Every issue, GRAZIA USA highlights Game Changers, who inspire, educate, and celebrate individuality, beauty, and style. Meet Jennifer Morrison, Hollywood actress who is now dabbling in directing — and she’s loving every minute of it.
I was really interested in directing theater, and I even directed some theater in high school and in college. When I first moved out to Los Angeles, I directed several small productions, and I really enjoyed that. While I wanted to pursue that path, I was simultaneously pursuing my acting career. Once I started working on Fox’s medical drama House, there wasn’t any time to do anything but be on the show, so I put my directing career on hold while I worked consistently as an actor.
I had been learning a lot about the technical side of things while starring in Once Upon a Time, and I was really looking to get back into direction. I would even take my favorite films with me when I would travel for work and was on location. I really started to study film and break things down into what I loved and what I didn’t love, and
I was reading every book and asking tons of questions while on set. I started using sets as my film school and was very lucky to be surrounded by incredible cinematographers and incredible first assistant directors, script supervisors and key grips.
It was at that point that I decided to make my first short film and experiment with being a filmmaker for the first time. That’s when I made Warning Labels, which luckily went well. I felt super alive working as a filmmaker and that started my interest in pursuing other genres, including music videos.
I then put my first feature together, which was a crazy process. I learned so much from working on it and we later sold it to Netflix. From there, it was off to the races. There was a domino effect of one thing leading to another in terms of developing and then producing.
I then produced and directed the pilot of One of Us Is Lying. It was the first time I felt the real exhilaration of being plugged into a big machine and the excitement of being a collaborator in the creative process from a producing standpoint.
Acting will always be my first love. I love being able to just completely dive into a character and build something. There’s something freeing about being an actor, but when I am producing and directing, it’s sort of the opposite — it’s as if this big picture is completely in your hands. The most exciting part is the collaboration, that time when you feel the creative heartbeat of a full team of people who are all coming together to create something beautiful.
In the next couple of years, I am going to lean heavier into producing and directing — not because I want to walk away from acting, but because of the sheer volume of things I have in development right now. My production company, Apartment 3C, has expanded and we have several things coming down the pipeline.
Actors who cross over into directing and producing can influence many more people to believe they can as well. I looked at someone like Angelina Jolie, and I said, “Oh, she’s an actor who is now directing.” I think we all need examples of people who have done it before us, and I think the more of us who do it, the more people will go, “Oh, wait, maybe I can.” I want people to know you can’t get discouraged because it’s hard. I definitely have had people come up to me and say, “I never would’ve thought to ask to direct an episode of my show, and then I realized maybe that was possible.”
Read GRAZIA USA’s Fall issue featuring cover star Nicola Peltz Beckham:
I was very lucky and had an incredibly supportive boss who was constantly working on my schedule so that I could go and direct and come back and be on a show. Going forward, hopefully I can find some moments where I can sneak in some acting as well.
My goal right now is to find my next feature. I’m focusing on finding pilots that I really believe in and that I can be part of in a big way — not just doing an episode or two, but helping set the visual style of the show.
As I have gotten older, I have realized that whether I am acting or directing, I love the journey and the experience of the process. In the last few years, I’ve been lucky enough to collaborate with people who have inspired me to reach to new heights.
— As told to Jaclyn Roth
GRAZIA USA’s 2022 Fall issue will be available for purchase on newsstands nationwide in October. Email [email protected] to subscribe.
