A Film by Michael Sucsy

Production Notes

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TRT 91 MINS / RATED PG-13 / USA / ENGLISH / COLOR Synopsis

Based on David Levithan’s acclaimed New York Times bestseller, Every Day tells the story of Rhiannon (Angourie Rice), a 16-year old girl who falls in love with a mysterious soul named “A” who inhabits a different body every day. Feeling an unmatched connection, Rhiannon and A work each day to find each other, not knowing what or who the next day will bring. The more the two fall in love, the more the realities of loving someone who is a different person every 24 hours takes a toll, leaving Rhiannon and A to face the hardest decision either has ever had to make.

Introduction

Rhiannon is a good 16-year old – she helps out at home, doesn’t cause trouble, and does well at school. However, her family has been struggling – her father had a nervous breakdown and stopped working leaving her mother Lindsey the pressure of being the sole breadwinner. While her sister Jolene is the wild child who acts out, Rhiannon just wants to help keep her family together.

At school things are little better – Rhiannon’s boyfriend Justin is the popular athlete, however, he’s also self-centered and takes Rhiannon for granted.

That is, until one day when Justin shows up at school acting differently. Suddenly, he’s attentive and curious and sweet. Taken aback and enamoured, Rhiannon suggests they play hooky and steal away to Baltimore. The two take off in Justin’s car, listen to music and sing along, share stories they’ve never shared before, and play at the beach. Rhiannon is surprised to see a softer side of Justin – one that’s playful and unselfconscious. It is a day like they’ve never had before: perfect. Yet the next morning at school, Justin seems back to normal and he barely remembers what they talked about or the day they spent together. Rhiannon is perturbed, but tries to shake it off.

By that weekend, though, it’s clear that the Justin who Rhiannon played hooky with isn’t coming back. She tries to recapture that day by playing the song they sang along to at a party, but Justin seems uninterested. It does get the attention of a boy Rhiannon doesn’t know named Nathan, however, who starts dancing wildly and putting on a show to make Rhiannon laugh. Rhiannon joins him on the dance floor and something suddenly seems familiar – but she doesn’t know what. Justin shows up and chases Nathan away and Rhiannon is left with a lingering feeling of déjà vu.

A few days later she is contacted by Nathan who says he wants to meet and talk. They arrange a date at a bookstore, but when Rhiannon shows up Nathan isn’t there. Instead, she meets Megan, who says she is there on Nathan’s behalf. Yet when Rhiannon and Megan begin to talk, Megan explains that she in fact is someone named “A”. That weekend at the party A was Nathan, and the day at the beach A was Justin –

because A is a bodiless spirit who wakes up inhabiting a different person every day, for just twenty-four hours. Always someone A’s age, always someone close to the last, never the same person twice.

Rhiannon is naturally disbelieving at first, until A manages to make contact with her a few more times over the next few days and eventually proves they are telling the truth.

What follows is an extraordinary love story that transcends external appearances and physical limitations. A love story about loving someone truly and completely for who they are in their heart and soul, regardless of what is on the outside.

This is Every Day.

About the Production

My name is A. Every day I wake up in a different body. Always someone my age, never too far from the last person, never the same person twice. I have no control over any of it. I don’t know why it happens, or how. Yet I know what makes each person different and what makes everyone the same. I’ve seen the same color blue look fifty different ways with fifty different pairs of eyes. Every day of my life, I wake up and just try to live that day, for that person. Make no mark, leave no trace. Until now….

The Book

In 2012, celebrated young adult author David Levithan (well known for co-writing 2006’s Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist) published a book that pushed him to new creative heights. It resonated so deeply with his readers that it spent months on the New York Times bestseller list and spawned online chat groups, fan art and writing. That book was Every Day. Ask any teenager or parent of a teenager if they’ve heard of Every Day, and not only will they know it, they’ll most likely have read it and passed it on to a friend.

The story of a teenage entity named only A, who wakes up every day in a different body, Every Day deals with the challenges faced when A falls head over heels in love with Rhiannon, a girl unlike anyone they’ve ever met. Can you have a relationship with a soul who inhabits a different body every day – sometimes boy, sometimes girl, sometimes the school quarterback, sometimes the outcast? Who are you removed of your body, your race, your clothes, your family? The story is the actualization of the old adage that we should ‘love someone for who they are on the inside,’ all the more powerful because it is set during the teenage years when we customarily try on and experiment with myriad external identities in an effort to figure out we are.

Levithan’s book explores all these themes, but fundamentally it’s a story about true love, growing up, and the lengths we’ll go for those we care about. Perennially relevant themes? Absolutely. As A says himself in the book, '…when who you are changes every day you get to touch the universal more.’

“The idea for Every Day came to me one day at work,” says author David Levithan. “I just thought, ‘What would it be like to wake up in a different body every day?’ This question intrigued me so I started writing some stuff, and as I was writing I started to realize ‘Oh, this is about not being defined by your body, or externally imposed ideas of who you are, but by who you really are.’ And I basically wrote the book as an answer to that question. It was unlike anything I had ever done before.”

Levithan decided to take this unique concept and put it into the context of a teenage love story, “A has never connected with anybody, which is not dissimilar from the teenage experience of first love. I became fascinated with the conflict for Rhiannon, whom he falls in love with. Could you get past everything you’ve been conditioned to believe in order to love someone under these circumstances? What does it really mean to love the inner person devoid of the external?”

The book was a juggernaut, clearly resonating with young people the world over, and taking Levithan on tours to visit high school and college students across North America.

“There are a few key things that the readers seem to have connected to,” he shares. “The idea of ‘I am not who everyone sees me as’ – that there’s often a disconnect between the way the world sees you and how you feel inside. I also think readers take away a feeling of possibility from it – that they can be whoever they want to be. There’s a freedom in what A is that’s really interesting to explore, and that’s created a lot of great side conversations about gender and race and the binaries that society is built on, but that we can choose to step out of if we want.”

The Discovery

Fast forward a few years to producers Paul Trijbits and Christian Grass from the UK’s FilmWave and Anthony Bregman and Peter Cron from Likely Story discovering the book and themselves falling in love with it. Both companies had previously partnered

on 2016’s Golden Globe nominated Sing Street (Best Picture Musical or Comedy) and decided to re-team for Every Day.

“A great love story is timeless and remains one of the most satisfying cinematic genres, so I’m always looking for new ways to talk about how love works and how people relate to each other,” says producer Anthony Bregman. “When I read the book, the first thing I thought was that it was something that had never been done before – which is so rare now – and I also thought it was ingenious. On the one hand very simple – the embodiment of loving someone for who they really are – while also being very complex in how it addresses a lot of issues in the lives of young people today.”

Producer Christian Grass adds, “We all talk about having empathy for other people and that we’re all the same on the inside. There is something really extraordinary about manifesting that in a character who literally has to walk in someone else’s shoes every single day. I think the profoundness of that and the magic of that just grabs people and inspires awe.”

Beyond exploring the most universal themes of true love, identity and coming of age, Every Day also reflects very contemporary ideas about acceptance and the freedom to be whoever you are – a particularly resonant idea for young people right now who increasingly reject categorization.

As Susan Carpenter of the Los Angeles Times wrote, "It's the rare book that challenges gender presumptions in a way that's as entertaining as it is unexpected and, perhaps most important, that's relatable to teens who may not think they need sensitivity training when it comes to sexual orientation and the nature of true love. Every Day is precisely such a book ... A story that is always alluring, oftentimes humorous and much like love itself — splendorous."

