Jenna Fischer & Chris Messina On 'Giant Mechanical Man'

You know her as the beloved Pam Beesly on NBC’s The Office, but now Emmy nominee Jenna Fisher is starring opposite Six Feet Under's Chris Messina in The Giant Mechanical Man, playing at the Tribeca Film Festival. Fischer, neé Regina Marie Fischer, was born in Indiana and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, where she began her acting career and met her former husband, writer James Gunn. Prior to acting, Fischer dabbled in some administrative work, which made her perfect for her part as Pam on The Office. Her talent has always been based in comedy, as displayed in her self-directed, written and starred, feature mockumentary, Lollilove, and she has recently been featured in a number of slapstick comedies such as Blades of Glory, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story and Hall Pass. Fisher met her husband, director Lee Kirk, while working on Mechanical Man. The two of have one child, Weston Lee, together.

Unlike his co-star, Chris Messina is a New York native, born and raised in Northport. Messina is notable for his boyfriend/husband roles that struggle with being in a relationship with a strong-willed female in films such as Ira and Abby, Julie and Julia, and Vicky Christina Barcelona. Messina also appeared on nine episodes of the FX original series, Damages. Messina has two children, Milo and Giovanni with his girlfriend Jennifer Todd.

Mechanical Man, Kirk’s first feature film, is an imaginative romantic comedy revolving around the relationship between a zoo worker (Fischer) and a street performer (Messina). “Lee wrote the movie for me and in the writing process we ended up falling in love and got married,” Fischer told Uinterview exclusively. Messina, for his part, admired Fischer's naturalistic acting style, “Jenna doesn’t push as an actress at all,” he says, adding: “She’s just as she is now—she’s just very simple and honest.” The film co-stars Topher Grace, Malin Akerman, Lucy Punch and Rich Sommer.