Tessa Films has named Sydney Thomson, an experienced freelance producer and production supervisor who’s a fixture in the Chicago production community, to the newly created position of head of production. The appointment was announced by Lisa Masseur, Tessa’s EP and co-founder.
Both Thomson and Masseur are veterans of the Chicago production scene, with the latter launching Tessa after EP positions with ONE at Optimus and, before that, Radar Studios. Thomson, a New England native and graduate of Columbia College, got her start as an intern at Ebel Productions and landed her first job not long after as a P.A. at STORY.
She went on to work as a staff producer at Big Deahl, the noted Chicago-based tabletop company, before leaving to freelance for some of the industry’s top live action companies. Her list of credits includes Smuggler, Hungry Man, Radical Media, STORY, Moxie Pictures, Sibling Rivalry and RSA. The roster of directors she’s worked with includes Ky Dickens, Amanda Speva, Mark Pallman, Tim Mason, Ron Lazzeretti, Hank Perlman, David Deahl and Irv Blitz.
Masseur and Thomson have worked together for a number of years, with Thomson freelancing for Masseur at ONE at Optimus, then following her after she launched Tessa with Reid Brody. “I didn’t know Lisa before I started freelancing at ONE,” said Thomson, “but I knew of her. She’s a legend here in Chicago, and in many respects she trained me without even knowing me, since I worked with so many producers who themselves worked directly with her.”
The current Tessa directorial roster includes Meghann Artes, Sam Macon, Tim Mason, Joe Otting, Toben Seymour, Amanda Speva and Duncan Wolfe.
Masseur said that adding Thomson is a strong barometer of Tessa’s progress: “We’re a growing company and we’ve been doing some exciting and fun work in our first year and a half,” she points out. “This year in particular has been incredibly good for us so far, and I feel extremely fortunate that Sydney’s agreed to come on board officially to join #teamtessa. With her help, we can only continue to prosper from here.”
After 20 Years of Acting, Megan Park Finds Her Groove In The Director’s Chair On “My Old Ass”
Megan Park feels a little bad that her movie is making so many people cry. It's not just a single tear either — more like full body sobs.
She didn't set out to make a tearjerker with "My Old Ass," now streaming on Prime Video. She just wanted to tell a story about a young woman in conversation with her older self. The film is quite funny (the dialogue between 18-year-old and almost 40-year-old Elliott happens because of a mushroom trip that includes a Justin Bieber cover), but it packs an emotional punch, too.
Writing, Park said, is often her way of working through things. When she put pen to paper on "My Old Ass," she was a new mom and staying in her childhood bedroom during the pandemic. One night, she and her whole nuclear family slept under the same roof. She didn't know it then, but it would be the last time, and she started wondering what it would be like to have known that.
In the film, older Elliott ( Aubrey Plaza ) advises younger Elliott ( Maisy Stella ) to not be so eager to leave her provincial town, her younger brothers and her parents and to slow down and appreciate things as they are. She also tells her to stay away from a guy named Chad who she meets the next day and discovers that, unfortunately, he's quite cute.
At 38, Park is just getting started as a filmmaker. Her first, "The Fallout," in which Jenna Ortega plays a teen in the aftermath of a school shooting, had one of those pandemic releases that didn't even feel real. But it did get the attention of Margot Robbie 's production company LuckyChap Entertainment, who reached out to Park to see what other ideas she had brewing.
"They were very instrumental in encouraging me to go with it," Park said. "They're just really even-keeled, good people, which makes... Read More