ABOUT
WHOLE PICTURE FILMS
Our mission is to produce films that connect with audiences on an emotional and intellectual level, leaving a lasting impact on their lives. We are passionate about the power of cinema to tell important stories, to provoke conversation, and to create empathy and understanding across cultures and communities.
Our Directors
Jermaine Burrowes and Julie Petrusak
Jermaine Burrowes and Julie Petrusak are a writing, directing, and producing team who create original television series and feature films. Their writing is a fusion of their different backgrounds, perspectives and experiences which results in shows that are diverse, thoughtful, and appealing to a variety of viewers. When the team started writing together, they worked extensively in TV comedy. Their comedy work can be described as physical, laugh-out-loud slapstick that still has a brain. Recently, they were invited to pitch their comedy pilots to networks including NBC and CBS. Their comedy feature ‘Zero- Love, Melissa’ is in the financing stages of development and has garnered attention as a movie that can succeed as a wide-theatrical release.
The duo also creates compelling cross-genre dramatic work. Their dramatic series, “The Brooklyn Piece’ was selected as a finalist in the Sundance Episodic Lab. Their most recent project, ‘Contretemps’ is a dramatic sci-fi series which they shot two episodes as proof of concept, starring Kevin Makely (Young Rock, NBC) and Calvin Dutton (Orange is the New Black, Netflix). Between their dramatic and comedic work, the pair has an extensive library of television and feature film projects that are well-developed and ready for production.
What sets Julie and Jermaine apart is that they are not just creatives, they are business experts who understand how to make a great product. Their decision to focus on original work is not just a creative choice, it is a business move to make commercially viable IP that is franchisable, unique, and entertaining. Together they founded Whole Picture Films, a production company based in Brooklyn, NY. Through their work as Whole Picture Films, they have produced multiple pilots and full-length series, short films, and more. They have mastered the ability to produce high-quality work on an economical budget.
Awards and Festival placements for their work include The Berlin International TV Festival, The Manhattan Film Festival, Big Apple Film Festival, The Dumbo Film Festival, and The Canadian Cinematography Awards among others.
Before diving full-time into filmmaking, Jermaine worked with the Negro Ensemble Company and the Creative Acting Company in addition to various roles with other theatrical companies. He founded two successful restaurants in Brooklyn, Mangoseed, and Zurilee. While building his restaurants, Mr. Burrowes continued to write screenplays and honed his craft as a director. Mr. Burrowes is a Cat 1 professional cyclist who has won over 150 races including the Harlem Skyscraper Classic, The New Britain Criterium (3-time champion), Baskin Ridge ( 3-time champion), and the Floyd Bennet Series (6-time champion). Prior to Whole Picture Films, Julie directed a non-profit dance company for five years. Her choreography was presented by the Southern Vermont Dance Festival, Harlem Arts Festival, Triskelion Arts Center, Chashama Summer Performance Series, and NYC Fashion Week. In 2015 her original production, Dance the World Nutcracker Festival, was chosen for MetroNY’s top five alternative Nutcrackers. Julie was a selected artist for the OULU Dance Hack residency in Oulu, Finland and was awarded the BRIC Media Arts Fellowship.