Jeff Ayars

Jeff Ayars
Jeff Ayars
Born	Media, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Nationality	American
Education	Cornell University and University of Pennsylvania
Occupation(s)	Filmmaker and actor
Known for	Cannibal Milkshake
Notable work	Philadelphia, Ti Amo (2011); An Auteur Is Born (Comedy Central) (2019); This Is Our Home (2019), FBI: International

Jeff Ayars is an American filmmaker and actor known for writing, directing, and performing in the comedy duo Cannibal Milkshake alongside Dan Rosen. He is also known for the film Philadelphia, Ti Amo (2011) starring Rebecca Rittenhouse,^[1] his Tribeca Film Festival selection The Snapstory, his acting in FBI: International and his horror feature This Is Our Home.^[2]

Education

Ayars grew up in Media, Pennsylvania, where he attended Penncrest High School and was one of 595 students in the country to receive a national writing award from the NCTE during his senior year.^[3] Ayars went on to attend Cornell University from 2008 to 2013, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts.^[4]^[5]^[6] During his time at Cornell, Ayars produced videos for The Cornell Daily Sun and other companies and campus organizations. While on a brief hiatus from Cornell, Ayars studied creative writing at The University of Pennsylvania, where he published a satire of Franz Kafka.^[7] Ayars' film and pop-culture thesis was an exploration of personas in film using Ryan Gosling quotations.^[8]

Career

As a child, Ayars was in two television commercials for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1993 and 1994. His father, NBC Sports executive and Emmy Award winner Robert Ayars,^[9] who at the time worked for the PRISM television network, shot and directed the commercials.^[10]

Ayars has gone on to act, produce, direct, edit, and write for various forms of media such as online content, film, television, documentary, short film, and commercial.^[10]

Cannibal Milkshake

Cannibal Milkshake is a comedy partnership between Jeff Ayars and his Cornell University classmate Dan Rosen. The duo produces, writes, directs, edits, and acts in their videos, and are frequent contributors to The New Yorker.^[11] Ayars and Rosen's sketches have also been featured by CollegeHumor, Funny or Die, Comedy Central, Fortune Magazine, and Elizabeth Banks' WhoHaHa network. Their work is largely tech-world satire and movie parodies, notably featuring Ayars performing as a crazed Bradley Cooper, Oscar Awards-hungry Leonardo DiCaprio, finance-bro Ryan Gosling, and James Bond as a stressed-out dad.^[12] Ayars and Rosen have also performed live at New York City venues like the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre^[13] and The People's Improv Theater, where Ayars performed live^[14] with actor Richard Kind and comedian Judy Gold in 2021.^[15]

Film

Ayars' first short film during college starred Rebecca Rittenhouse and went on to screen at the Philadelphia Film Festival.^[16]^[1] His work has subsequently been featured at the NYC Web Fest, New York City Independent Film Festival, Manhattan Film Festival, New Filmmakers Los Angeles, Cinequest Film Festival, The Lower East Side Film Festival,^[17] and the Tribeca Film Festival.^[18]^[10]^[19]

Ayars produced and starred in the 2019 psychological thriller feature, This Is Our Home. Written by Rob Harmon and directed by long-time friend and collaborator Omri Dorani, the film co-stars Simone Policano and tells the story of a struggling couple on a weekend away that takes a turn with the arrival of a mysterious child.^[20] The film was executive produced by former Paramount Pictures executive Inga Vainshtein Smith, known for Hardcore Henry.

The subject of mental health is an important theme in Ayars' work.^[21] He was one of 75 creators selected to attend the Kindred Mind Matters mental health summit sponsored by HBO.^[22]

Ayars is developing a romantic comedy feature film GOLD BOY that deals with the subject of mental health and is inspired by his own struggles at Cornell University.^[23] The film pitch was a finalist in the Yes, And Laughter Lab initiative to combine comedy and social justice sponsored by Comedy Central.^[24]

Television

Since 2013, Ayars has worked at Comcast NBCUniversal, and is currently working as a writer and producer for Morning Joe on MSNBC.^[25]^[26] He previously worked producing EPKs and promos for NBCUniversal.

In 2022, Ayars made his network television debut as a guest star on Dick Wolf's CBS procedural FBI: International.

