John O'Brien (born 1962 in

Tunbridge, Vermont Tunbridge is a town in Orange County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census the town population was 1,337. The town consists of three village centers, all situated on Vermont Route 110 in the valley of the first branch o ...

) is an American film director, sheep farmer, Justice of the Peace and politician. In 2015, John was elected to the Town of Tunbridge, Vermont selectboard. O'Brien is the director of the ''Tunbridge Trilogy'', three films that focus on the rural life of Tunbridge, Vermont. The director refers to his style of filmmaking as "community cinema" and his films as "anthropological comedies"Sara Rimer, ''The New York Times'': "A Vermont Town Turns Schwab's Lunch Counter", September 3, 2001 as his cast consists mostly of local friends and neighbors from Tunbridge who play themselves in fictional stories.Michael Colton, ''The Washington Post'': "A Running Gag?", September 04, 1998 The most famous of these, ''Man with a Plan'', starred the dairy farmer and one-time politician,

Fred Tuttle Frederick Herman Tuttle (July 18, 1919 – October 4, 2003) was an American dairy farmer, actor, United States Army veteran of World War II, and Republican candidate for the United States Senate from Vermont in 1998. He lived in Tunbridge al ...

. According to O'Brien, the film, in which Tuttle runs successfully for Congress, was inspired by 1979's ''

Being There ''Being There'' is a 1979 American satirical comedy-drama film starring Peter Sellers, Shirley MacLaine, and Melvyn Douglas. Directed by Hal Ashby, it is based on the 1971 novel '' Being There'' by Jerzy Kosiński, and adapted for the scr ...

'', a movie in which

Peter Sellers Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show''. Sellers featured on a number of hit comi ...

plays a gardener named Chance, who becomes a trusted adviser to the presidency. In 2001, it was reported that ''Man With a Plan'' had sold 40,000 copies, most of them to Vermonters. O'Brien's other films include ''Vermont Is for Lovers'' and ''Nosey Parker''. O'Brien graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

in 1986. In 2018, O'Brien was the successful Democratic nominee for a seat in the

Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives a ...

Filmography

* '' The Big Dis'' (1989) * '' Vermont Is for Lovers'' (1992) * '' Man with a Plan'' (1996) * '' Nosey Parker'' (2003)

References

Filmmakers Redux: Then and Now

John O'Brien's Company, Bellwether Films

Notes

External links

* 1962 births Living people Harvard University alumni People from Tunbridge, Vermont Film directors from Vermont Democratic Party members of the Vermont House of Representatives 21st-century members of the Vermont General Assembly {{Vermont-politician-stub