Reframing the Lead

After optioning the book, the producers contacted Jesse Andrews - author of both the novel and screenplay of 2016 Sundance Best Film and Audience Award winner Me and Earl and the Dying Girl - about adapting Every Day for the screen.

Andrews immediately recognized a fundamental challenge in adapting the book, in which A is the lead character. “There’s a crucial difference between the way a story is told on the page and how it can be visualized,” notes Bregman. “On the page you can immerse yourself in an otherworldly story like this without the visuals challenging its plausibility. Jesse recognized that having A as the lead character on screen might make it difficult for audiences to identify with them as the protagonist of the story. He suggested we make Rhiannon, whom A falls in love with, the lead.”

“It was a really bold and necessary choice,” comments director Michael Sucsy. “Film audiences align themselves with someone they can see. We experience a story through the eyes of a character we physically trace. In our film, we have 16 actors playing A in the film — and we have to unite those characters in one coherent arc. By making Rhiannon the protagonist and following her journey as she meets A and learns about who A is, the audience gets grounded in her experience, and projects into her relationship with A, which gives us an entry point into the more fantastical and magical idea in the story.”

Andrews also opted to fill out Rhiannon’s world, specifically giving her a family backstory that didn’t exist in the novel. Rhiannon’s father is recovering from a nervous breakdown and not working, her mother is the sole breadwinner, her sister Jolene is a bit of a wild child, and Rhiannon is the rock trying to hold everything together. “What was great about what Jesse did with Rhiannon’s story – introducing the family and their history – is that it gives Rhiannon a really clear character arc,” says Grass. “When we meet Rhiannon she has a real desire for normalcy but she is also somewhat stuck and unable to fully discover herself because her focus is on supporting her family. This is the foundation from which she takes off on this incredible journey.”

Director Michael Sucsy

To actualize this complicated and wondrous story, the producers brought on director Michael Sucsy, known for his work on 2009’s HBO movie Grey Gardens - which won multiple Golden Globe and Primetime Emmys - as well as the 2012 hit The Vow with Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams.

“Michael was really perfect for this movie – to begin with, he is a diehard romantic at his core,” says Bregman. “He’s also very interested in complicated relationships and this movie is a feast of complicated relationships.” Grass adds, “Even Grey Gardens is fundamentally a love story – between a mother and a daughter – and what you can see in Michael’s work is that he understands how to navigate and nurture the push and pull of a romance.”

The script resonated for Sucsy, who was attracted to the ideas it proposed, “I love that within the context of a classic ‘star-crossed lovers story’ there are these beautiful questions and ideas. Maybe life is different from how we generally perceive it, maybe people are quite a bit different than we perceive them to be. When the script was brought to me, I’d been thinking a great deal already about looking past the exterior and how we present ourselves and interpret who other people are – so I really connected with the story immediately.”

Author Levithan was thrilled to have Sucsy take the helm of the film. “The thing a writer wants most is a director who really understands their story and Michael gets it. What’s been interesting for me to observe is how Michael seems to be having similar revelations about the implications of A’s life as he works on the film, as I did as I worked on the book. There’s been a similar journey with the ideas. It’s been really rewarding to observe and talk to him about his process.”

Angourie Rice as Rhiannon

Sucsy and the producers did an extensive search for the young woman who would anchor to Every Day and play Rhiannon. They saw over 350 actors, but person who

ultimately won the role was one Michael had had in mind from the beginning – Angourie Rice.

“I had actually met Angourie about a year and a half before we began casting Every Day,” says Sucsy. “She was in L.A. for the premiere of The Nice Guys and at that time I was trying to put together a father/daughter project, so I met with her and thought she was an incredibly composed and compelling actor. When we started looking around for this she was on a very short list for me right from the beginning.”

A young actor from Melbourne, Australia, Rice’s rise in the industry has been meteoric but straightforward. After appearing in the short Australian film Transmission, she was handpicked by director Zak Hilditch to star in his feature film, These Final Hours. What followed was an invitation to the prestigious Cannes Film Festival in 2014 and the start of international acclaim.

By 2016, she had landed the role opposite Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe in the noir comedy The Nice Guys, and within a year was auditioning for Sofia Coppola's take on the 1971 Clint Eastwood film The Beguiled – with both films taking her back to Cannes for her second and third time, all by the age of sixteen. Following that, she was cast as Betty in the most recent Spiderman movie starring Tom Holland, an enormous box office hit.

“Casting Rhiannon was genuinely critical to making this movie work,” says Sucsy. “Rhiannon anchors the film. We have to connect with her immediately and trust the character, so that when we meet A, we are willing to entertain the idea of what A is and go on this journey with her.”

Award-winning veteran actor Maria Bello plays Rhiannon’s mother in the film –– she says, “Angourie is a very intuitive and centered performer and a really gentle soul. You can see everything you need to know in her eyes. I think she’s the perfect anchor for this movie - she is relatable, but a little otherworldly and charming at the same time. And she is a very intelligent young woman. As much as this film is light and fun, there’s a real depth to it as well, and I think it is really important that the actress

playing Rhiannon understand the complex questions it touches upon about identity - Angourie really does.”

Levithan adds, “Angourie is amazing. She really is all the things I imagined about Rhiannon when I wrote the book. The key to Rhiannon is the balance of vulnerability and strength, and Angourie has both in spades.”

Like so many her age, when the producers approached Angourie they discovered that she had already read the book and was a fan. “I loved the book and I love concepts like this. The story questions things we take for granted about how we think about ourselves and how don’t always see people for who they really are, focusing too much on outside appearances. I thought it would make an awesome movie.”

The Rhiannon who we meet at the beginning of the film is living a fairly conventional life, albeit being the rock of her destabilized family. A nice girl, a good friend, a solid student, Rhiannon is dating the popular boy at school, though she doesn’t feel very connected to him or much appreciated. She’s playing all the parts she feels she should play at the expense of her own self-discovery.

“Especially when we’re young we tend to be defined by our relationships,” comments Sucsy. “In the beginning of our story, Rhiannon is Nick’s daughter, Jolene’s sister, Justin’s girlfriend. As a result of her father’s breakdown, the whole family is in stasis. Their family has been fractured and they haven’t figured out how to move past it. These things are standing in the way of her freedom to grow. And what we see in the movie is that her interactions with A broaden her perspective and give her space to find herself.”

Rice adds, “She and everyone around her are all seeing each other not for who they are, but for who they think they should be, which I think is pretty common. Another important part of Rhiannon’s journey is learning to see and accept those around her, and she then shares that perspective with her family.”

For such a young actress, the Every Day shoot was very demanding for Rice. She is in almost every frame of the film and it is her largest role to date. There were also a lot of

other on-set firsts, including learning how to drive. Rice had just recently obtained her learner’s permit in her native Australia and had only eight hours of driving practice (on the “wrong” side of the street no less) prior to coming to arriving in Toronto to shoot Every Day.

“I had to do some parking in one scene and they were shooting from above the car so you could see exactly what I was doing, and it was terrible!” Rice jokes. “I couldn’t get anywhere near close to where I was supposed to be so eventually they had to give up on trying to get me to turn into the spot and have me just drive straight in – I just couldn’t turn to save my life. It was pretty embarrassing,” she laughs.

