Actress Juju Brener On Filming Her ‘Hocus Pocus 2’ Role And New Clothing Collection

This actress just made her Disney debut!

This absolute fashionista just came out with an amazing clothing collection with YMI Jeans. A jack of all trades, Juju also made headlines recently for announcing her upcoming role in the star-studded sequel ‘Hocus Pocus 2’.

We had the amazing honor of talking with Juju about her future career plans, Reese Witherspoon, and more!

You recently joined forces with YMI Jeans to create your very own capsule collection; is fashion something that you want to pursue in your future?

J: “I love fashion, it has always been something I was drawn to. I’ve been expressing my own unique individuality through fashion for as long as I can remember. My grandmother Smadar is crafty and taught me and my sister how to put patches on our jeans from an early age. I’m so excited I got to co-create a capsule denim collection YMI x JUJU with YMI Jeans, launching in October! Getting to design my own line is a dream come true. It’s really awesome to partner with a brand I like to wear.

So I actually am perusing it in the present 😉 and definitely have plans to continue with this direction moving forward. I would love to also expand to shoes, makeup, and accessories.”

As such a young actress, what spiked your interest at such an early age? 

J: “I have been acting since I was a baby. I shot my first national commercial for Verizon when I was 6 weeks old! My sister Mila is an actress, so was my mom Shirly Brener and my grandmother Smadar Brener is an icon from Israeli cinema. I was born into it. My sister and I are 3rd generation actors. We both have artistic interests and have been acting, dancing, making art, doing voiceover animation, and music since we were teenie. It was natural for us. I used to come to all my sister’s shoots and auditions and was excited when her agents and manager took me on so I worked hard to book my own jobs. I got inspired and learned a lot and still do from my mom, grandma, and Mila.”

Do you prefer voiceover work or live-action?

J: “I love it all! I’m really grateful I have diversity in my career so it’s always interesting and never the same. Live action involves so much your physicality, how believable and authentic you create a character while having a camera on you. It involves wardrobe, sets, and departments like hair and makeup, light, and sound. Voiceover is cool because you can literally be in pajamas and it does not matter. The challenge is bringing characters to life just with your voice. Sometimes these characters are animals or from a different made-up universe. Then the rest of the work is up to the animators and editors. Both mediums are so fun and creative. I love having the opportunity to have each in my life.”

Who is an actress that you admire? 

J: “I really admire Reece Witherspoon. She started out as a child actor and made an amazing career also as an adult not just as an actress but also as a producer. She is funny, witty, and super talented. I really like that she finds books or stories she loves and turns them into movies and tv shows. It’s something I think I would like to do as well.”

What are your hopes for the future and your career?

J: “I’ve always been driven. So there are things I’m working on and various goals ahead. This year I started expanding with fashion and brand partnerships. Getting to co-design YMI x JUJU Collection has been epic. I have plans to write scripts and have been working on music. My sister is working on directing so it would be a dream one day to work together on a script that I write and she directs. I’m also working toward my academics and plan on going to a great college. In the future, I know ill be filming shows, while continuing to shoot movies on locations. I’m def gonna be putting out more music, fashion and intend to start producing.”

How have your friends and family reacted to your success? 

J: “We really try to stay grounded and humble. I have all kinds of friends, some are in the industry, and some who are pursuing sports or academics. All my friends are very driven and hard working so we all support each other in whatever we do. Since my family is very familiar with the industry, my dad is also a former writer/producer, they all understand how much focus, hard work, and dedication it requires. Everyone is very happy and excited for me. But we keep things in perspective. Not taking anything for granted. Tbh my parents get excited when I clean my room and do my school work. A lot of the people around me got very excited when I worked last year with Morgan Freeman on Vanquish. And now people literally freaking out over Hocus Pocus 2 because everyone is obsessed with the original and the world has been waiting for this sequel for 29 years.”

You worked with such talented actors, like Bette Midler and Sarah Jessica Parker, on Hocus Pocus 2. What was that like? 

J: “The last few years being in the presence and working alongside such acting legends like Morgan Freeman, Tim Robbins, Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and music icons like Miley Cyrus. I am constantly inspired and try to learn each day from every experience. These are incredible talents. I notice what they do and try to emulate it or take the advice they give me and apply it. I feel so lucky my life has taken me at such a young age in these directions and I aspire to be as good an artist as they are one day ;)”

What was your favorite part of filming Hocus Pocus 2?

J: “Filming Hocus Pocus 2 was absolutely amazing! There were so many favorite parts. From the script, sound stages, set design, costumes, hair and makeup, and locations. All was so meticulous and creative. Everyone at Disney and production were so nice and efficient. The set was very large and spread out with so many departments and personnel. Also, the fact I got to travel to Providence, as we shot all over Rhode Island, was so neat to have seen all the authentic New England locations. They even built the whole city of 1600s Salem from scratch in Chase Park. It was fascinating. It was also my first time doing a really elaborate stunt so that was so fun! I got to train with the stunt people and was put on a wire in the air, which was the coolest thing ever! I also met one of my best friends for life, Taylor Henderson who plays Young Winnie.

We bonded from day 1 like we knew each other and have been sisters forever. On top of it as a girl being surrounded by a female cast and having a special talented team of a female director, Anne Fletcher, female producer, Lynn Harris, and a female writer, Jen D’Angelo was truly unique. Was such an honor to work also with producers Adam Shankman, David Kirschner, and Ralph Winter. Everyone on set knew they were making something that is gonna be part of movie history. I am forever grateful for this experience.“

Photo Credits: Mitchell Aragon

Chloe Fribourg– Music Editor – Chloe is a rising senior in high school, where she is the Editor-in-Chief of the yearbook. Aside from journalism, Chloe is a lover of music, playing the bass, guitar, and piano in her free time. She also speaks Spanish and is learning French and Italian; she dreams of studying Linguistics in college.