Tracie Laymon, ‘Bob Trevino Likes It’ Filmmaker, Signs With Verve

EXCLUSIVE: Verve has signed Tracie Laymon, the filmmaker whose debut solo feature Bob Trevino Likes It won both the Grand Jury and Audience Award at SXSW 2024.

Inspired by true events and drawing heavily from Laymon’s own life, Bob Trevino Likes It follows a people-pleasing young woman (Barbie Ferreira) who sends her estranged and curmudgeonly father (French Stewart) a Facebook friend request, only to unwittingly befriend a grieving man with the same name (John Leguizamo).

With the film, which she wrote, directed and produced, she becomes the third Verve client in recent memory to land SXSX’s Grand Jury prize, the others being I Love My Dad‘s James Morosini and Raging Grace‘s Paris Zarcilla. It’s set to screen at SIFF Cinema Uptown, as part of the Seattle Film Festival, on May 15 and 16.

A Texas native, Laymon spent some of her formative teen years in Russia before returning to the States for college, where she began directing short films and music videos. Since then, her directorial projects have won numerous accolades, including Best Director awards at Women Texas Film Festival, Seattle Film Festival, and The Method Fest in Beverly Hills.

A member of the LGBTQIA community and a passionate advocate for disability representation on screen, Laymon frequently explores themes of identity and belonging in her work. As a filmmaker, her goal is to amplify diverse voices and challenge perceptions through underdog stories — stories about reluctant heroes who find unexpected ways to succeed in the face of adversity.

Laymon continues to be managed by Artists First.