While her Every Day onscreen kisses were not her first, it was certainly a first to have one love interest played by fifteen different actors. And there was one other unique first experience – like most of the young actors in the movie, Angourie actually plays two characters in Every Day.

Casting A and Creating a ‘Practical Special Effect’

“The special effect of this movie is not a special effect created on a computer or by a pyrotechnic expert, it’s a special effect done with acting, which is a pretty amazing thing,” says producer Bregman. “We have this character A who is an entity who inhabits a different body every day for 24 hours and so in our film is portrayed by fifteen different actors. Several of the young actors who play A in the story play a character in Rhiannon’s life as well, so each actor has to both differentiate between when they are their main character versus when they are inhabited by A, as well as supporting a single, clear character for A. It’s quite complex.

“I liken it to this notion in film called intermittent motion, the idea that the eye can perceive movement between two still frames. In motion pictures, you have twenty-four still frames in a second and when they’re run together your brain compensates and creates the fluid motion connecting the frames. I think there’s an intermittent motion effect happening in this movie in which we’re asking the audience to bridge the gaps and perceive A as a fluid and consistent character.”

In speaking to the cast, director and producers about casting the film and the A’s in particular, the eyes are mentioned often, specifically as they relate to how Sucsy and the producers tried to create consistency for A, who is played by so many performers.

“Every actor who plays A in the film has a depth and maturity of soul that comes through in their eyes,” says Sucsy. “They all feel like old souls, even though they’re all young people. That maturity and depth coming from the eyes becomes a big part of the throughline for A and makes the character feel whole.”

Sucsy was resistant to using an overly heavy hand in directing the actors who play A, to avoid creating a forced continuity for the character. After casting a range of young actors he felt all shared a depth of spirit, he instead sent them all a letter with two simple instructions and some thoughts about who A is and what the implications of living in so many different bodies might be.

“It was really nice to get this letter before starting filming,” says Teague. “Michael shared some thoughts he had about A and what the movie meant to him, and also asked us to do some practical things. He asked us to read through the entire script bearing in mind that every scene that A plays in is part of our experience – not just the scenes in which we play A – and you don’t always do that. Sometimes you’ll read through the whole script once but then focus on your scenes because those are the only ones that are relevant to your character development. And he told all of us that the first thing we would do in our scenes when we wake up as A would be to look at our hands.”

Sucsy adds, “Hands tell a lot about a person. So I decided that would be what A would do every day when he woke up is immediately look at the hands. Hands give you skin colour, male or female, a hard or a soft life. It was a small simple physical detail I added in to create a little consistency, but from there we were really relying on the talent of these amazing young actors we cast to build a clear character arc for A.”

In addition to Smith and Teague, thirteen other actors play A in the course of the story including Lucas Jade Zumann from Twentieth Century Women, Colin Ford from

“Under The Dome”, Jacob Batalon from Spiderman: Homecoming, transgendered actor Ian Alexander from “The OA”, blind actor David McDonald, and Angourie Rice also appears as A in the film.

“It’s interesting playing two different people,” comments Rice. “When Rhiannon is A it’s a unique moment, because it is the first time A has been in the body of someone A knows and who A’s in love with. I think the main thing is that A just doesn’t want to mess anything up!”

The range of actors who play A is intentionally diverse, underscoring the larger theme in the story that people at the core are fundamentally the same, while also visualizing the broad range of life experience A has as, what he calls, a traveller.

Speaking to the casting approach, Sucsy comments, “I definitely wanted the casting to be diverse, while also not putting any strict mandates on it. But I did want the As to represent a wide range of human experience – it was really important to me to create an authentic picture of contemporary youth and to demonstrate the spectrum of experiences that A has had, and also to underscore the point that there’s a fundamental and shared humanity underneath all of these different exteriors.”

David Levithan was able to visit the set during filming, and what struck him the most was the impact of actually seeing the embodiment of A in the different actors playing the character. “It’s interesting – the book is so much about A not having a physical body, so to see the idea physically manifest, to see these different actors on set here, helps you imagine what the implications of A’s existence really are.”

Justice Smith as Justin and A

In the beginning of the film we’re introduced to Rhiannon’s boyfriend Justin. Justin is the popular athlete at school and he takes Rhiannon for granted. But one day Justin wakes up, promptly examines his hands, takes his bearings and heads off to school. On this day Justin is not himself, he has been inhabited by A. Rhiannon can tell something’s off with Justin, yet soon suggests they play hooky and head off for adventure.

What follows is A and Rhiannon’s first date, driving and listening to music, hanging at the beach, and talking and sharing more than Justin and Rhiannon ever have. A falls for Rhiannon that afternoon and, without knowing it, Rhiannon falls for A, too. The next day at school, Justin doesn’t seem to really remember this day that was so special to Rhiannon.

Justin is portrayed in the film by actor Justice Smith, most familiar to audiences from his leading role in Netflix’s hit show, “The Get Down.”

“I’ve certainly never had a chance to play two characters in one movie before and Justin and A are definitely on opposite ends of the personality spectrum,” says Smith. “In the book, Justin is only viewed through A’s perception of him, which is negative. David Levithan also wrote a companion book to Every Day, which is from Rhiannon’s perspective, and she sees that Justin does have a lighter side, that he can be sweet at times, and he really does love Rhiannon. He is kind of oblivious to other people’s feelings though. He thinks a lot about himself and his own needs and when he doesn’t get those needs met, he gets frustrated and easily irritated.”

Smith himself, however, tended to be a great source of fun on set and could be described as the ‘set clown,’ always finding moments of levity and laughter during filming. “Justice is hilarious,” comments co-star Owen Teague. “He likes to sing, but he doesn’t really do it in a serious manner. I am not sure if I should be saying this, but he does a lot of weird singing in the make-up trailer. He cracks me up.”

And while Smith did bring a really fun energy to the set, he also brought a lot of preparation. “Justice is interesting in that he presents himself as really playful, but from the beginning he peppered me with really thoughtful questions about Justin and A and did a lot of background work before starting the film. He was really thoughtful in his approach,” comments Sucsy.

Owen Teague as Alexander and A

Known for his breakout role on Netflix’s “Bloodline,” Teague plays Alexander as well as being one of the fifteen actors who play A. A bit of a wallflower at school, Alexander is closest in personality to A and is also harboring a crush on Rhiannon.

“Alexander is a quiet, shy kid,” says Teague. “He’s obsessed with words and has quotes posted all over his room - he’s a really beautiful person. When A wakes up inside Alexander and looks around his room and gets a feel for him, he immediately likes him. They share an empathetic quality and see who people really are, which allows them to appreciate all the beauty in the world.”

And while there are many similarities between A and Alexander, Teague is quick to point out they’re not exactly the same, “A is a little more guarded because he’s spent his entire life trying not to make too much of an impression on the lives of those whose bodies he inhabits – he wants everything to be fine for them the next day – so there’s a cautiousness with A, whereas Alexander, though shy, is a little more open and stands a little taller.

“They both have kindness in their eyes, but with A there’s also some pain because of the loneliness in the life A leads. Alexander, on the other hand, sees everyone from all angles and just tries to love them.”

Rhiannon’s Family: Debby Ryan as Jolene, Maria Bello as Lindsey, and Michael Cram as Nick

Another important piece of the casting puzzle for Every Day were the roles of Rhiannon’s family, her mother Lindsey, father Nick, and sister Jolene.

