LOGLINE
In the near future, AI has infiltrated all aspects of human life. When a betrayed woman finds solace in the arms of her seemingly perfect divorce lawyer, she must confront the unsettling truth that perfection always comes at a price.
TATIANA BLACKINGTON JAMES - Writer & Director
A native of Washington, DC, Tatiana was born with wanderlust and a fascination with other cultures. She double-majored in French and Russian at New York University and worked her way through graduate school at USC by teaching French at the undergraduate level. Tatiana writes about the intersection of the personal and the political, including screenplays on Mata Hari for Universal Pictures, Albert Einstein for HBO, and the award-winning films, THE NARROWS, and HOMOLOGIES. She is currently developing a limited series on the writer Anaïs Nin with French director François Velle.
For the last two years, Tatiana has also been writing near-future Sci-Fi stories about the dizzying pace of new technologies, both the promise and the anxiety they create. The second of those, LAWYERED UP, marks her directing debut.
Tatiana lives in Santa Monica, CA with her husband and their Jindo-Corgi mix.
VIRGINIA REECE as Emily
Virginia spent years training to be an opera singer until she made her first commercial. From that moment, Virginia fell in love with camera work, and a pursuit of honesty and human understanding ensued. Making her film debut in 50 FIRST DATES, she’s brought emotional depth to a range of roles in film and television earning her two Best Actress nominations. Virginia also
wrote, produced and starred in the award winning film CRAZY THESE DAYS, where during its festival run she met Tatiana Blackington James. When not working in front of or behind the camera, you can find Virginia riding in Montana’s backcountry or sitting at the piano writing love songs.
JUDE LANSTON as Hugo Nickell
Jude is an actor and content creator based out of Los Angeles, CA. He’s appeared as a Series Regular in two seasons of Brandon Roger’s “Magic Funhouse”, (prod. Peter Chernin, Fullscreen, SuperDeluxe), recurred in over 40 sketches for “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and has appeared in shows for Nickelodeon, ABC, NBC, DIsney, HBO, Cinemax and many others. A strong love for science fiction exploring the human condition drew him to the role of HUGO in Lawyered Up. A very, very special thanks goes out to everyone who put up with Jude when he was dieting.
JOSH BRESLOW as Steve
Josh Breslow’s most recent television and film appearances include 9-1-1, Leverage: Redemption, Bosch: Legacy, The Morning Show, Invitation to a Bonfire, S.W.A.T., The Rookie: Feds, Government Cheese, Paradise, and Nic Pizzolatto’s upcoming directorial feature debut: Easy’s Waltz.
ANDREW GE as Xander
Andrew Ge, an LA-based stage and screen actor, played bass clarinet as a teen in musical pit orchestras and, like the little mermaid, would look up through the pit and dream of becoming a stage performer. Following a botched Hamilton audition, that teenage dream came true when he joined the 2019 cast of East West Players’ Mamma Mia. Since then, Ge has worked at Center Theatre Group’s Ahmanson Theatre and Berkeley Repertory Theatre and has acted on-screen in independent films, series, and national commercials.
Susan Rudick as Lynn
Susan Rudick is thrilled to be a part of LAWYERED UP. She recently co-wrote, co-produced and starred in her dark comedy thriller pilot, BAD ALICE, and played Principal Herron in the feature MERMAID with Nat Faxon. With a background in musical theater, sketch comedy and voice-over, she has worked on stage and screen for over 20 years.
Cast & Crew
Olia Zimarova — Producer
Olia has an MBA from the Samara State University of Economics in Russia. Despite her degree in management, Olia followed her true passion – filmmaking. She has worked with Red Wagon (alongside Doug Wick and Lucy Fisher) and Millennium Films (“Olympus Has Fallen;” “Rambo.Last Blood”). Since earning a graduate degree from AFI’s Producing program, Olia has produced and help cast a variety of short films, features, TV shows, and music videos.
Brett Juskalian — Director of Photography
Brett Juskalian is an award-winning cinematographer based in Los Angeles known for “The Lincoln Lawyer,” “The Old Man,” “Little America” and the Sundance sensation, “WANDER DARKLY.”
Nya Petrinos — Production Designer
Nya Patrinos is a Los Angeles-based Production Designer/Set Decorator who earned her MFA in Scenic Design at University of California, San Diego. Nya was a 2023-2024 Women in Film Artisan Fellow in Production Design. She received a Dramalogue Award in Set Design for the play “Flyin’ West” at International City Theatre. In addition, Ms. Patrinos has an Emmy nomination in Art Direction/Set Decoration for “Transparent”, an Art Directors Guild nomination for “The Morning Show”, and an SDSA Award nomination for her decor on “Pam and Tommy.”
ACCOLADES FOR THE SCREENPLAY
Finalist, Philip K. Dick Sci Fi and Fantasy Film Festival
Finalist, Phoenix Film Festival
Semifinalist, the Nantucket Film Festival, Tony Cox Screenplay Competition, 2024
Quarterfinalist, ScreenCraft Film Fund, 2024
Quarterfinalist, Richmond International Film Festival Screenplay Competition, 2024
Quarterfinalist, Filmatic Sci-Fi/Fantasy, 2024
Honorable Mention, Bolt/Barnstorm Media Screenplay Competition