Jazzy Mae!

'Cranky' Cast Bios

Lomita Ghosts

Julia Sommer as "Julia"
Julia has worked as an actress across the United States, Mexico and Australia, in theater, television and film. In 1998 she was named "Talent of the Year" by the Intl. Modeling and Talent Association, which earned her a scholarship at the Piero Dusa Acting Conservatory in L.A. She resides in Los Angeles where acting credits include Receiver, U.S. Air Marshals, A Life for a Life, Sucka Punch, The Dana Carvey Show and Crossroads. She designs baby gear available at MyFunkyLittleMonkey.com.

"Working on Lomita Ghosts was a wonderful all around experience. It was nice to have a more meaty role to sink my teeth into and it was great working with a female director for a change, which made for a completely different set environment. Laurie Lamson is a talented, patient, insightful and caring director under whose leadership the cast thrived, including even the animals we were working with. Her enthusiasm and energy are contagious and I look forward to seeing the final product."

Karimou Djibril as "Tim, the boyfriend"
Born and raised in the Ivory Coast, Karimou was dreaming of being a pilot when he found himself attracted to theater. He starred in several TV commercials in West Africa and recently made his big screen debut in Los Angeles in the short films Serving Santino and Sucka Punch. Now, in Lomita Ghosts, he feels the chemistry on the set has allowed him to reveal another dimension of his potential.

Richard Benn as "1st Handyman"
This marks Richard's second appearance in a JaZzy MaE film, the first being Family Values in The Goddess Years. Richard jumped at the chance of working again with Laurie Lamson and comments, "Laurie makes working on a set fun, creative and memorable."

Lomita Ghosts Guilherme Monteiro as "2nd Handyman"
Gui is Laurie's real handyman and this is his acting debut. He also worked as the gaffer/grip/camera asst. on the shoot. He has worked in production previously as a set P.A. and an underwater cameraman. He worked as a camera assistant with Laurie on Dog Beach, a short video for www.turnhere.com and Si Se Puede!? "The opportunity to try new things made working with Laurie very interesting and exciting."

Lomita Ghosts Ricky Bledsoe as "Heater Repairman"
Ricky happened to be working under the house on Laurie's heater on the first evening of the shoot. It's the first time he's ever appeared in a film but he was a natural. "I enjoyed it; I thought it was interesting. It was fun, but difficult to wipe that smile off my face."

Hook as "Handsome"
Hook is the second cat to be featured in one of Laurie's shorts. No animals were harmed in the making of this film –- he was born like that –

Lomita Ghosts LaVonne Andrews as "Grandma Ghost"
LaVonne is a true triple threat - an actor, singer and dancer who has appeared in numerous films, television shows and stage plays, often in leading roles. She also has a magnetic voice and does a great deal of voice-over work. It's an honor to have her participation in this project!

Lomita Ghosts Irene Soderberg as "Allergic Ghost"
Irene creates her own material, from costumes to characters, for a show that is larger than life. She makes every song her own with unique interpretations - creating ingenious lyrics and parodies. She can be seen performing live at Hamburger Mary's in West Hollywood on Monday nights. In addition to singing, she's involved with TV, and appeared in Ron Howard's THE GRINCH.

Lomita Ghosts Betty Farmer as "Grandma's image"
The character of the Grandma / benevolent ghost is inspired by the incomparable Betty Farmer, who was one of the thousands lost in the World Trade Center on 9/11/01.This project is dedicated to her memory.

Location: Lomita Street house
The first part of the house was built in the early 1920's and was tiny, but had a huge yard. The house kept being expanded, while the city took away most of the yard. Some of the incidents in the script were based on experiences Laurie had since moving in.

'Creepy' Crew Bios

Laurie Lamson – writer, filmmaker, camera
I used my house as the inspiration for the story and the location. Unlike Family Values in the Goddess Years, which was a tightly organized production with up to 60 people on set, I approached this project with minimum preparation and no crew. "'We're doin' it dogme style', I warned the cast, meaning I'd make do with found lighting and props that were already in the house. Contrary to expectations, it was the most relaxing shoot I've ever been on."

Tyler Bowe – editor
Tyler Bowe is a true filmmaker and we're lucky to have him as our LOMITA GHOSTS editor. Tyler first came to Hollywood to pursue his acting career and has appeared in a number of movies and TV shows. He's also become adept at every aspect of cinematic storytelling - from scriptwriting to editing to sound design and music scoring. He wrote, directed, shot, starred in and is currently editing his futuristic television series HOLLYWOOD X for a TV station in Portugal. The series will hopefully also be available on U.S. cable TV. More info at www.tylerbowe.com

Dawn Fields – teaser editor
Ms. Fields has written produced and directed her own projects including a dramatic short and an award-winning music video for Gospel R&B artist Vickie Wynans. After producing a regional commercial spot for the Georgia Lottery, self-publishing a trade magazine for the Atlanta film community, and teaching seminars to beginning filmmakers, Ms. Fields decided to make the move to Los Angeles in 2000. She is now editing her own documentary and concentrating on feature films. More info at www.glassmountainent.com.

Allan Phillips – composer
A self-taught child prodigy who grew up in Caracas, Venezuela, Allan has an extensive command of every group of musical instruments and a respect and understanding for different cultures and their musical traditions. During his 20 years in the music profession, he has earned a solid reputation and numerous awards as a performer, composer and producer in high demand by artists such as Kenny Loggins, Al Jarreau, Sergio Mendez, Patti LaBelle, Kenny Rogers, Tito Puente and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He has scored 2 independent feature films, THE BREAK OF DAWN and LOVE ALWAYS. More info at www.allanphillips.com.

"I had the opportunity to work closely with Laurie while scoring the music for Family Values in the Goddess Years. At that time, I observed firsthand Laurie's highly efficient execution of the filmmaking process. … In addition, I found Laurie's mastery of technical issues combined with her open, wildly creative artistic sense to be positively inspiring. This blend of creativity and organization is surely among her greatest talents."