Drew Saplin (he/they) is an award winning Austin, Texas writer/director and co-founder of The Direct Line, a narrative production company. For the last seven years, Drew has written and directed full time; with over 10,000 hours in the director’s chair Drew has crafted multiple YouTube shorts and series with over a million views; creating brand-integrated content with the likes of Meow Wolf, Omen Computers, and State Farm. Drew has written, directed, and produced shorts that have played at LAFF, Mammoth, Hill Country, and Rockport Film Festivals. He’s also co-produced a podcast about filmmaking in Texas, aptly titled "How to Texas." Prior to his directing career, Drew worked as a 1st AD sheparding many first-time directors through the rigors of production. He’s an alum of The University of Texas.