Rocket Film has added director and photographer Peggy Sirota to its roster for exclusive commercial representation in the U.S.
One of the best-known photographers in the entertainment industry, Sirota has photographed some of the most famous personalities in the world, including Madonna, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, President Obama, and the Dalai Lama. Sirota’s career began when she taught herself how to use a camera while working at a Fred Segal in Hollywood and started shooting headshots for her actor/model co-workers for a little extra cash. Known for creating evocative, authentic, emotional images that instantly connect you with her subject, Sirota’s portraits have graced the covers and pages of GQ, Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, Esquire, Interview, ESPN, Vogue Italia, and many more. She has worked on campaigns for the likes of Apple, Nike, GAP, Adidas, Disney, Microsoft, Sony, Zegna, Barneys, Neiman Marcus, Patek Philippe, Toyota and Lincoln.
A creative groundbreaker in the advertising world, Sirota directed an iconic commercial for Volvo which gained much attention for infusing lifestyle imagery into automotive advertising. She started directing in 1994 for clients such as Amazon, L’Oreal, Target, Chrysler, Coca-Cola, Levi’s, Macy’s, and the widely celebrated Banana Republic and Clinique Happy spots.
Sirota said, “There’s an area in the advertising world that’s really interested in capturing very genuine, spontaneous filled moments. That spirit is very exciting to me and has always been a natural extension of the way I work.”
Sara Eolin, Rocket owner/managing director, said, “Peggy is a trailblazer. She continues to evolve her design aesthetic and keeps pushing new and innovative looks to her work, but somehow still stays true to quintessential Peggy Sirota style. Her work is sublime, and we’re thrilled to have such a master of her craft in our Rocket family.”
In 2000, Sirota released an interactive book of celebrity-in-disguise portraits, GUESS WHO? which challenges the reader to decipher the identity of her subjects, with all profits going to AIDS Project LA. A love of movement and instinctual awareness of body language is always at the core of her visual recipe. Prior to connecting with Rocket, Sirota had been handled by PRETTYBIRD for spot work.
Jennifer Kent On Why Her Feature Directing Debut, “The Babadook,” Continues To Haunt Us
"The Babadook," when it was released 10 years ago, didn't seem to portend a cultural sensation.
It was the first film by a little-known Australian filmmaker, Jennifer Kent. It had that strange name. On opening weekend, it played in two theaters.
But with time, the long shadows of "The Babadook" continued to envelop moviegoers. Its rerelease this weekend in theaters, a decade later, is less of a reminder of a sleeper 2014 indie hit than it is a chance to revisit a horror milestone that continues to cast a dark spell.
Not many small-budget, first-feature films can be fairly said to have shifted cinema but Kent's directorial debut may be one of them. It was at the nexus of that much-debated term "elevated horror." But regardless of that label, it helped kicked off a wave of challenging, filmmaker-driven genre movies like "It Follows," "Get Out" and "Hereditary."
Kent, 55, has watched all of this — and those many "Babadook" memes — unfold over the years with a mix of elation and confusion. Her film was inspired in part by the death of her father, and its horror elements likewise arise out of the suppression of emotions. A single mother (Essie Davis) is struggling with raising her young son (Noah Wiseman) years after the tragic death of her husband. A figure from a pop-up children's book begins to appear. As things grow more intense, his name is drawn out in three chilling syllables — "Bah-Bah-Doooook" — an incantation of unprocessed grief.
Kent recently spoke from her native Australia to reflect on the origins and continuing life of "The Babadook."
Q: Given that you didn't set out to in any way "change" horror, how have you regarded the unique afterlife of "The... Read More