RYAN DORIS

Ryan Doris is, first and foremost, a television director of photography — a craft he's practiced for years on lifestyle and travel productions before directing, in 2023, his first and so far only narrative project of his own: the horror short “Who's There?” (2024).

He trained alongside writers Todd Spence and Zak White at Webster University; the three stayed friends and professional collaborators until reuniting years later on “Who's There?”, where Spence and White wrote the script Doris directed and edited.

Doris relocated to the Boston area when his wife entered veterinary school in the region — the direct reason for his move, per his own account in a dedicated MovieMaker Magazine feature. It was in his own home there, years later, that he shot “Who's There?”.

His cinematography résumé, documented on his own professional site, spans a long run of lifestyle and travel television: “Bizarre Foods: Delicious Destinations,” “The Story of Us with Morgan Freeman” (as camera operator), “Top Photographer with Nigel Barker,” “Family Dinner” and “Family Restaurant” with Andrew Zimmern, the special “America's Test Kitchen: Thanksgiving” (2026), “A Different Breed” (seasons 1–2), “Diary of an Old Home” (seasons 2–4), “Tiny House, Big Living,” and “Alaska's Ultimate Bush Pilots,” alongside commercial work for clients including Pfizer, AWS, Columbia Threadneedle, the Broad Institute, and Coca-Cola's “America 250” campaign.

That work earned him a nomination at the 53rd Daytime Emmy Awards (2026, Outstanding Lifestyle Program — the nomination doesn't specify which credit it covers) and a Silver Telly Award in 2021, for Television Cinematography.

“Who's There?” had its public premiere on March 22, 2024, at the Boston Underground Film Festival, as part of the “The Dunwich Horrors” shorts block at the Brattle Theatre, and went on to screen at the Boston International Film Festival (April 12, 2024, Regent Theatre, Arlington) and the Seattle International Film Festival that same year. It won Indie Soul Best Picture at the Boston festival, Best Short Horror at the Montreal Independent Film Festival, and a mention at the Bleedingham Film Festival — all in 2024.

In mid-2025, the short was released for free on the official YouTube channel of ALTER, the licensed horror-shorts distribution label owned by Gunpowder & Sky. It was produced by Alecia Orsini Lebeda under the Imitation Films Partnership banner, shot by Nick Kolinsky, and scored by Matt Russell.

“Who's There?” (2024, Doris) should never be confused with a separate, unrelated 2024 short titled “Who's There” (no question mark), directed by Desmond Levi Jackson — a different story, about a sketch artist stalked by a supernatural force.