Michael Yerxa

Michael Yerxa is a Canadian documentary filmmaker. He is most noted for his collaborations with Mark Kenneth Woods, including the films Take Up the Torch (2015) and Two Soft Things, Two Hard Things (2016),[1] and the television series Pride.[2]

Originally from Hampton, New Brunswick, he attended Kennebecasis Valley High School.[3] Active in the theatre program, he won a student theatre award from Theatre New Brunswick in 2000 for his play Small Actors.[4] He then studied theatre at Queen's University, appearing in theatre productions including The Music Man[5] and City of Angels,[6] before moving to Toronto, where he became known as one of the regular panelists on 1 Girl 5 Gays.[3]

In addition to his filmmaking, Yerxa has also worked in casting,[7] including credits on the film Porcupine Lake and the television series The Amazing Race Canada, Splatalot! and The Adventures of Napkin Man. He received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Casting in a Television Series at the 8th Canadian Screen Awards in 2020 for his work on The Amazing Race Canada, the first time in the history of the awards that a reality show was nominated in that category.[8]

He was a story producer on the 2020 series Canada's Drag Race.[9]

  1. ^ "Pride and prejudice in Canada's Far North: New documentary shines spotlight on the experience of being both queer and Inuit". Toronto Star, May 28, 2016.
  2. ^ Peter Knegt, "Take a trip to Pride celebrations around the world in this wonderful new docu-series". CBC Arts, July 31, 2019.
  3. ^ a b "The fabulous road to success; As Hampton's Michael Yerxa shoots his last few episodes of 1 Girl 5 Gays, he reflects on his home province". Telegraph-Journal, June 11, 2013.
  4. ^ "Hampton High play impresses provincial drama adjudicator". Telegraph-Journal, May 15, 2000.
  5. ^ "Music Man tempts eyes". Kingston Whig-Standard, January 10, 2002.
  6. ^ "Angels daring to tread new ground". Kingston Whig-Standard, March 21, 2002.
  7. ^ "Race is on to find an Amazing N.B. couple". The Daily Gleaner, November 7, 2017.
  8. ^ Steven Webb, "Hampton native makes history with Canadian Screen Award nomination". CBC News New Brunswick, February 19, 2020.
  9. ^ "RuPaul will host "Saturday Night Live" for the first time — here's what you need to know". Newsweek. 2020-01-22. Retrieved 2021-10-12.