Maria Bello was cast as the struggling Lindsey who is saddled with being the sole breadwinner while her husband Nick recovers from a mental breakdown. Bello was immediately attracted to the themes in the film, specifically the idea that we fall in love with souls not bodies, and has even published a book entitled, Whatever, Love is Love about her own experiences with defying categorization. Bello comments, “This movie

has a depth and intelligence that we don’t always see in movies for young adults and that really impressed me.”

Disney star and increasingly sought-after actor Debby Ryan was brought on to play Rhiannon’s rebellious sister Jolene, who’s an important anchor for Rhiannon and lends the film a little comedy. And finally Michael Cram from the popular television series “Flashpoint” was brought on to play Rhiannon’s father Nick.

Sucsy comments, “Debby was a breath of fresh air on set. She’s got great comedic timing and can also play the dramatic end of the spectrum, and flip easily between the two. She brought an edgy and hilarious energy to the movie that helped keep things in balance.”

“Jolene’s pretty sassy and sarcastic,” says Ryan. “But her relationship to Rhiannon is really important to both of them. They’re cut from opposite cloth and they have responded to the family situation really differently - Rhiannon by trying to hold everyone together, Jolene by going a bit off the rails. She’s tough and aggressive but she has good intentions. And she is one of the few people in Rhiannon’s world who is pushing her to demand more for herself.”

It didn’t take long during filming for Rice and Ryan to develop a sisterly bond. “It's been so good to work with Angourie – she’s incredible. She's subtle and grounded and informed as an actress.,” says Ryan. “On the first day shooting our first scene we were shooting some stuff in the car and we put on Lorde, and started singing ‘The Louvre’ at the top of our lungs while doing the stunt driving. We were supposed to just be driving around and there we were turning it up, shouting and singing and bopping along.”

Memorable Moments

Luckily – and happily – for the filmmakers all the cast relationships seemed to follow a similar lead. New friendships developed quickly and served the tone of the movie as well as the atmosphere on set.

Because of how the schedule came together, when Owen Teague began his time with the production, he and Angourie had to shoot their most intimate and emotionally- charged scenes on their first couple of days of working together.

“Owen is fantastic,” says Rice. “The first two days he and I worked together, we shot the big finale sequences at the end of the movie. We really had to jump into the deep end and we didn’t know each other at all. He made it really comfortable for me and brought a lot of truth to these moments.”

Sucsy adds, “These scenes that Angourie and Owen have with each other at the end of the film - when A begins to question whether trying to be with Rhiannon is fair to her - they are heavy scenes with a lot of complex emotions underneath them. They’d be demanding scenes for actors three times their age, and we’re really fortunate that the chemistry and comfort level between the two of them was there right from the beginning. They did beautiful work together and I was honestly so proud of both of them – how they were able to show up and be so vulnerable with each other so quickly.”

Levithan noticed the chemistry between Angourie and Owen immediately on his visit, “Seeing Rhiannon and Alexander clearly clicking with each other is just amazing. The chemistry they have is a genuine and lovely connection and I can feel that the ideas and the emotions are all very real to the actors and everyone involved and you can really feel that come through in the movie.”

Another defining memory from filming that most of the cast and crew mention as a favorite is the night they shot the dance scene between Rhiannon and Nathan.

The third time Rhiannon meets A is at a party at a friend’s house. Justin is back to his aloof self and Rhiannon wanders through the party at loose ends until she puts a song on the stereo that someone she doesn’t know (Nathan) recognizes – “This Is The Day” by the British post-punk band The The – a song Justin had introduced to her just days before when they played hooky from school. At this moment, Nathan is not actually Nathan, but inhabited by A, who is trying to signal to Rhiannon that he’s there.

Nathan, played by Lucas Jade Zumann, hits the dance floor and dances for Rhiannon - both to get her attention and to charm her. While not the most naturally talented dancer, he goes for it – and the actors did too.

“Shooting the party scene was really fun because we had a big group together in one place for the first time during filming. We were shooting late into the night, so it sort of felt like a giant sleepover,” says Rice. “I was nervous about having to dance in front of everyone and you don’t want to mess up, but Lucas basically went all in and that really helped me. It became about us just being silly and having fun together, which was great.”

Justice Smith adds, “The other thing that’s fun about night shoots is the adrenaline gets going at some point and everyone starts to laugh and get a bit crazy. We all reached that point that night for sure.”

The other opportunity the young cast had to all be together was when they shot all the scenes at the high school, which happened toward the end of the shoot by which time the cast had had some time to build relationships with each other.

Smith recalls one special moment that exemplifies the atmosphere on set for the young cast and the camaraderie they developed on the shoot. “In the last week of shooting we were at the high school all week, and one day we discovered that there was a music room with a piano, beside where we ate lunch. After we’d eaten, we all ended up spending the second half of our lunch break in the music room. I brought out my guitar, someone got on the piano, and we played music and sang together – Angourie was there, Owen, me, a bunch of other kids in the high school scenes.. And it was just this great spontaneous thing that happened.”

When the actors were called back to work that day, the group wandered slowly down the hall back to set singing Vance Joy’s “Riptide” together accompanied by Smith playing his guitar, clearly not wanting the moment to end.

Building the Visual World of Every Day

Creating the right look for Every Day began with the choice to shoot the movie entirely on location.

“With a movie like this, which has a very high concept at its core, it’s important to design the world in grounded reality,” says Bregman. “We shot the entire film on location because we wanted real homes and real schools to fill the movie with lived-in environments that felt authentic. The locations help legitimize the elevated concept of our story.”

“It made the location scouting process longer,” adds Sucsy. “We really needed spaces that told stories and communicated history themselves and that communicated a lot of detail about the history of the people living in them. For many of the As we only see them briefly and so the visuals had to quickly tell their whole story.

“The house that Rhiannon’s family lives in is a great example. It was this incredible old wood house that was unlike anything I had ever seen before – almost like a cottage but with all the elements of a year-round home. It had huge wooden beams, old plank floors, and this massive stone fireplace in the living room. It felt really lived in and loved, like a family had been there for generations, and it also supported the idea of a family where one parent has lost some income and things are a little rough around the edges.”

Production designer Matthew Davies points to the home of the character Kelsea, whom A inhabits for a day and discovers is having suicidal thoughts in the wake of her mother’s death. “The scenes with Kelsea are important as they show the darker side of what A experiences. But there is only a short period of time to establish who she is and what she’s feeling. We created a heavy quality in her house with the lighting and dressing, the feeling of being stuck in time at the moment when the mother has passed, with pictures and and pretty things in the house that now allude to happier times.”

For the paintings that Rhiannon’s father Nick creates as a mode of therapy, Davies found a local artist to commission pieces that would both represent his mental state but also echo A’s ability to appreciate the nuance in so many people, “We found this incredible local artist who creates portraits that look like memories made of dreams. They sort of show shades or abstracted dimensions of people that are sort of expressionistic, and they felt to me like they also hinted at all the facets of the human experience that A has born witness to. They create a connection between the transition Nick is going through and the perspective A has on the world.”

Similarly, costume designer Georgina Yarhi put particular emphasis on representing Rhiannon’s character arc in her wardrobe through the film. “Throughout the movie Rhiannon grows and develops and we really looked to the clothing to externalize some of that inner transformation,” says Yarhi. “Rhiannon’s wardrobe is fairly conservative in the beginning, a bit plain. As she grows in her relationship with A she starts to wear slightly edgier, more playful clothing and we made more sophisticated choices for her.”

