Jenna Fischer (“The Office,” Blades of Glory) will star in The Giant Mechanical Man which begins production in Detroit later this month. Fischer is also producing alongside Molly Hassell (Vamps, Edmond), Michael Nardelli and Brent Stiefel (Grassroots).
Written and directed by Lee Kirk, the film also stars Topher Grace (Predators, Spider-Man 3), Malin Akerman (Couple’s Retreat, Watchmen) and Chris Messina (Greenberg, Julie & Julia).
The Giant Mechanical Man is an offbeat romantic comedy about two outsiders — a misunderstood street performer (Messina) and the soft spoken zoo worker who falls for him. Akerman will play Fischer’s well-meaning sister who pushes her towards dating a pompous motivational speaker, played by Topher Grace.
Producer Molly Hassell said: “There are so many great projects out there which never make it to the silver screen. We’re thrilled that this indie film, which is a completely unique and interesting story gets to be told.”
Kirk, who comes from a theater background recently wrote and produced the award-winning short film The Man Who Invented the Moon as well as Maybe It’s Albuquerque, Hercules, and the independent feature film Pants on Fire. His critically acclaimed play Sad Happy Sucker enjoyed an extended sold-out run in Los Angeles.
Hassell has produced over 11 critically acclaimed films and documentaries to date with a slate that includes the Amy Heckerling project Vamps with Red Hour Films and starring Alicia Silverstone, Krysten Ritter, and Sigourney Weaver.
