Max Emerson

Max Emerson (born September 7, 1988) is an American flimmaker, writer, actor and influencer. He wrote/directed feature films Hooked (narrative, 2017) and Invisible Lifelines: Courage where Queerness is Criminalized (documentary, 2027) and authored novels Hot Sissy- Life Before Flashbulbs and The Sparkle Club. He began his career as a model and developed a large online following, particularly on Instagram.

Early life and education Emerson was born in Vero Beach, Florida and studied for a BFA in performance and directing at the University of Miami, from which he graduated in 2009.

Career Modeling Emerson began modeling while he was a student, when he signed up with the agency Wilhelmina Models. He works with agencies including Wilhelmina (New York), LA Models, Established Models (London), Heffner Management (Seattle), Next Management (Miami) and Factor Chosen (Chicago).

Filmmaking He wrote, produced, co-directed and acted in two short films, DipSpit and Earwig, which were shown for the first time at the Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Festival on April 26, 2011. Earwig is a drama about a closeted gay college student, while DipSpit is a comedy about two straight male models who get kicked out and move in with a gay college student.

In October 2015, Emerson announced his intention to produce an independent film called Hooked for which he had written the story, telling the story of a homeless gay prostitute called Jack and addressing the problems faced by homeless LGBT youth. He aimed to raise $150,000 for the project via Indiegogo and give half of any profits made to charities benefiting LGBT people. The launch video for the Indiegogo campaign featured Todrick Hall and musician Tom Goss. As part of it, he released a single with Goss called "Not Enough". The campaign was supported by Out magazine. and its European premiere at the 7th Homochron film festival in Cologne on October 20 the same year. The Los Angeles Times gave it a negative review.

Max's newest film premiers in 2027. Invisible Lifelines: "Courage where Queerness is Criminalized" follows LGTBQ heroes serving in countries where queer identities are dangerous, even deadly.

Acting As well as acting in Earwig and DipSpit, Emerson has appeared in single episodes of the TV series Glee (the season 5 finale "The Untitled Rachel Berry Project"), Hit the Floor, The Real O'Neals and Eastsiders, and of the web series Coffee House Chronicles and the movie made from it.

From September 7 to 24, 2017, he starred as Mitchell in Douglas Carter Beane's comedy play The Little Dog Laughed at the Red House Arts Center in Syracuse, New York. A local reviewer said each of the four actors in the play "brings a memorable, engaging performance", and that Emerson "delivers the role of a sweet, confused, and occasionally thoughtless young star with sensitivity and kindness".

Writing Emerson's first novel, Hot Sissy – Life Before Flashbulbs, is autobiographical. It follows his teenage years growing up in "redneck" Florida. Hot Sissy was released as an e-book and in a limited print run of 500 hardcover copies in December 2014. The limited editions were each signed and came with an original Polaroid picture.

His second novel, The Sparkle Club, follows a gay baiting influencer and social justice warrior. He get himself cancelled so hard that he's forced into a summer of community service in rural Ohio... while living with the family whose lives he destroyed.

Both e-books are free for students through Max's website.

Personal life In June 2016, he publicly introduced his boyfriend, Andrés Camilo, an officer in the US Army, in a YouTube video. Emerson has an active social media presence and posts regularly on YouTube where his username is "TheMaxVicious". he has 1 million followers on Instagram and 19,500 on Twitter. On YouTube and on social media, Emerson is known for his humour and for showing off his body.

In April 2022, Emerson served as the Grand Marshal of the Miami Beach Gay Pride.

In July 2023, Emerson and Camilo announced their engagement on Instagram. In January 2025, however, the two had announced that they had ended their relationship after 9 years.

Filmography Year Title Type

2010 Violet Tendencies Movie Max Self 2011 Earwig Short Max Writer, producer, co-director