Filmmaker Marit Weerheijm has joined Interrogate’s talent roster for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content. This marks her first official production house signing in the American ad market.
Of the signing, Interrogate managing director/founder Jeff Miller said, “Marit’s films have a strong emphasis on interpersonal relationships with this beautiful touch of magical realism. We are thrilled to be the ones to bring her stand-alone talent to U.S. agencies and brands.”
Weerheijm grew up surrounded by movies of every genre, and soon began experimenting with telling stories through moving images, filming everything around her. She graduated from the Dutch Film Academy and received the Student Academy Award for her short film, When Grey is a Color. Next to that, the film gathered two jury awards at the Toronto International Film Festival and the CILECT prize for Best Graduation Film worldwide. Her second short film, En Route, which won the esteemed Golden Calf (the Dutch Oscar) at the Netherlands Film Festival in 2019, then had its international premiere at the 70th Berlinale, Berlin Film Festival 2020.
The challenge of telling stories in a concise yet impactful way led her to explore a dual career in both advertising and filmmaking, soon joining the Czar roster in the Netherlands and Belgium.
Her integrated approach means she has a strong influence over all aspects of production, evidenced in the rich cinematography of her films and the grounded performances of her actors. With her unique sense of spontaneity, mixed with subtle and intimate storytelling, she finds the humanity in every script.
This seamless transition of her artistic expression into advertising is evidenced by her campaigns for nonprofits and toy stores alike. Frequently working with children, Weerheijm handles human-interest subjects such as gender identity and breast cancer with honesty and nuance. Weerheijm’s heartfelt ad for Dreamland illustrates a world where children don’t need to choose between dolls or action figures because of their sex, while her relatable Pink Ribbon spot “Finally” led her to be nominated for the Young Director Award at Cannes in 2019.
“I really connect with Interrogate’s approach to storytelling and the lens through which they view the ad industry,” explained Weerheijm. “Jeff Miller and [EP/partner] George Meeker always work to find the truth in the story, as I do, so it’s a perfect partnership.”
SCHROM x Yacht Club and Be Electric Studios Launch Electric XR for Virtual Production
SCHROM x Yacht Club, a full-service live-action, tabletop, and postproduction company, has teamed with Be Electric Studios, a soundstage, equipment rental, and virtual production company, to launch Electric XR, a virtual production collective.
Industry veteran Thomas Rossano will lead the new venture, which provides advanced virtual production solutions across multiple facilities. He brings over 25 years of experience in live-action, tabletop, postproduction and talent curation to enhance Electric XR’s offerings as a resource for brands and agencies, as well as other production companies in need of virtual production solutions. Additionally Rossano continues to serve as EP at XR New York (XR-NY), a role he’s held since December 2022. SCHROM x Yacht Club originally established XR-NY to help provide XR services for third-party rentals. While XR-NY will continue to function independently for SCHROM X Yacht Club, it now operates under the Electric XR umbrella.
Rossano’s expertise spans producing live-action commercials, branded content, interactive and experiential content. In addition to leading Electric XR, he holds responsibilities at SCHROM x Yacht Club which include driving business development, collaborating with sales reps and expanding the company’s creative talent network. Rossano’s career includes serving as an exec producer at Hungry Man for about 11 years, right from that company’s inception. He then went on to become a partner at Station Film where he also had a lengthy tenure. Later he was a partner at PRISM. Then after the pandemic hit, he became a freelance EP for nearly two years, looking into opportunities in virtual production, which led him to XR NY and now Electric XR. Over the years, he has produced high-profile... Read More