DAVID TOTH
writer/director/teacher
Born in Hungary, David moved to the United States at the age of thirteen.
After graduating from Cornell University, he worked as a journalist and as a producer of educational media before becoming a teacher of Film & Digital Media in a New York City charter high school.
He has written numerous screenplays, in both the drama and thriller categories and has directed several short films, some of which played at NYC film festivals.
His first published short story, “The Bracelets” has appeared in the July 2015 issue of Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine. Since then, several of his short stories have appeared in magazines and literary journals.
Filmed in the middle of the pandemic, FEAR OF OPEN SPACES is a 15-minute short film written and directed by David Toth.
A man suffering from agoraphobia must leave the cocoon of his apartment to retrieve his medication. The journey from the third floor to the lobby forces him to confront his worst fears and leads to inspiration from an unexpected source.
The film screened at several film festivals, winning “Best Sound Editing” and “Audience” awards.
cinematography by Bill Loerch
starring Clinton Powell, Chynna Saffer and Bill Loerch
STRANGE INHERITANCE
is a 17-minute short film released in 2024.
A deadbeat Dad with two daughters, desperate for cash.
A grandmother worth $50 million.
A haunted road, where strange creatures roam and where the line between the living and the dead blur the edges of sanity.
What could go wrong?
written and directed by David Toth
starring Chynna Saffer, Elle Saffer, David Toth, Carolyn Saffer, Cyril Caurthens, Olson Jean-Louis and Renee Hickerson
A full length play written by David, DIAL A FOR AGATHA was staged as part of The New York Theater Festival in February of 2020 (as one of the last plays to see the stage before the pandemic closed the curtains).
When host Lord Winston Halifax is murdered in his own home, guests and servants alike are put under Inspector Mandrake’s magnifying glass.
An unorthodox detective, he uncovers the murderer, but not before revealing a mystery of his own. Dial A for Agatha hangs its fedora in the same mansion as "Clue", "Sleuth" and "Deathtrap".”
A parody of age-old murder mystery tropes, starting with the groundbreaking works of Dame Agatha Christie, Dial A for Agatha transplants stock characters from a bygone era to the modern world.
As Mandrake closes in on the perpetrator, guests and servants alike, all whom were once under suspicion, come to the defense of the murderer. But not Mandrake, whose reputation as a successful detective lies in the balance.
DIAL A FOR AGATHA is represented by Heartland Plays and will be performed April 2026 at Maine East High School in Illinois.