Rice adds, “In the beginning, Rhiannon really doesn’t want to stand out, she wants to blend in with the crowd and not draw attention to herself. As she begins to think more about who she really is and what’s important to her, you can see that in her clothes. By the end, when she has her final date with A, we chose the long, dark dress, which is a much more mature choice for her. It reflects how she’s finally coming into her own.”

Summary

It is such a commonplace and simple piece of advice – that you should appreciate someone for what is on the inside, and not judge them by external appearances. Yet it is also true that what seems simplest on the surface can often end up being the hardest thing. In the end, the question of who we are at our core, without body, gender, any external identifiers that all, is not so simple to answer.

Equally, at first look Every Day is a charming, funny, and smart coming-of-age story about the ups and downs of true love and growing up. But dig a little deeper and there’s more.

“I think audiences will come see Every Day looking for a young love story, or maybe to see the incredible cast, or to see the kind of interesting dynamics of it all, and I think that they'll come out having a more elevated understanding of love,” says Debby Ryan. “This movie is a love story – but there is so much more…it's a coming-of-age story, it's a story about family love, it's a story about loving someone so much that you choose to do the difficult thing, and it’s a magical story. I think it's a total swoon.”

“What I hope people take away from this movie is a feeling of having connected with someone and something deeper, deeper than skin and deeper than circumstance and that people can look at the movie and then turn to whoever they’re with and try to see more deeply into that person,” says Bregman. “I think, I hope, that this story will have resonance at this amazing time we are in where a generation seems to be turning away from black and white definitions around identity, which is such an exciting thing.“

ABOUT THE CAST

Angourie Rice as Rhiannon Though she hasn’t been in the business long, Angourie Rice is quickly on her way to becoming a major motion picture star.

She is currently in production on the Australian film Ladies in Black opposite Rachael Taylor and Julia Ormond. Based on the bestselling novel by Madeleine St. John, the film was written and directed by Bruce Beresford and follows the lives of a group of department store employees in 1959 Sydney. The film is slated for a 2018 release.

Earlier this year, she appeared in Sony’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, which has gone on to earn $880 million worldwide. She also appeared opposite Nicole Kidman, Elle Fanning and Colin Farrell in Sofia Coppola’s The Beguiled, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival to rave reviews.

From a creative family, Rice began her career with several short films and national television commercials. Her breakout role was at 11 years old in Zak Hilditch’s short film Transmission, for which she won Best Actress at the St. Kilda Film Festival. Additional past film credits include Warner Brothers’ The Nice Guys opposite Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling, the feature adaptation of Jasper Jones and the Australian films Nowhere Boys: The Book of Shadows and These Final Hours. Past television credits include “Hartman’s Solution,” “The Dr. Blake Mysteries” and “The Worst Year of My Life Again.”

Rice is a native of Perth, Western Australia, where she currently lives with her family.

Justice Smith as Justin Justice Smith's credits include the Netflix series “The Get Down” created by Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge, The Great Gatsby) and the Fox 2000 film Paper Towns (Cara Delevingne and Nat Wolff), which was adapted from the John Green novel. He made his stage debut in the off-Broadway play Yen, which he starred opposite Oscar nominee Lucas Hedges and was nominated for a Lucille Lortel Award and a Casting Society of America Artios Award.

Justice graduated from the Orange County School of the Arts in 2013 with a major in Acting. In his senior year, he was ranked in the top 1.3% of young artists across the nation by the National YoungArts Foundation.

In addition to Every Day, Smith has Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom due in theatres in 2018.

Owen Teague as Alexander With a laid back and quiet demeanor reminiscent of a young Ryan Gosling, Owen Teague is making his mark on Hollywood. Known for his standout performance as ‘Nolan Rayburn,’ son of ‘Danny Rayburn’ (Ben Mendelsohn) on Netflix’s “Bloodline,” Owen also appeared on the big screen this year as ‘Patrick Hockstetter’ in New Line Cinema’s highly-anticipated adaptation of Stephen King’s IT.

The thespian’s impressive range evident in his work, as he portrays characters so far removed from his real life. With projects in both television and film, Owen has already built an impressive resume that includes working with top stars such as Samuel L. Jackson, John Cusack, Chris O'Donnell, Linda Cardellini, Sissy Spacek, Stacy Keach, Kyle Chandler, Ben Mendelsohn, Norbert Leo Butz, and Andrea Riseborough.

Owen caught the acting bug when he was just four years old and Disney’s Beauty and the Beast tugged at the youngster's heartstrings. He immediately started theater in his home state of Florida and was cast as ‘Little Jake’ in Annie Get Your Gun. He also had the chance to live his childhood dream by joining a production of Beauty and the Beast, in addition to Oliver, Macbeth, The Music Man, and A Christmas Story as ‘Ralphie’. Owen soon joined Florida’s oldest and most prestigious Equity theater, Asolo Rep, in productions of A Tale of Two Cities and A Winter’s Tale, to name a few.

Owen’s introduction to television and film came at the age of 10 when he flew out to Los Angeles for a screen test of Diary of a Wimpy Kid. He continued to audition and appear in a combination of both television and film, including “NCIS: Los Angeles,” “CollegeHumor Originals,” “Bones,” “Mercy Street,” and independent feature films Wild in Blue, Echoes of War, and Cell with Samuel L. Jackson and John Cusack, based on Stephen King’s thriller novel of the same name.

Maria Bello as Lindsey Maria Bello has established herself as a leading actress with a formidable and dazzling presence. A cool, incredibly literate blonde, Maria has captivated audiences with her many diverse roles in such films as The Cooler with William H. Macy, (Golden Globe and SAG Nomination), David Cronenberg’s A History of Violence opposite Viggo Mortenson and Ed Harris (NY Film Critics win and Golden Globe nomination), Oliver Stone’s World Trade Center, Prisoners opposite Hugh Jackman, and Paul Haggis’ Third Person. Bello was most recently seen in the hit James Wan thriller, Lights Out and the Amazon original series, Goliath, with Billy Bob Thornton and William Hurt. She can currently be seen as one of the newest additions to the cast of “NCIS,” playing the role of Special Agent Jacqueline “Jack” Sloane.

Bello’s upcoming films include: In Search of Fellini in which she stars and executive produced, Monumental, and GLO. Additional film credits include: Max Steel with Andy Garcia, Late Bloomer, Wait Till Helen Comes, McFarland, USA with Kevin Costner, The 5th Wave with Chloë Grace Moretz and Liev Schreiber, The Confirmation, Grown Ups and Grown Ups 2 with Adam Sandler, the John Wells drama The Company Men, Thank You For Smoking, The Jane Austen Book Club, The Mummy 3: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Demonic, Towelhead, Yellow Handkerchief, Auto Focus, Beautiful Boy, Permanent Midnight with Ben Stiller, Payback with Mel Gibson, Flicka opposite Tim McGraw, Bruce Paltrow’s Duets, Jerry Bruckheimer’s Coyote Ugly, Secret Window with Johnny Depp, Silver City with Chris Cooper and Assault on Precinct 13 with Ethan Hawke.

No stranger to the small screen, Bello starred in the Lifetime TV movie “Big Driver,” based on the Stephen King short story. She also starred as detective Jane Timoney in the NBC series “Prime Suspect,” and for one season in the role of passionate and headstrong pediatrician Dr. Anna Del Amico in NBC’s critically acclaimed series “ER.”

