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Dean Alioto

Dean Alioto

Director, writer, actor, producer and editor

Director and writer Dean Alioto is an award-winning filmmaker and documentarian with an impressive track record across film and television. He has produced acclaimed specials for A+E, Bravo, and Discovery, and served as a consultant on James Fox’s hit UFO documentary The Phenomenon. Dean’s groundbreaking work in the genre has earned him a place in the Paramount+ documentary Unknown Dimensions: The Story of Paranormal Activity, where he is celebrated as the creator of The McPherson Tape, the first-ever found footage film. He is also known for the enigmatic Paramount TV movie Alien Abduction: Incident in Lake County, which has become a cult classic in the UFO and paranormal storytelling space.

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Biography from TMDB.

Works as
Director, writer, actor, producer and editor
Titles
10 on MovieCove · 21 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Up 8% in 30 days

What are Dean Alioto's films like?

Across their 9 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Ideas and Survival.

Genres

Documentary4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 47th percentile
: browse their Documentary movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 74th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Ideas
27%
Survival
25%
Self
16%
Morality
12%
Bonds
11%
Power
6%
Society
3%
Truth3 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival3 titles, browse their movies with this themeDeception3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this themeTrauma2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 9 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 4 · Serious 3 · Dark 2

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 9 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 2 · Charged 5 · Intense 2

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 6 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 5 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 0

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 1 · Engaged 7 · Full focus 1

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

A split, not a type: Resolved 4 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 2

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
7
Contemplative
4
Dread
3
Absurd
2
Elegiac
2
Other
5

How their films linger

Thought-provoking5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteInfuriating2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 2 with a twist

  • Happy1
  • Bittersweet1
  • Ambiguous7

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Dean Alioto's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 6 of their 10 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (5).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Dean Alioto's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

21 credits, 10 with a MovieCove page; 2 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • The Experiencers: Full Disclosure(2026)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • A Savage Art: The Life & Cartoons of Pat Oliphant(2025)

    Cinematographer · Editor · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Content(2025)

    as Stranger #1

    Midcredits score: 17th percentile of all films

  • The Alien Perspective Part II (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Director · Writer

  • Man With a Movie Camera: The Found Footage Legacy of 'Man Bites Dog' (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Thanks · as Self

  • The Alien Perspective(2025)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • The Last Podcast (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • The Haunting of Dalva House (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)

    Director

  • Portal(2019)

    Director · Editor · Writer

    Midcredits score: 2nd percentile of all films

  • The Husband(2019)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 17th percentile of all films

  • Beyond the Spectrum: Being Taken(2018)

    as Filmmaker

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all films

  • Quarries (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Producer · Second Unit Director · as Cody

  • MoniKa(2013)

    as Andy

    Midcredits score: 12th percentile of all films

  • Complacent(2012)

    Producer · as Mr. Capilano

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • The Genesis Files (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    Show 3 episodes · Creator · as Taylor

  • Shadowheart (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)

    Director · Editor · Screenplay · as Spider

  • L.A. Dicks (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)

    Director · Editor · Producer · Writer · as Harold

  • Jesse James: Legend, Outlaw, Terrorist (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Director

  • Lizzie Borden Had an Axe (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Director

  • Alien Abduction: Incident in Lake County(1998)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films

  • UFO Abduction (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)

    Director · Cinematographer · Producer · Writer · as Michael Van Heese

Career shape

A full career of 21 titles from 1989 to 2026.

Biggest box office

A Savage Art: The Life & Cartoons of Pat Oliphant (2025)

$17K worldwide

Highest rated

Alien Abduction: Incident in Lake County (1998)

Midcredits 61st

Film career

  • 1989Screen debut· UFO Abduction

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting9 of 21: 4 only acting, 5 with another roleDirecting12 of 21: 3 only directing, 9 with another roleWriting10 of 21: 1 only writing, 9 with another role · typical Midcredits score31stProducing5 of 21: 0 only producing, 5 with another roleCinematography2 of 21: 0 only cinematography, 2 with another roleEditing3 of 21: 0 only editing, 3 with another roleOther crew3 of 21: 1 only other crew, 2 with another role

21 titles, 12 with more than one role — directing and writing overlap on 9 of them.

By decade

1980s1 · 1 acting · 1 crew1990s1 · crew2000s4 · 2 acting · 4 crew2010s7 · 5 acting · 4 crew2020s8 · 1 acting · 7 crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do Dean Alioto's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 37th percentile, the median of all 10; across their 9 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 45th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

45thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 9

Approval · how many liked their films

39thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 9

Reach · how many have seen their films

33rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 9

Midcredits score across 10 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up2
  • 50th to 74th2
  • 25th to 49th2
  • Below 25th4

Shape of the crowd

5 of their 10 titles are Mixed.

  • Universally Panned1
  • Divisive2
  • Cult Classic2
  • Mixed5

Most divisive · director, writer, producer

The Experiencers: Full Disclosure (2026)

93rd percentile spread · 41% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor, producer

Complacent (2012)

Midcredits 86th · 75% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 52/100 and the pacing 42/100 in their films, across 6 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Dean Alioto work with?

People who share at least 2 of Dean Alioto's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Travis Walton shares the most, 3.

Actors

Composers

Producers