Michael Arthur Aguirre

Since I can remember, I’ve been telling stories with whatever tools were at my disposal. Whether it was creating stories for the rocks in my front yard in upstate New York as a kid, or my career making films and commercial content.

Upon moving to Los Angeles after college in Santa Barbara, I began working extensively in the film and television industry, doing just about every job you can name, from gaffer to script supervisor. I became part of The Masses, a filmmaking collective founded by the late Heath Ledger and director Matt Amato, where I explored abstract storytelling and technical experimentation in music videos.

As a writer and director, my short films, such as Content and Stay Lost (starring Lukas Gage of White Lotus and Keiynan Lonsdale of Love, Simon), have played at festivals worldwide and secured distribution.

My documentary feature debut, Flamingo Camp, supported by Film Independent, had its world premiere at the 2025 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival, where it was nominated for Best Feature. It won the Jury Prize for Best Feature at the SF DocFest and screened at other prestigious festivals, including Inside Out in Toronto, Raindance in London, and Galway Film Fleadh in Ireland.

In the commercial world, I’ve worked as a director and creative director, crafting high-performance content for legacy enterprise brands such as Rolex, Ghirardelli, and Revlon, helping them chart new territory in an ever-changing digital landscape while staying true to their voice— keeping storytelling and craft at the forefront.

CONTACT

info@chriscoats.com

ACCOLADES & PRESS

2025

  • FLAMINGO CAMP

2023

2022

  • “Flamingo Camp” - 2022 Frameline Film Fest Completion Grant

2021

2019