New! Zoom: FILM INTENSIVE with Sundance Fellow and Writer / Director Jessie Barr

Wednesday, February 28, 2024, 7pm ET / 4pm PT

Don't miss this intensive with Jessie Barr, writer-director and Sundance fellow with a background in acting, independent film, and theater.

Jessie is currently attached to direct IRIS written by Academy-award nominee Zach Baylin and is developing a number of new projects as a writer-director for both film and TV.

Jessie’s critically acclaimed, award-winning feature debut, "Sophie Jones" premiered in competition at the 2020 Deauville Film Festival and was released by Oscilloscope Laboratories in 2021.

The film holds a 100% rating on RottenTomatoes and is streaming on Showtime. Jessie won Best Director at the 2022 Lost Weekend Film Festival (Alamo Drafthouse, Winchester). The film won Best Feature Film (NEXT) at the Americana Film Festival 2022 (Barcelona, Spain).

Variety hailed the film as a “fully realized portrait of grief that’s universal in its texture.” “Superb,” says Roger Ebert. The Playlist called it, “Coming-of-age at its best. A quiet, brilliant film.”

Jessie was a 2021 Sundance Episodic Lab fellow. The series she co-created went on to be developed with Warner Brothers Television and Tall Baby Productions. She’s shadowed numerous TV directors including Leslye Headland, Stuart McDonald, and her first mentor, the late Lynn Shelton. 

Jessie’s short, "Too Long at the Fair" (2018), premiered on Short of the Week and won NoBudge’s Short Film of the Year. Her original series, "Om City" (2015), premiered at Tribeca, was a New York Times TV Critic’s pick, Vimeo Staff Pick, voted Best Web Series by Decider, and “Web to Watch” by USA Today. She is a PEN America Writer's Grant Recipient (2020), an Oregon Made Film Grant Recipient (2019), and has been featured by the National Board of Review.

EVENT OVERVIEW:

For the intensive, you'll start off with a Q&A, and then Jessie will begin working with you with a reader, on-camera, in a group format. Be prepared for feedback and adjustments as she will coach and critique your work, tweak your material and share invaluable information.

Jessie will select sides based on your HS/resume submission which you will be emailed and prepare in advance.

***Actors Connection provides readers for all events

WHAT TO PREPARE:

For this virtual intensive, Jessie will select sides for you to prepare based on your headshot and fully completed MY INFO section in your AC account. 

Assignments will be emailed at least 24 hours in advance. 

PLEASE FOLLOW THE PROCEDURES LISTED BELOW:

• Please update your headshot and fill out the MY INFO section of your AC account upon registration.

• The room will be open 30 minutes before the event is scheduled to start. Please arrive at least 10 MINUTES before your event begins as your host will give important information about the event at this time.

• Instructions and the ZOOM link for access to this online event will be emailed to you in advance. If you have not received the link by one hour before the event, please reach out to registration@actorsconnection.com.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Our online office hours are 9am-6pm Monday-Friday

If you have an emergency for a class you are participating in outside of these hours, please email help@actorsconnection.com and your host will be able to respond.

**No recording of any kind is permitted by participants during class.**

**Actors Connection classes and programming are for ADULTS (18+). Unless it is disclosed above, with permission, some teens (14+) are allowed to take adult programming. To inquire about getting permission, please send an email to: info@actorsconnection.com**

**Please keep in mind that all programs at Actors Connection are for educational and professional development purposes. Participating in any class or event is not a promise of employment.**

Jessie Barr

Jessie Barr is a writer-director and Sundance fellow with a background in acting, independent film, and theater. Born in DC, raised by NYC, and currently in LA, her naturalistic approach to storytelling is intimate and deeply humanistic.

Jessie’s critically acclaimed, award-winning feature debut, "Sophie Jones" premiered in competition at the 2020 Deauville Film Festival and was released by Oscilloscope Laboratories in 2021. The film holds a 100% rating on RottenTomatoes and is streaming on Showtime. Jessie won Best Director at the 2022 Lost Weekend Film Festival (Alamo Drafthouse, Winchester). The film won Best Feature Film (NEXT) at the Americana Film Festival 2022 (Barcelona, Spain).

Variety hailed the film as a “fully realized portrait of grief that’s universal in its texture.” “Superb,” says Roger Ebert. The Playlist called it, “Coming-of-age at its best. A quiet, brilliant film.”

Jessie was a 2021 Sundance Episodic Lab fellow. The series she co-created went on to be developed with Warner Brothers Television and Tall Baby Productions. She’s shadowed numerous TV directors including Leslye Headland, Stuart McDonald, and her first mentor, the late Lynn Shelton. 

Jessie’s short, "Too Long at the Fair" (2018), premiered on Short of the Week and won NoBudge’s Short Film of the Year. Her original series, "Om City" (2015), premiered at Tribeca, was a New York Times TV Critic’s pick, Vimeo Staff Pick, voted Best Web Series by Decider, and “Web to Watch” by USA Today. She is a PEN America Writer's Grant Recipient (2020), an Oregon Made Film Grant Recipient (2019), and has been featured by the National Board of Review. Jessie holds a BFA from NYU Tisch where she double majored in Drama and English and American lit.

Jessie is currently attached to direct IRIS written by Academy-award nominee Zach Baylin and is developing a number of new projects as a writer-director for both film and TV.