In April 2015, Bello released her first book Whatever… Love is Love, from Dey Street Books, an imprint of Harper Collins. In her book, Bello expands on her news- making “Coming Out as Modern Family” column, which ran in the New York Times in 2013. The book explores themes and ideas surrounding family, partnership, sexuality and spirituality.

Debby Ryan as Jolene Debby Ryan is a rising young star, known for her ability to effortlessly transition from comedy to drama.

She has established herself as a star of both the small and big screens. In television, Debby is currently shooting the upcoming Netflix dramedy “Insatiable”, written by Dexter executive producer, Lauren Gussis. She’s also known for her starring role on The Disney Channel Original series “Jessie”, as Jessie Prescott.

In 2016, Debby starred in three feature films including acting alongside Melissa McCarthy in the Warner Bros. comedy Life of the Party, Todd Berger’s The Cover Versions with Katie Cassidy and Drake Bell, and the MarVista surfing film Riptide.

Debby has also branched out to expand her brand as an entrepreneur and multi- hyphenate. She became the youngest female director of episodic television when she directed an episode of “Jessie” in 2015. She went on tour with her band, The

Neverending, opening for Fifth Harmony on their wildly successful 2015 world tour. In film, she optioned and produced Jessica Darling’s It List for MarVista Entertainment.

Born May 13, 1993 in Alabama, Debby moved to Texas as a small child, and lived there for five years before moving to Wiesbaden, Germany with her family, where she lived for three years. When not working, Debby is passionate about volunteering and is a Disney Friends for Change Ambassador. Her recent work with Friends for Change took her to India, where in partnership withFree the Children, Debby helped to build a new school for a local village.

Lucas Jade Zumann as Nathan Lucas Jade Zumann is best known for his breakout role, opposite Annette Bening, as ‘Jamie’ in the critically-acclaimed 20th Century Women, from writer/director Mike Mills (The Beginners). The film tells the story of three women (Bening, Greta Gerwig, Elle Fanning) raising an adolescent boy (Zumann) during a pivotal summer in 1979. After premiering at the New York Film Festival, the movie had its theatrical debut in January 2017. Currently, Zumann can be seen in the iconic role of ‘Gilbert Blythe’ in the Netflix series “Anne with an E,” based off of the Anne of Green Gables story.

Zumann made his motion picture debut in Blumhouse Production's Sinister 2, after having just completed a role in the groundbreaking, global Netflix production "Sense8," in episodes directed by the Wachowski siblings. Zumann can also be seen in the starring role in the independent film Thrill Ride, by writer/director Chris Parrish as well as a featured role on NBC's “Chicago Fire.”

Zumann is a Chicago native and the oldest of four siblings. He was introduced to the performing arts in a 2012 Chicago production of Lionel Bart's classic stage musical Oliver presented by the Light Opera Works. When not before the cameras, Zumann enjoys such hobbies as photography, filmmaking, playing guitar, aerial arts, martial arts, Parkour and maintaining a vegan lifestyle.

Jacob Batalon as James Jacob Batalon is best known for his breakout performance in Spider-Man: Homecoming. He will next be seen in the independent feature The True Don Quixote opposite Tim Blake Nelson; Rooster Teeth Production’s upcoming horror/comedy Blood Fest; Universal’s upcoming comedy Night School opposite Kevin Hart; and the independent film DISH about the mid-2000s Williamsburg music scene.

Batalon was born and raised in Hawaii and graduated from the New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts.

Colin Ford as Xavier Colin Ford, just wrapped the Independent feature, The War With Grandpa, where he plays opposite Robert De Niro. Previously, Colin starred on the hit CBS series “Under The Dome”, based on the novel by Stephen King and executive produced by Stephen Spielberg. Colin also starred as Matt Damon's angst-ridden son in Cameron Crowe's We Bought A Zoo, which also starred Scarlett Johansson and Elle Fanning. He also starred as the title character in the independent film Jack and the Beanstalk, opposite Chloe Moretz and Christopher Lloyd, for which he won a Young Artist Award.

Michael Cram as Nick Michael Cram has been a fixture on North American television and film for over 20 years. He is best known as Kevin “Wordy” Wordsworth from the hit television series, “Flashpoint”, popular in the United States, Canada and over 70 countries around the world, as well as Season 4 bad guy, Kevin Ford on ABC’s hit show “Rookie Blue”. He will appear as Mark Novak in Season 2 of Steven Soderbergh’s “The Girlfriend Experience”, and has just joined Season 2 of “Cardinal” which begins filming shortly. Movie credits include Miss Sloane with Jessica Chastain, the indie film Band Night, and a starring role in the festival hit, The Space Between, written and directed by Amy Jo Johnson. Recent television credits include “NCIS”, “Bones” and “Shadowhunters”.

Amanda Arcuri as Rebecca Amanda Arcuri landed her debut role, without any formal training, on the hit Canadian series, “Degrassi: The Next Generation”, followed by the spin-off, “Degrassi:Next Class”. While shooting the series, she began several years of training at the Armstrong Acting Studio in Toronto. Amanda has also appeared as a recurring character in the action thriller web series, “Played”. Most recently she filmed the lead in a short film at the Canadian Film Centre, with up and coming director Blake Mawson.

ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS

Michael Sucsy - Director Michel Sucsy is a Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning film director, screenwriter, and producer best known for creating the HBO film Grey Gardens (2009) starring Jessica Lange and Drew Barrymore, about the eccentric and reclusive relatives of Jackie Onassis.

Sucsy directed commanding performances from Lange and Barrymore who each won "Best Actress" awards for their portrayals of "Big Edie" and "Little Edie" Bouvier Beale — the Emmy Award for Lange and the Golden Globe and SAG Awards for Barrymore. The film additionally garnered an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Television Critics Association Award, a Broadcast Critics Award and a Producers Guild Award for "Best Made for Television Film."

Sucsy followed up the success of that film with The Vow (Sony), starring Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams, which opened to a stunning $42MM weekend and went onto gross $200MM worldwide.

He is a graduate of The Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA, Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, and Deerfield Academy. He was raised in New York and New England and currently resides in Los Angeles, CA.

Jesse Andrews – Screenwriter Jesse Andrews is an author, screenwriter, and former German youth hostel receptionist. He was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA, and is a graduate of Schenley High School and Harvard University. He currently makes his home in New York City. His debut novel, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, was published by Harry Abrams in 2012 and became a New York Times bestseller. He also wrote the feature-film adaptation of Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, which was directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon and produced by Indian Paintbrush. It premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, where it won both the Audience Award (U.S. - Dramatic) and the Grand Jury Prize (U.S. - Dramatic). Jesse's second novel, The Haters, was published in April 2016, and also became a New York Times bestseller; his third novel, Munmun, will publish in April 2018. Jesse’s original pilot “Sleep Wizard” is in development at Hulu, and his other scripts include Every Day, which is being directed by Michael Sucsy for MGM; Managing Mr. Horowitz, in development with Red Crown and David Gelb directing; and Empress of Serenity, in development with Mr. Mudd and Stephen Chbosky producing.

David Levithan – Author David Levithan is the author of many acclaimed and bestselling YA novels, including Every Day, Another Day, Boy Meets Boy, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist (with Rachel Cohn), Two Boys Kissing, and (with John Green) Will Grayson, Will Grayson. His next novel written with Rachel Cohn, Sam and Ilsa’s Last Hurrah, will be out in April, and his sequel to Every Day, entitled Someday, will be published in September.

