Commercial and feature filmmaker Ashley Avis has joined Backyard’s directorial roster for spot and branded content representation in the U.S. Backyard’s managing director Roy Skillicorn brought Avis over from his ongoing indie shop Seed Media Arts which had previously handled her in the ad arena.
Avis has written and directed for blue chip brands including Mercedes-Benz, Pfizer, Red Bull, Coca Cola, Envya, Lone Ones, and most recently, Chevrolet.
Avis’ latest film, a troubled teen romance, Adolescence, edited by Oscar nominated Douglas Crise (Birdman, Babel) and starring Tommy Flanagan and Elisabeth Rohm, is expected to hit theaters this fall. Avis has recently signed on to write and direct a $20M modern day adaptation of Anna Sewell’s classic novel, “Black Beauty.”
In between feature projects Avis loves the challenge of shorter form commercialmaking and branded entertainment. ”Backyard’s long-standing presence and experience in the commercial ad world, plus their recent expansion into digital/branded content, are a great fit for the direction I want to pursue and I welcome the many opportunities they seek,” said Avis who added that she’s excited over the prospects of “working with Roy and his highly regarded, talented and enthusiastic troupe of producers at Backyard.”
Kevin Allodi, president of Backyard assessed, “Ashley is a wonderfully talented director who brings the same narrative sensibility to her commercial work as she does to her film projects, and she edits the vast majority of her commercial work herself —she’s the whole package.”
Skillicorn said of Avis, “With her success in the feature world, Ashley sets the stage to help foster that interdisciplinary culture that we seek. Ashley’s presence will also positively impact the company because of her caring attitude and her willingness to both share and receive knowledge.”
In NBC’s “Brilliant Minds,” Zachary Quinto Plays Doctor–In A Role Inspired By Physician/Author Oliver Sacks
There's a great moment in the first episode of the new NBC medical drama "Brilliant Minds" when it becomes very clear that we're not dealing with a typical TV doctor.
Zachary Quinto is behind the wheel of a car barreling down a New York City parkway, packed with hospital interns, abruptly weaving in and out of lanes, when one of them asks, "Does anyone want to share a Klonopin?" — a drug sometimes used to treat panic disorders.
"Oh, glory to God, yes, please," says Quinto, reaching an arm into the back seat. The intern then breaks the pill in half and gives a sliver to the driver, who swallows it, as the other interns share stunned looks.
Quinto, playing the character Dr. Oliver Wolf, is clearly not portraying any dour, by-the-rules doctor here — he's playing a character inspired by Dr. Oliver Sacks, the path-breaking researcher and author who rose to fame in the 1970s and was once called the "poet laureate of medicine."
"He was someone who was tirelessly committed to the dignity of the human experience. And so I feel really grateful to be able to tell his story and to continue his legacy in a way that I hope our show is able to do," says Quinto.
He's a fern-loving doctor
"Brilliant Minds" takes Sack's personality — a motorcycle-riding, fern-loving advocate for mental health who died in 2015 at 82 — and puts him in the present day, where the creators theorize he would have no idea who Taylor Swift is or own a cell phone. The series debuts Monday on NBC, right after "The Voice."
"It's almost as if we're imagining what it would have been like if Oliver Sacks had been born at a different time," says Quinto. "We use the real life person as our North Star through everything we're doing and all the... Read More