Director Laurence Thrush has joined The Sweet Shop for U.S. representation.
Born and raised in England, Thrush got his first experience behind the camera at Growth Films, a documentary production company he founded in London right out of school. His 2000 documentary film Fidel’s Fight screened in festivals all over the world and helped the director develop and hone his authentically human yet visually driven, cinematic style. Thrush then started working in commercials and in 2003 was recognized by both Clio and Cannes Lions as one of the top young directors to watch. Now based out of Los Angeles, Thrush has cultivated a list of clients that include brands as ESPN, HP, Adobe, McDonald’s and Honda.
Thrush credits his history working behind the scenes as a writer, director, and editor of documentary films as giving him the tools to make a name for himself in narrative content, helming visually driven character pieces with emotional weight. Since 2008 he has directed three critically lauded films including the indie feature Pursuit of Loneliness which enjoyed its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in 2012.
“It feels like a great fit,” said Thrush of his decision to join The Sweet Shop. “The whole sensibility of The Sweet Shop and their approach to the work matches what I want to achieve in advertising and filmmaking.”
Laura Thoel, managing director of The Sweet Shop Los Angeles, shared, “I had an immediate response to Laurence’s work. His ability to be innovative and craft authentic, evocative stories with beautiful film really sets him apart.”
Paul Prince, The Sweet Shop’s CEO and founding partner, said of Thrush, “He brings such intimacy to his work that you immediately empathize with his stories.”
Review: Writer-Director Aaron Schimberg’s “A Different Man”
Imagine you could wake up one morning, stand at the mirror, and literally peel off any part of your looks you don't like โ with only movie-star beauty remaining.
How would it change your life? How SHOULD it change your life?
That's a question โ well, a launching point, really โ for Edward, protagonist of Aaron Schimberg's fascinating, genre-bending, undeniably provocative and occasionally frustrating "A Different Man," featuring a stellar trio of Sebastian Stan, Adam Pearson and Renate Reinsve.
The very title is open to multiple interpretations. Who (and what) is "different"? The original Edward, who has neurofibromatosis, a genetic disorder that causes bulging tumors on his face? Or the man he becomes when he's able to slip out of that skin? And is he "different" to others, or to himself?
When we meet Edward, a struggling actor in New York (Stan, in elaborate makeup), he's filming some sort of commercial. We soon learn it's an instructional video on how to behave around colleagues with deformities. But even there, the director stops him, offering changes. "Wouldn't want to scare anyone," he says.
On Edward's way home on the subway, people stare. Back at his small apartment building, he meets a young woman in the hallway, in the midst of moving to the flat next door. She winces visibly when she first sees him, as virtually everyone does.
But later, Ingrid (Reinsve) tries to make it up to him, coming over to chat. She is charming and forthright, and tells Edward she's a budding playwright.
Edward goes for a medical checkup and learns that one of his tumors is slowly progressing over the eye. But he's also told of an experimental trial he could join. With the possibility โ maybe โ of a cure.
So... Read More