By day, David is an editor and publisher of other people’s children’s and YA novels. By night, he sleeps in New Jersey. For more about him, you can go to www.davidlevithan.com, and you can follow his Lover’s Dictionary on Twitter at @loversdiction.

Paul Trijbits – Producer Paul Trijbits is the Executive Producer of Disney's BAFTA and Golden Globe- nominated Saving Mr Banks, starring Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson, and J.K. Rowling's The Casual Vacancy, the event television series for the BBC and HBO.

Paul is the co-founder and CEO of UK production company FilmWave, founded in 2012 in partnership with Christian Grass, former President of International Production and Acquisitions, Universal Pictures International. The company has recently produced John Carney’s (Once and Begin Again) Sing Street (which premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival), followed by Alone in Berlin staring Emma Thompson, Brendan Gleeson and Daniel Brühl, based on the best-selling novel by Hans Fallada (a co-production with X-Filme in Germany) which played in official competition at the 2016 Berlin International Film Festival, and finally Martin Koolhoven’s Brimstone, starring Guy Pearce, Dakota Fanning and Kit Harington, a co- production with N279 and X-Filme.

Paul was formerly Managing Director of Ruby Films & Television and before that the Head of the UK Film Council's New Cinema Fund. During his time at Ruby Films, Paul produced critically acclaimed and commercially successful films including Cary Fukunaga’s Jane Eyre, Andrea Arnold’s Fish Tank, and Stephen Frears’ Tamara Drewe.

In his role at the UK Film Council, Paul was responsible for, and executively produced, titles such as Paul Greengrass’ Bloody Sunday, (Golden Bear Award at Berlin, World Cinema Audience Award at Sundance) Peter Mullan’s The Magdalene Sisters (Golden Lion at Venice, Discovery at Toronto), Ken Loach’s The Wind That Shakes the Barley, (Palm d’Or at Cannes) Kevin Macdonald’s documentary Touching the Void (Best British Film at BAFTA) and Andrea Arnold’s Red Road (Jury Prize at Cannes).

Paul’s television credits include Stephen Poliakoff’s Golden Globe winner Dancing On The Edge for BBC2 and Starz, Case Histories for BBC1, based on the best-selling novels by Kate Atkinson, and Emmy award-winning and BAFTA nominated Small Island.

Christian Grass – Producer Christian is the co-founder and CEO of UK production company FilmWave, and the former President of International Production and Acquisitions, Universal Pictures International.

Christian founded FilmWave in 2012 in partnership with Paul Trijbits, Executive Producer of Saving Mr Banks and The Casual Vacancy for the BBC and HBO. The

company has recently produced John Carney’s (Once and Begin Again) Sing Street (which premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival), followed by Alone in Berlin staring Emma Thompson, Brendan Gleeson and Daniel Brühl, based on the best- selling novel by Hans Fallada (a co-production with X-Filme in Germany) which played in official competition at the 2016 Berlin International Film Festival, and finally Martin Koolhoven’s Brimstone, starring Guy Pearce, Dakota Fanning and Kit Harington, a co-production with N279 and X-Filme.

The international production division at Universal (UPIP) was set up in October 2007 when Christian joined the studio from 20th Century Fox International with a brief to expand Universal’s existing worldwide acquisitions and local production efforts and create a diverse slate of international projects as well as local language films. The division then merged with Universal’s specialised division, Focus Features, in the beginning of 2009 and Christian became co-CEO of Focus Features International.

Under Christian's leadership the Universal Pictures International Production Division produced and acquired such films as Andrés Muschietti's Mama, Matthew Vaughn's Kick Ass, the Step Up franchise, Quentin Tarantino's Inglorious Basterds, Rubbeldiekatz directed by Detlev Buck, Cary Fukunaga’s Sin Nombre, Timur Bekmambetov's Black Lightning, Chan-Wook Park’s Cannes award winner Thirst and Pascal Chaumeil’s Heartbreaker among many others.

Before joining UPIP, Christian was Executive Vice President of Europe, the Middle East and Africa for 20th Century Fox International. At Fox Christian oversaw the theatrical distribution, sales and marketing of all Fox and Fox Searchlight releases in EMEA including Titanic, 28 Days Later, Moulin Rouge, The Full Monty, Independence Day and The Devil Wears Prada among many others. Prior to joining Fox in 1996, Christian served as Vice President of International Marketing for Miramax International, where he supervised the marketing and publicity for all Miramax International releases including Pulp Fiction, Pret-A-Porter and Bullets Over Broadway among many others.

Anthony Bregman – Producer Anthony Bregman’s films include the Academy Award-winning Eternal Sunshine of Anthony Bregman’s films include the Academy Award winning ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND; FOXCATCHER; ENOUGH SAID; BEGIN AGAIN; THE ICE STORM; THUMBSUCKER; AMERICAN ULTRA; FRIENDS WITH MONEY; OUR IDIOT BROTHER; EVERY SECRET THING; THE WHOLE TRUTH; PLEASE GIVE; SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK; THE TAO OF STEVE; LOVELY & AMAZING; HUMAN NATURE; THE SAVAGES; THE BROTHERS MCMULLEN; TRICK; THE EXTRA MAN; DARLING COMPANION; and THE ORANGES. His most recent released films include John Carney’s SING STREET, which was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Picture; James Schamus’ directorial debut, an adaptation of Philip Roth’s INDIGNATION; David Frankel’s COLLATERAL BEAUTY; and James Ponsoldt’s THE CIRCLE; based on the novel by Dave Eggers.

Bregman is currently in post-production on Nicole Holofcener’s THE LAND OF STEADY HABITS, with Edie Falco and Ben Mendelsohn; as well as Tamara Jenkins’ PRIVATE LIFE, starring Paul Giamatti and Kathryn Hahn. Both films are being financed and distributed by Netflix.

In the fall of 2006, Bregman founded the New York City-based production company Likely Story, which he currently runs with Stefanie Azpiazu. Prior to Likely Story, Bregman was a partner at This is That for four years, and spent ten years as head of production at Good Machine, where he supervised the production and post- production of over thirty feature films, including “Sense and Sensibility”; “Eat Drink, Man Woman”; “Walking & Talking”’ “What Happened Was…”; “The Wedding Banquet”; and “Safe.” Bregman teaches producing at Columbia University’s Graduate Film School and is Chairman of the Board of the IFP, the nation’s oldest and largest industry association for independent filmmakers, which also sponsors the annual Gotham Awards.

Bregman’s movies have won numerous awards at the Oscars, Golden Globes, BAFTAs, Gothams, Indie Spirits, and Cannes, Berlin and Sundance Film Festivals, among others. In 2010 Roger Ebert named “Synecdoche, New York” the Best Film of the Decade.

Peter Cron - Producer Peter Cron is Vice President of Production at Likely Story. He has served as Executive Producer on James Ponsoldt’s The Circle, starring Emma Watson and Tom Hanks, as well as on David Frankel’s drama Collateral Beauty, starring Will Smith, Ed Norton, and Keira Knightley.

Cron’s previous credits include the musical Sing Street, written and directed by John Carney; James Schamus’ directorial debut Indignation, based on the novel by Philip Roth; Nima Nourizadeh’s action-comedy American Ultra, starring Jesse Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart; and Courtney Hunt’s thriller The Whole Truth, starring Keanu Reeves, Renée Zellweger, and Gugu Mbatha-Raw.

