Justine Parsons

Justine Parsons, (b.1972) is an American film, stage and television actress born in New York City. Her mother, a jazz singer and single mother of Greek and Swedish descent, worked as a go-go dancer to make ends meet. Her father, a furniture designer/inventor of English, Scottish and French descent grew up in New York, joined a cult and moved permanently to Los Angeles in 1977. Scouted by model agent Claude Haddad, Justine Parsons began modeling in Paris at 16. Her first bookings were for Jill Magazine - under the Creative Direction of Marc Ascoli - and Yohji Yamamoto runway. It was in Paris that she discovered photography. Parsons became the first female assistant of Steven Meisel, working everyday with the world's top models, editors and clients of the time - an education that would carry into her career as a fashion and portrait photographer. Her first fashion assignment was from Creative Director David Sebbah - shooting at Le Crazy Horse Paris with Emmanuel Alt, now fashion editor-in-chief at Vogue Paris. Represented by Camilla Lowther Management in London and Eric Blanpied in Paris, Parsons spent most of her twenties living and working between the two cities. Parsons has shot covers for The New York Times Magazine and been a regular contributor to Vanity Fair, as well as shooting for NY Magazine, American Vogue, Allure, GQ, Town & Country, Esquire, Rolling Stone, L'Officiel Paris, Jalousie, The Face, Dutch, Tatler, The Sunday Independent Magazine, Suddeutsche Zeitung, D Magazine, Newsweek, Time, US Magazine, Scientific American, Forbes, Italian Glamour, Essence, Mixte, Galleries Lafayette, Patricia Pepe, Chantelle Lingerie & Max Mara. Parsons was nominated for the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism, Alfred Eisenstaedt Awards for Magazine Photography by Kathy Ryan at The New York Times Magazine, Rick Woodward of Double Take, and Susan White of Vanity Fair. Her photographic work has been exhibited at the Venice Biennale, Art Bodensee, including Foto Wien and other art fairs. She is represented by c.art gallery in Dornbirn, Austria and Galerie Wolfrum in Vienna. Justine Parsons has gone on to become a film, theater and television actress, appearing in numerous theatre productions and films in the US and Europe. Acting/screen-writing was a natural segue from her life of storytelling through images. Currently in pre-production, 'Entre Chien et Loup aka Give 'em the Finger,' is a feature film Parsons co-authored and will co-star in with Italian architect, Alessandra Cianchetta. Their screenplay has been submitted for international screenwriting contests - including a collaborative contest between the drehbuchFORUM, Wien - and the Austrian Film Institute, announcing women figures beyond the clichés. Parsons stars in 'Gladioli and Mimosa,' a short film she co-authored with award winning Austrian director, Marieli Fröhlich. The screenplay was adapted from Jean Genet, 'The Maids,' shot on location in Vienna summer 2020. Jo Molitoris, winner of the 2020 Austrian film-prize for best cinematography/Nevrland was cinematographer on the project. In 2022 she co-founded The Pat Hobby Society, with author Philip Mann in Vienna, Austria.