Jay D. Roth, the Directors Guild of America’s national executive director, announced two new executive appointments: Rachel Paster is joining the DGA as assistant executive director in the Guild’s New York offices, and Steven Knauss has been promoted to assistant executive director in the Guild’s Los Angeles headquarters.
Paster will be involved in the administration of the Guild’s film and television agreements and represent assistant directors and unit production managers in the Eastern region. Paster, who will report to Eastern executive director Neil Dudich, will also serve as staff liaison to the Guild’s Eastern AD/UPM Council.
In his new role, Knauss will represent assistant directors and unit production managers in the Western region, serve as the staff liaison to the Guild’s Western AD/UPM Council, and oversee matters related to set safety. Knauss will report to Western executive director Danny Bush.
Roth said of Pater and Knauss, “Their labor relations and union experience will be a valuable asset in negotiating and enforcing DGA agreements. We look forward to putting their extensive experience and skills to use in the service of our AD and UPM members.”
Paster has more than 15 years of experience in union-side labor law. Prior to joining the DGA, she was a partner in the labor law firm Lewis, Clifton & Nikolaidis where she focused on representing labor unions in contract negotiations. She has also worked for Cohen, Weiss and Simon LLP and Cary Kane LLP, as well as the County Attorney for Nassau County, New York. Paster received both her B.A. and J.D. from the University of Michigan.
Knauss joined the Guild in 2013 as a field representative. Prior to that, he held a number of positions in Nevada and Florida Locals of the Service Employees International Union where he most recently served as healthcare division director and chief negotiator for Local 1107. Knauss received both his B.A. and M.A. from Appalachian State University.
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