Ari Aster Short biography
Ari Aster (born July 15, 1986) is an American filmmaker renowned for his work in elevated horror. He gained significant recognition for writing and directing the feature films Hereditary (2018) and Midsommar (2019), both released by A24. Born into a Jewish family in New York City, he spent parts of his childhood in England and Santa Fe, New Mexico. Aster pursued film studies at the Santa Fe University of Art and Design and earned an MFA from the AFI Conservatory. His career began with short films, notably The Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011), which went viral online. In 2019, he co-founded the production company Square Peg with Lars Knudsen. His films, including his pivot to "nightmare comedy" with Beau Is Afraid (2023) and the upcoming Western satire Eddington (2025), are known for exploring themes of grief, family trauma, psychological deterioration, and societal taboos, often blending horror, dark comedy, and graphic violence with a distinct visual style.