Prior to his tenure at Likely Story, Cron was a creative executive at The Weinstein Company and Scott Rudin Productions.

Stefanie Azpiazu – Executive Producer Stefanie Azpiazu is the Head of Production and Development at production company Likely Story, as well as a founding member of the company. The bi-coastal company was created in 2006 and is now celebrating its 10 year anniversary.

Stefanie produced Nicole Holofcener’s critically adored Enough Said starring Julia Louis Dreyfus and James Gandolfini that was released by Fox Searchlight in 2014.

Most recently she has been an Executive Producer on James Ponsoldt’s adaptation of Dave Egger’s best-selling novel The Circle starring Emma Watson, John Boyega and Tom Hanks, which Europa Corp plans to release in the Spring of 2017. She is also an

Executive Producer on James Schamus’ directorial debut Indignation, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2016 and released by Roadside Attractions the same year.

Previous producing credits include Executive Producer Credits on Jesse Peretz’s Sundance Comedy Our Idiot Brother, Amy Berg’s Every Secret Thing, Julian Farino’s The Oranges and Bob Pulcini and Shari Springer Berman’s Sundance comedy The Extra Man. Other producing credits include Nicole Holfocener’s Please Give, Larry Kasdan’s Long Time Companion and The Pastor Brothers Carriers.

As a production executive, Azpiazu oversaw production on Charlie Kaufman's Synecdoche, New York, Michel Gondry's Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, MIke Mills feature debut Thumbsucker and Nicole Holofcener's previous two films Friends With Money and Lovely & Amazing.

Prior to working in production, she started her career as a Story Editor at USA Films and in Acquisitions at October Films.

Marina Brackenbury – Executive Producer Marina is Head of Film at FilmWave and prior to that acted as Head of Development at Shine Pictures, the feature film division of Endemol/Shine. Marina previously acted as Head of Development at commercials and music video production house Stink, where she ran the feature film department, developing material with directors on the roster. Earlier in her career she worked in acquisitions and co-productions in the international offices of Paramount Vantage, New Line Cinema and Bob Berney’s Picturehouse, travelling extensively on the festival circuit, sourcing films including The Orphanage and Son of Rambow.

Rogier Stoffers - Director of Photography Rogier Stoffers first gained international acclaim for his cinematography work on the Dutch film Character, which won the 1997 Academy Award® for Best Foreign Film. This led to working with director Philip Kaufman’s Quills, the film adaptation of Doug Wright’s play about he last rebellious days of the Marquis De Sade.

He has since worked on major American and International features such as director Sergey Bodrov’s Mongrol: The Rise of Genghis Khan, which was nominated for Best Cinematography at the 2008 European Film Awards, and also earned a 2008 Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award® nomination.

He most recently lensed Death Wish for Eli Roth with whom he is partnering again on The House With a Clock in its Walls starring Jack Black and Cate Blanchett.

Stoffers other film credits include Nick Cassavette’s John Q; two movies with Richard Linklater, the 2003 cult box-office hit School of Rock and the 2005 remake of the Bad News Bears. He was the cinematographer on Ivan Reitman’s No Strings Attached, and was the director of photography on two films with Neil LaBute; Lakeview Terrace and Dirty Weekend.

He continues to work on projects from the Netherlands including The Surprise directed by Mike van Diem, which was nominated for a Golden Calf for Best Film at the 2015 Nederlands Film Festival and Martin Koolhoven’s blood-soaked revenge western Brimstone, an Official Selection at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival.

For television, Stoffers once again joined Philip Kaufman on Hemingway & Gellhorn, which earned the cinematographer a 2012 an Emmy Award® nomination for Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries or Movie.

A graduate of the Amsterdam Film School, Stoffers made several successful student films, which landed him work in Dutch television, including a children’s series, a Dutch version of the German epic, Heimat, titled Tijd van leven, and a hit lawyer series, Call to the Bar.

Kathryn Himoff – Editor Kathryn Himoff is an editor of features films, TV, and documentaries. She has also been producer on several films that she edited, including, Pollock and Appaloosa, both directed by and starring Ed Harris. Other credits include House of a Thousand Corpses, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Killing Zoe, and Mi Vida Loca. She has edited TV Pilots including The Man in the High Castle, The Office, and Ugly Betty. Her documentaries include Tibet: Cry of the Snow Lion and Derrida. She has just completed editing Finding Steve McQueen based on the true story of the largest bank heist in US history and is currently editing Every Day, directed by Michael Sucsy, based on the bestselling novel of the same name.

Matthew Davies – Production Designer Since graduating from the National Film and Television School in the UK twenty years ago, Matthew Davies has designed more than a dozen feature films and a half-dozen television series, including three seasons of “Hannibal” for NBC. This work has garnered him numerous Genie, Gemini and DGC Craft Award nominations.

Matthew’s career highlights include Sarah Polley’s sophomore feature, Take This Waltz, starring Michelle Williams and Seth Rogen; John Madden’s Miss Sloane starring Jessica Chastain; and Guy Maddin’s cult masterpiece, The Saddest Music in the World, starring Isabella Rossellini.

His recent feature film credits include, The Samaritan, starring Samuel Jackson and Tom Wilkinson; The Black Marks, starring Kurt Russell and Terence Stamp; and Atom Egoyan’s Remember, starring Christopher Plummer.

Matthew’s projects have opened many international film festivals. In 2008 Fernando Meirelles’ adaption of Blindness launched the 2008 Festival de Cannes; in 2007 Jeremy Podeswa’s Fugitive Pieces was chosen as the opening night gala at the Toronto International Film Festival; and in 2006 Marc Evans’ Snow Cake, starring Sigourney Weaver and Alan Rickman, opened the 2006 Berlin International Film Festival.

Born in England, Matthew has made Toronto his principal home for the last 15 years.

Georgina Yarhi – Costume Designer Georgina Yarhi has enjoyed great success in the television and film industry as a Costume Designer. Her wide range, sense of style and period have always guided her through many projects.

Her most recent feature film project was Miss Sloane for director John Madden, who asked her to create the look of the high powered lobbyist artfully played by Jessica Chastain.

Other recent credits include The Calling, a small town murder mystery starring Susan Sarandon, Ellen Burstyn, Gil Bellows, Topher Grace, and Donald Sutherland; and Patch Town, an offbeat piece for which her whimsical character designs won her great praise at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Georgina’s meticulous research paid off on the feature film, Assault on Precinct 13 for Focus Features/Universal, starring Ethan Hawke, Laurence Fishburne, Maria Bello and Gabriel Byrne. Producer Don Carmody again tapped her “period talents” in dressing veteran stars Sam Tucci and Bruce Willis in the ‘50s period thriller Lucky Number Slevin.

Georgina’s extraordinary range has allowed her to move seamlessly from the period television, “Nero Wolfe” starring Timothy Hutton to the au currant, teenage stylings of Eliza Dushku and Desmond Harrington in Wrong Turn.

For Deep In My Heart Georgina mastered the subtleties that define an era, taking Anne Bancroft’s character, Gerry Eileen Cummins from 1959 to1999. Her spectacular period work won her a rave review in Variety.

She was again highly praised for her work dressing sharecroppers Della Reese, Yolanda King and Ossie Davis in “The Secret Path” for CBS.