Naked City Films, the NY shop launched early this year by executive producer Mark Sitley, has agreed to a co-production and representation agreement with AIRBAG, an Aussie production company with offices in Melbourne and Sydney. Naked City also has brought Melbourne-based animation shop Dirty Puppet on board. The moves are the first forays into the U.S. market for both companies from Down Under.
AIRBAG was named 2017 London International Awards Global Production Company of the Year. Its PSA for the Transport Accident Commission in Victoria, “Meet Graham,” swept the award shows in 2017, winning 29 Lions at Cannes that year. Dirty Puppet and its founder/director, Cameron Gough, have won several awards there for character-driven animations in both 2D and 3D.
For Sitley, the moves give Naked City a dedicated offshore-production resource, add several significant directors to its roster, and broaden the company’s offerings to include VFX, animation and design.
The AIRBAG and Dirty Puppet introductions were made by Naked City director Dave Schmidt, who hails from Melbourne. “I’ve been a big fan of AIRBAG and founding creative director Adrian Bosich since they opened their doors in 2011 and have been following their work since then,” said Schmidt. “And I’ve been mates with Cam Gough for 15 years, and have keenly watched him build Dirty Puppet from the ground up. His talents should be recognized internationally, and I hope Naked City is just one avenue for him to do that.”
Notable among the directors who now have U.S. representation through Naked City are Astrid Salomon, a photographer/director originally from Germany, whose commercial clients have included Häagen Dazs, Adidas, Nivea, Lindt, Montblanc, P&G, and Target; and David Rittey, a Kiwi known for his performance-focused and docu-style work, as well as for a notable short film that debuted at Cannes in 2012.
“Given the pandemic environment, it makes sense to offer a diverse roster of talent that’s comfortable shooting remotely, can handle genres ranging from lifestyle to VFX and with whom we could partner as a way to meet any U.S. agency’s creative needs,” said Sitley. “Additionally, the AIRBAG directors are supported by their own very robust production, post and VFX capability.”
Naked City directors have been busy recently, with Schmidt wrapping three campaigns in October in NYC while observing strict COVID-19 protocols. He’s also edited several projects for The Martin Agency. Director Erin Collett has just signed on as DP for a new John Curran mini-series, which has just started shooting in Australia
Naked City is represented on the East Coast by Minerva x Mr. Bartlett, the business development team made up of James Bartlett, Mary Knox and Shauna Seresin. Kristina Kovacevic of KK Reps handles the Midwest.
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