Ayars has also starred in national television commercials, including a campaign for the Ad Council.^[27] He starred as Thomas Jefferson in the 2022 Super Bowl ad for Clickup project management software.^[28]

Filmography

Year	Title	Type	Director	Writer	Editor	Producer	Executive producer	Actor	Other	Notes
2011	Philadelphia, Ti Amo	Short	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes		As Michael
2012	Quantum	Short	No	Yes	No	No	No	Yes		As Tyler
2013	Coming 2gether	Short	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes		As Bradley
2013	Christopher Walkenoma	Short	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes		As Jeffrey
2013	A Guilty Man	Short	No	No	No	No	No	Yes		As Dean
2014	MacGuffin	Video short	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes		As Jeffrey the Small-Town-Multi-Billionaire
2015	Isolation	Short	No	No	No	No	No	Yes		As Eric
2015	Pound: The Woof Dawg Story	Short	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes		As Woof Dawg
2015	Je Suis Charlie	Video short	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes		As Eric
2016	Two Girls One Show	Digital series	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	Yes		As Sassy bartender
2016	Ghost Friend	TV Pilot	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
2017	The New Yorker: Shorts & Murmurs	TV series	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes		As Millennial hoarder, Intern Maht, Startup founder
2017	Hashtag Fireworks	Video short	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes		As guy who hates fireworks
2017	The Notebook Snapstory	Video short	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes		As Ryan Gosling
2017	To My Son	Short	No	Yes	No	Yes	No	Yes
2017	Assholes		No	No	No	Yes	No	No	associate producer
2017	NY NY Land	Video short	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes		As Finance Bro Gosling
2018	I, Nancy	Video short	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes		As Campbell's Soup Director
2018	Masterclass: Marvel CGI Acting	Short	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes		As Chris Evans
2018	Go Tell Your Fathers	Short	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	associate producer
2019	All Hail Beth	TV series	No	No	No	No	No	Yes		As Holden Hans
2019	Diagnosis	Short	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	No
2019	Final Callback	Short	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes		As angry auditioner
2019	Dorris 85	Short	No	No	No	No	Yes	No
2019	On the Rocks	Short	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	No
2019	DTF	TV mini series	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	No
2019	This Is Our Home		No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes		As Cory
2019	An Auteur Is Born	Short	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes		As Bradley Cooper
2020	Borderline Coffee	Short	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	No
2020	Nevertheless	Documentary	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	associate producer
2021	Actors		No	No	No	Yes	No	No	associate producer
2021	International Falls		No	No	No	No	Yes	No
2021	Rifkin on Rifkin: Private Confessions of a Serial Killer	TV special	No	No	No	No	No	Yes		Joel Rifkin
2021	Being George Lucas: A Connor Ratliff Story	Documentary	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	executive producer	post-production
2021	No Dye	Short	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes		As Pat
2022	FBI: International	TV series	No	No	No	No	No	Yes		As Henry Martin
2019-2022	Morning Joe	TV series	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	field producer	507 episodes
TBD	Imposter Syndrome	Documentary	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No		filming
TBD	The Abaddon Pit		No	No	No	No	No	Yes		As Dave
TBD	Mental Health and Horror: A Documentary	Documentary	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	associate producer	filming
TBD	What Are We?		No	No	No	No	No	Yes
TBD	Supernigga	Short	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	associate producer	completed
TBD	Trust	Short	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes		completed

References

^ ^a ^b Love in Philadelphia. Cornell University. 2011-10-31. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ "This Is Our Home Review". That Moment In. 2019-11-14. Retrieved 2022-05-14.
^ School Notes. The Philadelphia Inquirer. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ "Molly Messersmith, Jeffrey Ayars, and Da Ying: Inapprorpiation". Cornell University College of Architecture, Art, and Planning. May 20, 2013. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
^ "Ayars '13 not horsing around in 'Revenant' parody". Cornell Chronicle. February 29, 2016. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
^ Stein, Jeff (February 26, 2015). "Cornell grads' 'American Sniper' parody makes national news". The Ithaca Voice. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
^ University of Pennsylvania
^ Molly Messersmith, Jeffrey Ayars, and Da Ying: Inapprorpiation. Cornell Architecture Art Planning. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ Rockets, Astros Find New Home With Comcast SportsNet Houston. Sportsvideo. 2012-09-28. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c Biography. IMDb. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ Jeff Ayars. The New Yorker. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ Domanico, Anthony (2015-11-11). "James Bond faces his toughest challenge yet: Being a dad". CNET. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
^ Cannibal Milkshake. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ Cristi, A. A. "Photos: Richard Kind And Judy Gold Featured In Live-Reading Of New Indie Film VOICES". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-05-14.
^ "Jeff Ayars & Dan Rosen: "Cannibal Milkshake"". Best New York Comedy. Retrieved 2022-05-14.
^ Dan Gross: Wendy Williams speaks out. The Philadelphia Inquirer. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ "This Is Our Home". The Lower East Side Film Festival. 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
^ Tribeca Film Festival. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ "Full Line-Up Announced for BROOKLYN HORROR FILM FESTIVAL". Dead Central. 14 September 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
^ This Is Our Home (2019). Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ Borderline Coffee. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ HBO Partners With Social Impact Organization Kindred For Mental Health Event. Deadline. June 19, 2019. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ No superpowers, just spandex: the other half of my story. Medium. Jul 14, 2019. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ 2019 winners. Yes, And Laughter Lab. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ 17 states submit proposals to host Hyperloop certification center. Morning Joe on MSNBC. Accessed June 22, 2020.
^ "Jeff Ayars". Muckrack. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
^ "Drug-Impaired Driving Prevention". Ad Council. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
^ Fleming, Jameson (February 3, 2022). "How ClickUp Created Its First Super Bowl Ad". Retrieved 2022-05-14.

