Thorndike writes and directs character-driven psychological horror and other women-centered genre films centered on themes of motherhood, queer identity, and female rage. Her projects include a trilogy on the complexities of motherhood: Lyle (2014) about a grieving, pregnant mother struggling with paranoia; Bad Things, which premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival and tells the story of a woman planning to propose to her girlfriend as she processes her relationship with her neglectful mother; and Daughter, currently in development. Her forthcoming thriller Frigid is about a group of older women at an island retreat where a guest is found dead. Thorndike earned an MFA in film directing from the New York University Tisch School of the Arts and a BA in liberal arts from The New School.
