Colleen McGuinness

Colleen McGuinness is an American director, screenwriter, and producer who has worked as a writer and producer on shows including 30 Rock, Life & Beth, and Ramy. After joining 30 Rock in 2011, she shared in its Primetime Emmy nomination for best comedy series in 2013 as well as in its 65th and 66th WGA Awards nominations and 2014 PGA Awards nomination. McGuinness directed the 2024 short film Loser which has been adapted into a feature film with the same name and is produced by Radio Silence, Dan Lawler, and Michael Sherman . The film is in post-production as of summer 2026.

Early life and education McGuinness, who is half-Korean and half-Irish, was born in Killeen, Texas, and was raised on Long Island in Islip, New York. McGuinness was a tennis champion in high school.

At Harvard University, McGuinness studied directing with Professor Marcus Stern and directed productions of A Doll's House and Guys and Dolls while also producing a version of Hamlet. Upon graduating, McGuinness was awarded the Louise Donovan award for directing.

Career McGuinness began her career at Castle Rock Entertainment and later became a development assistant at New Line Cinema.

After Darren Starr saw her short film, he hired McGuinness for her first series writing job on Miss Match, starring Alicia Silverstone. She joined the staff of 30 Rock in 2011, which ultimately led her to share in the series' Emmy, WGA, and PGA nominations. In 2014, McGuinness developed a script with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck for Fox.

In 2016, together with Game of Thrones executive producer Carolyn Strauss, McGuinness worked with HBO to develop a comedy series based on the novel Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld.

McGuinness later wrote, produced, and directed the 2024 short film Loser, which has played in over 25 film festivals, including the Oscar-qualifying Hamptons International Film Festival "Best Short" and "Best Screenplay" (Colleen McGuinness) at the LA Indie Film Festival, "Best Film" and "Best Actress" (Angourie Rice) at DOC LA, "International: Best Film" at the Canberra Short Film Festival, "Best Short Film" at the Byron Bay International Film Festival, "Best Short Drama" at the New Hampshire Film Festival, and the "Audience Award" at the Charlotte Film Festival.

McGuinness is currently in post-production on the feature film Loser, produced by Radio Silence. 66th Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Comedy Series

66th Writers Guild of America Awards Comedy Series 25th Producers Guild of America Awards Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Comedy

Arizona Underground Film Festival Best Narrative Short

Byron Bay International Film Festival Best Short Film Canberra Short Film Festival Best Film Charlotte Film Festival Audience Award DOC LA Best Film New Hampshire Film Festival Best Short Drama

Best Short

Best International Short