"An auteur is born". YouTube. 23 February 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
"CineQuest 2019 Review: This Is Our Home". Horrorbuzz. 2019-03-10. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
"Exclusive Clip From THIS IS OUR HOME". Dread Central. February 26, 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
Miska, Brad (November 5, 2019). "Couple Tormented by Their New Child in 'This is Our Home'". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
Huddleston Jr., Tom (2017-02-24). "This 'La La Land' Parody Skewers New York's Finance and Tech Industries". Fortune. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
Solomon, Dan (2015-02-19). ""Canadian Sniper" Offers A Complex Moral Exploration Of The Question Of What To Do When Moose Invade A Tim Hortons". Fast Company. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
Zoren, Neal (Oct 8, 2017). "Television: These guys know Media is perfect place for horror". Delco Times. Retrieved June 22, 2020.

External links

Official website

[cornell-1] Love in Philadelphia. Cornell University. 2011-10-31. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[2] "This Is Our Home Review". That Moment In. 2019-11-14. Retrieved 2022-05-14.

[3] School Notes. The Philadelphia Inquirer. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[4] "Molly Messersmith, Jeffrey Ayars, and Da Ying: Inapprorpiation". Cornell University College of Architecture, Art, and Planning. May 20, 2013. Retrieved June 22, 2020.

[5] "Ayars '13 not horsing around in 'Revenant' parody". Cornell Chronicle. February 29, 2016. Retrieved June 22, 2020.

[6] Stein, Jeff (February 26, 2015). "Cornell grads' 'American Sniper' parody makes national news". The Ithaca Voice. Retrieved June 22, 2020.

[7] University of Pennsylvania

[8] Molly Messersmith, Jeffrey Ayars, and Da Ying: Inapprorpiation. Cornell Architecture Art Planning. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[9] Rockets, Astros Find New Home With Comcast SportsNet Houston. Sportsvideo. 2012-09-28. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[imdb-10] Biography. IMDb. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[11] Jeff Ayars. The New Yorker. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[12] Domanico, Anthony (2015-11-11). "James Bond faces his toughest challenge yet: Being a dad". CNET. Retrieved June 22, 2020.

[13] Cannibal Milkshake. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[14] Cristi, A. A. "Photos: Richard Kind And Judy Gold Featured In Live-Reading Of New Indie Film VOICES". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-05-14.

[15] "Jeff Ayars & Dan Rosen: "Cannibal Milkshake"". Best New York Comedy. Retrieved 2022-05-14.

[inquirer-16] Dan Gross: Wendy Williams speaks out. The Philadelphia Inquirer. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[17] "This Is Our Home". The Lower East Side Film Festival. 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2020.

[18] Tribeca Film Festival. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[19] "Full Line-Up Announced for BROOKLYN HORROR FILM FESTIVAL". Dead Central. 14 September 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2020.

[20] This Is Our Home (2019). Accessed June 22, 2020.

[21] Borderline Coffee. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[22] HBO Partners With Social Impact Organization Kindred For Mental Health Event. Deadline. June 19, 2019. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[23] No superpowers, just spandex: the other half of my story. Medium. Jul 14, 2019. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[24] 2019 winners. Yes, And Laughter Lab. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[25] 17 states submit proposals to host Hyperloop certification center. Morning Joe on MSNBC. Accessed June 22, 2020.

[26] "Jeff Ayars". Muckrack. Retrieved June 22, 2020.

[27] "Drug-Impaired Driving Prevention". Ad Council. Retrieved June 22, 2020.

[28] Fleming, Jameson (February 3, 2022). "How ClickUp Created Its First Super Bowl Ad". Retrieved 2022-05-14.

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