Jared Leaf (born July 8, 1993 in Martinez, California) is an award-nominated American filmmaker, writer, and director whose work spans narrative shorts and television. He first garnered attention in the independent film circuit with genre-bending shorts such as Sketch—which won awards and received multiple festival nominations—and went on to earn nominations at events like the Poppy Jasper Film Festival and the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival Awards early in his career.

As the founder of the production company Ninety Third Story, Leaf has distinguished himself through his vibrant storytelling and genre versatility. He gained broader notice as the director of the hit BET+ series Churchy (Season 2, 2024), where his direction across all ten episodes was praised for its dynamic pacing and character work. In 2025, Leaf wrote and directed the horror short Spilled Milk, produced under Monkeypaw Productions, which screened widely and won the Audience Award for Short Narrative at the Pan African Film & Arts Festival.

Leaf’s body of work reflects a commitment to compelling, character-driven narratives while building a reputation as one of the most exciting emerging creators in independent filmmaking.