Meet Jesse Brunt & Michelle Sloey | Freelance Filmmakers & Origin Artists

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jesse Brunt & Michelle Sloey and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jesse Brunt & Michelle Sloey, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
Jesse and I are both from a small town in upstate New York, nestled between Buffalo and Syracuse called, Rochester. Rochester is the home of George Eastman of Eastman Kodak. Growing up both of our families worked the assembly lines making film, in addition to the daily factory life of what was needed and necessary. For Jesse this upbringing impacted him by seeing his family and friend’s families working these refineries, he had even visited them when he was younger. The awareness he harnessed from these witnesses allowed him the ability to see that our small town was making bigger picture strides. From big Hollywood productions, astronauts in space, to weddings and birthdays, Kodak film was the gateway between you and the past. A similar feeling, and awareness for Michelle. A camera was always present for every family event, a camera was a treasured gift at holidays and the joy of getting your film developed was an eager adventure and time well spent. These early memories seemed like second nature and surely paved both of our paths to be here doing what we are today.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
In 2007 after Jesse graduated film school the industry was in turmoil as the writers went on strike. Simultaneously there was a major break through in digital imagining, censors could now, finally compete with film processing which led Jesse to tech and work digital cinema in Hollywood, opening up doors to work on the largest commercials, music videos and films the industry had to offer. Like something out of a movie; he was down to $20 in his pocket, he finally caught his break using the new digital cameras helping the old guard of Hollywood use/learn the new technology. Learning that everything is about perspective, not dwelling on the hardships and focusing solely on the fruits of his labor he was able to get a foothold into the industry. Having now been apart of history, working with the likes of SpaceX and Blue Origin. The lessons learned along the way? Hard work is hard, it says it in the sentence. “These years have set me up for the program Michelle and I are doing now; preserving motion picture print film.” As for Michelle; she was given the opportunity to try her hand in the film industry later in life, after graduating college with a BS in English Literature, she began tinkering with graphic design, ending up in Florida. While there a friend asked her to be a swing (day filler) on a feature film, being quick witted and quick on her feet—and creative she was offered the opportunity to finish off the movie as a Set Dresser. From there building her skill set, learning more film knowledge and appreciation for the craft of cinema. Our paths merged in March of 2020, when we both were working pre production for a spring break comedy in St. Pete Florida. Upon finding out we were both from the same home town a serendipitous story began to unfold, another chapter of our lives that was as if it were perfectly written for that of a beautiful film script. We want the world to know that film IS the legacy and it is accessible for us all to see and enjoy.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Lets start off by saying we would take them to see the Falcon 9 rocket at SpaceX, touring HHO at Wolfe Air Aviation, then we would do brunch at Venice Beach; drive to then hike to the Hollywood sign and spend the weekend at the local markets around LA; including but not limited to The Los Feliz Flea and Melrose Trading Post….Lets not forget doughnuts at Randy’s!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
First and foremost J&M Film Resins is not only filling a gap in film preservation through an artistic expression it is Jesse and Michelle’s love letter to Hollywood. As the industry continues to chase big tech, movie print film has become a relic of the past and has become inaccessible to the fans of film. What this program does is completely liberates the film so it can be enjoyed once again. Jesse and Michelle would like to thank and show our appreciation to Wolfe Air Aviation for having Jesse as one of their main cinematographers as well as all of the directors and producers who have appreciated our discipline and artistry by involving us in their visionary projects over the years.

Instagram: www.instagram.com/jmfilmresins

Image Credits
jmfilmresins-Wolf Kroeger -Los Feliz Flea 01 & jmfilmresins-Wolf Kroeger -Los Feliz Flea 02 – photographer Wolfe Kroeger taken at Los Feliz Flea