Production agency Avocados and Coconuts has signed director Jessie Zinn for commercials and branded content, marking her first representation in the U.S. Blending documentary and fiction, the South Africa-based Zinn has turned out work for a range of clients, including Ciel Properties, Belmond, Sonnenglas, and Ngwenya Glass. Her documentary films have screened at festivals, including DOC NYC, AFI Docs, MoMA Doc Fortnight, and Visions Du Reel, and were selected as Vimeo Staff Picks. Drummies, her 2022 documentary short, which follows the drum majorettes of Cape Town’s Groote Schuur Primary School, was acquired by The New Yorker.
“Jessie’s work is creatively poignant, smart, and artful,” said Avocados and Coconuts founder and executive producer Dalia Burde. “She gets to the heart of a story in a deeply genuine, intentional, and stylized way–a performance-driven, lyrical form of storytelling grounded in human truth. From our first discussion, it felt like instant chemistry, as her approach aligns with ours. Jessie has quickly established herself as a director to watch, and we’re excited to build on her trajectory and cultivate her talents in the U.S. market.”
“I’m drawn to women who have forged their way in this industry, and Dalia is a force of nature,” said Zinn. “I just resonate with Avocados’ work; a softness and humanity are imbued in every piece. As a creative, I want to exist in pure creative commercials and important stories that need to be told–and Avocados has a great balance of both worlds. I’ve also experienced their process behind the camera, which is ethical, respectful, hands-on, spirited, and highly collaborative. It’s not just a job for them. They really care about the work and the stories.”
Zinn grew up as the child of a theater journalist in Cape Town, South Africa, accompanying her mother as she reviewed plays and interviewed the thespians who brought them to life. Her experience with performance in the theater world has informed her ability to work across different genres and mediums. Thematically, her work often explores ideas around girlhood, boyhood, freedom, and coming-of-age stories.
In addition to the aforementioned The New Yorker documentary, Drummies, her short Faces of Fortune won Best Documentary Short at the 2024 SAFTA Awards, while Wavelengths won a jury prize at the 2021 San Francisco International Film Festival and a Vimeo Staff Pick. Zinn is currently in production on her first feature documentary, The Home, which is being funded by the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) and co-produced by Picturescope Films.
Zinn has a BA from the University of Cape Town and an MFA in Documentary Film from Stanford University.
In the commercial space, Zinn is currently repped by Bioscope Films in South Africa. She was previously repped by Giant Films.
“Jessie is cognizant of how the filmmaking process can enable her vision in a thoughtful and beautifully crafted way, “ concluded Amani King, Avocados and Coconuts executive creative director. “She doesn’t pull the usual levers to try and get a different result. Instead, she adapts to her subjects and collaborators, making the process very organic. Her big-picture thinking and thoroughness are the kind of characteristics that will make a client feel like they’re being heard and in good hands.”
