Photo by Emma Mead
Jessie Barr is a filmmaker, Sundance fellow, and Half Initiative directing fellow, with roots in theater, independent film, and comedy. Born in Washington D.C. she danced with the Washington Ballet before cutting her teeth as an actor in NYC’s Off-Broadway scene. Her work is intimate and emotionally raw. Blending naturalistic performances, lush soundscapes, and poetic visuals to explore desire, grief, and selfhood in characters who defy social norms.
She’s currently developing a Shakespeare adaptation with Academy Award-winning prod co. Caviar (War Pony, Sound of Metal). Her latest short film, Sylvia, starring Jena Malone (Love Lies Bleeding, Neon Demon, The Hunger Games), is being submitted to festivals. The film is a 2025 MOS Film Grant recipient supported by Isabella Rosselini’s MaMa Farm.
Jessie is a 2025 Djerassi Artist in Residence, 2024 Half Initiative directing fellow (Ryan Murphy Program), and 2021 Sundance Episodic Lab fellow. The series she co-created went on to be developed with Warner Bros. Television and Tall Baby Productions.
Jessie’s critically acclaimed, award-winning feature debut, Sophie Jones, premiered in competition at the 2020 Deauville Film Festival and was released by Oscilloscope Laboratories in 2021. The film holds a 100% rating on RottenTomatoes and is streaming on Showtime. Variety hailed the film as a “fully realized portrait of grief that’s universal.”
Jessie’s work has screened globally at festivals including Berlinale, Tribeca, Mar Del Plata, and has been featured by The National Board of Review, The New York Times, Short of the Week, Vimeo Staff Pick, and USA Today.
As a performance artist, Jessie recently appeared with Pussy Riot’s Nadya Tolokonnikova in PUSSY RIOT SIBERIA (2025) at MOCA. Jessie’s darkly funny, deeply personal cancer chronicle, Serving Cunt debuted at SADE Gallery in Los Angeles (2024), featuring original films, installations, and photography as a way to process her bladder cancer diagnosis, treatment, and healing.
Grant recognitions include: MOS Film Grant Recipient (2025), PEN America Writer's Grant Recipient (2020), and Oregon Film Grant Recipient (2019).