Production company Merchant has signed director Benji Weinstein for Canadian representation. He continues to be repped by SMUGGLER in the U.S. and U.K., and Finch in Australia and New Zealand. Weinstein began his career directing independent music promos for artists including the indie-rock band The Weakerthans, which saw his work nominated for Music Video of the Year at the Juno Awards. After spending some time directing episodic television, Weinstein transitioned into advertising. He has been credited with laugh-out-loud funny content in recent years for brands such as Dr. Pepper and Mentos. He has worked with clients including Bubly with Michael Bublé, Temptations, GEICO, V Energy, MiO, Aldi, Toyota, Monster.com, BMO, Fountain Tire, Expedia, GoDaddy, and Virgin Media. Weinstein took inspiration from COVID-19 lockdowns to create the pioneering Zoom series Join Meeting, featuring actor Terry Crews. Weinstein has been critically recognised with a Cannes Lions Grand Prix for REI’s #OptOutside and Gold Pencil for Best in Show. Looking ahead, Weinstein will be directing some exciting new ads in Australia and the U,K. at the beginning of the year. Currently, he is working on a new podcast series, which will be released in 2023….
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