WRITER | PRODUCER | DIRECTOR
LESLIE THOMAS executive produced the 2018 Emmy-winning documentary feature KEVYN AUCOIN Beauty & The Beast In Me. She is the showrunner of ratings record breakers HOLIDAY BAKING CHAMPIONSHIP & KIDS BAKING CHAMPIONSHIP on Food Network. She's a playwright and a California native who studied Film & TV at Loyola Marymount University. She is delighted that HONESTY WEEKEND was chosen by Film Threat from 2000+ indie films as Best Romantic Comedy of 2022.
Director's Statement: "I wanted to make a comedy about characters at various points along what I call the 'bridge to adulthood'. In order to cross that bridge, they have to be willing to let go of outdated fantasies, beliefs and fears in order to grow. Growth is, by its nature, painful and awkward so it’s perfect for comedy. Some characters are just arriving at the other side of the bridge to adulthood, some are stubbornly frozen in the middle and others are tiptoeing on and off the bridge depending on the circumstances of their lives. But everyone is lurching toward something new and hopefully better."
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
LORI KAYE formed Putti Media with Leslie Thomas in 2007 to develop projects for TV, film, theatre and anything that they feel wildly passionate about or that makes them laugh until they pee. Her career includes work in documentary, unscripted television, stand up comedy, theatre, journalism and film. Lori recently produced and directed Emmy-winning documentary KEVYN AUCOIN Beauty & The Beast In Me.
Sitting in the executive producer seat for HONESTY WEEKEND gave Lori a chance to utilize her many contacts both in front of and behind the camera to help bring to life this ensemble comedy. More info at puttimedia.com
PRODUCER
COLIN MacDOUGALL (PGA) hung up his “Jack-of-All-Trades” hat to pursue his dream of producing Film & Television. Knowing that the best type of leader is one who has walked a mile in the shoes of those being led, Colin moved his way into producing through the ranks of as many departments as he could. He spent time in Production, Segment, Art, Food Styling and Wardrobe. He has worked in many genres including Feature Films, Unscripted Television, Network Scripted Episodic, and Commercials. Utilizing the diversified skills he learned in these departments and genres, Colin tackled the titles of both Producer and Art Director for HONESTY WEEKEND. Somehow, he managed to be in at least two places at once... sometimes three.
DIRECTOR of PHOTOGRAPHY
LAURENT BASSET is the director/DP of ratings juggernaut Below Deck on Bravo. Originally from France, Laurent moved to the United States in 1979. He studied Graphic Design and Visual Communication at UCLA. Laurent began his career as a camera operator, shooting primarily news, current events and documentaries. As a Director of Photography he has worked on live concerts, performance videos and movie sets. Laurent's experience as a gifted Director of Photography with amazing story-telling skills appealed to Reality TV producers. Countless unscripted TV shows later, Laurent is now shifting his focus to Directing unscripted and soft-scripted TV shows. Laurent and executive producer Lori Kaye have a long history working together on numerous projects that have taken them to exotic locations around the world. For this film, he’s thrilled to help Leslie Thomas bring her first feature to life.
COMPOSER
MANDY HOFFMAN is a visionary composer who has been writing for various mediums for over a decade, and is a member of The Academy. She has scored numerous films, series, advertisements, and art installations that have appeared in theaters, top film festivals, television networks and galleries all over the world.
Her collaborations with director Azazel Jacobs have garnered critical acclaim, and her orchestral score to A24's The Lovers (2017) not only received abundant praise from the press, but it ended up on Film Music Magazine's Top Ten Best Scores of 2017. It was also called "…a stealth contender for one of the finest film music of the century so far" by The Moveable Fest. She worked with director Minahl Baig and executive producer Jada Pinkett Smith on the poetic feature Hala (Overbrook Entertainment), which premiered at Sundance 2019 and then on Apple TV+.
Hoffman teamed up with Joey Soloway on the lauded Amazon Studios series titled I Love Dick (2017), and her music can be found on a myriad of television shows. Most recently she scored the TV series Fables featuring Jemaine Clement and Natasha Lyonne (2022).
EDITOR
HEEYEON CHANG graduated from the master’s program in studio art at Cal Arts with an emphasis on video installations. She had her first group show at the Korean American Museum in collaboration with Skirball and the JANM at age 19. She went on to do a group show at MOCA Geffen Contemporary and Kwangju Biennale when she was 20 years old. After graduating, she moved into editing documentary film, unscripted television and features.