I'll say, when your office is on the twelfth floor of an artisan building down on Park Avenue, you know you have 'arrived'. Sure the pandemic thew a wrench into things but you'll be back on sight soon enough.
Jason went from Cheshire High to Rutgers, Peru to New Jersey and finally to Harlem, getting paid to watch tv for NBC to directing and producing what we see on tv and social media. He always knew he'd be back in NYC with his family history there. Very few people follow a straight path from high school to a career they settle into. Jason's path has been no different, with the exception of having a deep rooted bond to family history. 
This my friends, is one of the most beautiful humans you could ever hope to call a friend.

I had the opportunity to work with actress Lynn Mancinelli again on promotional images for a film project named TAG. The screenplay was in the early stages of funding and the images we created were used for promotional packaging in that effort. We shot in the Bowery neighborhood of NYC, at Roosevelt Park and Freeman Alley. My stars were aligned and I was fortunate piggyback a shoot the next day with my dear friend and favorite muse Anna Morse-Hindman. I've been shooting jobs and visiting NYC for decades and for some reason this was my first time in the Bowery neighborhood. What an absolute treat on the edges of Chinatown, Little Italy, and the Lower East Side.

I've been creating the promotional show posters for Cheshire High School Drama's spring musicals since 2006. It's a project I look forward to every year where the lead actors and seniors, both on stage and tech crew, come to the studio for their headshots and character photos to be designed into the poster. There have been many great ones over the years including the colorful and eclectic "The Whiz" and the incredible "Les Misérables", to last year's "Little Women" in which the production was filmed and broadcast rather than live due to the pandemic. This year's project was far more simple for a huge production of Chicago. The show was absolutely amazing and will live on as an all time favorite among CHS Drama musical fans.

When I was contacted by Filmmaker/Director Gorman Bechard about working on an independent docudrama he was casting for, I was both surprised and stoked. He had seen some of my model, figure and fine art nude work through a colleague and thought I'd be a great addition to the story. The screenplay was still being developed with actress Lynn Mancinelli, and he asked if I would do the first shoot for the film about a famous internet model who decides to retire and move back to her home town. Turned out, the story evolved and came together more clearly after our shoot at The Duncan in New Haven, CT. 

I shot it as a typical session, even though I understood that Lynn was in character, and she had never been a model or done a shoot like this. I simply looked at the wardrobe they had and the location I was given, and my years of experience just kicked in. We shot for about an hour and I was oblivious to the film camera and sound boom hovering over me. Gorman just let me do my thing and Lynn and I made an instant professional connection. Two hours - 3,210 images. Crazy! The results were insane and I had no idea I was actually in the film myself until the premier at the Tribeca Film Festival in NYC. The film won several awards for Gorman and Lynn, and I got work with Lynn again for another film project she was working on in NYC not long after. I am certain we will work together again soon. Here is a snippet of the original images we created which became Chapter 4 in the film. Chapter 4 video clip posted below.

I've got sunshine on a rainy day. It's a phenomenon called Ellie and it's always a great day when you can spend time with the effervescent Murphy family. My grandfather always used to say, "never judge a day by the weather".  It was raining, like it had all summer. A little drizzle with some light rain periodically which wasn't going to stop us from having fun and creating some incredible portraits. 

It's not a myth that at the end of every rainbow you will find Ellie. My son Spencer assisted me for the day and at one point, while we were out in a light rain on a dock, he whispered to me, "Dad, how is she not even getting wet?" I couldn't explain it other than to tell him special people project an energy that does amazing things.

JJ • What is your master plan post grad? Ellie • My master plan is to go to college. Right now I have committed to swim D1 at Siena College. I’m unsure what to major in just yet, but I’m excited for what’s to come.

JJ • Who is your hero? Ellie • My hero is my mom. She inspires me everyday to be a better person and is always here for me when I need her. 

JJ • What are you most concerned about for the future? Ellie • I’m nervous to leave for school, it's all gonna be a change in pace. I’m used to being home with family. It’s definitely gonna be a hard change. 

JJ • What is your favorite charity or cause? Ellie • Foundation For A Cure Mitochondrial Disease  

JJ • High fives or hugs? Ellie • Hugs

JJ • Is there something people don't know about you like a hidden talent? Ellie • I love to sing

JJ • Favorite childhood memory? Ellie • By far my favorite childhood memory has to be when my family went to the tree farm and Sophie and I got lost, long story short I went through a fence. 

JJ • How do you want to be remembered at CHS? Ellie • Someone always willing to help

JJ • Favorite hangout? Ellie • The couch 

JJ • Three things you'd want if you are stranded on an island? Ellie • Chapstick, water, food

JJ • Pet peeve? Ellie • When people eat with there mouth open 

JJ • Pizza or burgers? Ellie • Pizza

JJ • What's at the top of your bucket list? Ellie • Skydiving