PAUL J. VOGEL
[STORYTELLER & FILMMAKER ]
Paul J. Vogel is a Finnish-American writer-director, producer, and educator working across film, television, games, and documentary storytelling. A graduate of USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, Paul has built a career between Los Angeles and Finland, with work spanning feature development, branded documentary, sound, and cinematic storytelling education.
His feature documentary The Name of the Game was shortlisted for the Finnish Academy Awards and released internationally on platforms including Netflix, Prime Video, and Apple TV. As a sound professional, Paul has been nominated twice for the MPSE Golden Reel Award, and his screenplays have placed highly in competitions including the Academy Nicholl Fellowships and Scriptapalooza.
Alongside his creative work, Paul teaches and mentors emerging filmmakers through USC, Turku Arts Academy, and international masterclasses, with a focus on visual storytelling, structure, character, and helping each project become the strongest version of itself.
SELECT FILMOGRAPHY
FINDING CARCOSA
2026
Finding Carcosa is a three-part docuseries created for Housemarque’s SAROS, offering a cinematic look at the people, craft, and creative process behind the game.
Written and directed as part of the title’s brand storytelling campaign, the series explores how story, world-building, art, gameplay, and sound come together in a PlayStation first-party release.
PHANTOM SPECTRE
2020
Phantom Spectre is an action-comedy superhero short starring Diedrich Bader (Veep, Office Space), blending genre spectacle, physical comedy, and character-driven storytelling into a heightened comic-book world.
I wrote and directed the film and also served as supervising sound editor, helping shape the larger-than-life rhythm and soundscape that earned the project an MPSE Golden Reel Award nomination.
ON DARK PATHS
2015
On Dark Paths (Pimeällä polulla) is a Finnish horror short about childhood fear, family darkness, and the monsters we create to survive what we cannot understand.
Written, directed, and produced by Paul J. Vogel, the film was purchased by YLE, screened in the National Competition at Tampere Film Festival, and later reached a wide genre audience through Screamfest’s YouTube channel.
THE NAME OF THE GAME
2018
Name of the Game is a comedic feature-length documentary about the team-up between the oldest Finnish indie game developer Housemarque and American arcade era legend Eugene Jarvis on their three year struggle to create a spiritual successor to one of Jarvis’ smash hit games of the 80’s, Robotron.
Theatrically released The Name of the Game was shortlisted for a Finnish Academy Award in the category of "Best Documentary".
MY WORK FEATURED ON
