FRANCIS STOKES – Writer / Director

Francis Stokes was raised in Park Ridge, Illinois, in the suburbs of Chicago. In high school, while other kids tossed around the pigskin or hung out at the soda shop, Francis spent all his spare time shooting videos with his for-the-most-part-willing friends. On the strength of a video he directed and regrettably acted in about a sitcom writer using voodoo for beyond-the-grave research, Francis gained admission into New York University’s prestigious Tisch Film School.


Francis moved to New York at eighteen. In college, he wrote and directed countless video and film shorts. Most notable is his award-winning senior thesis film "When the Pom-poms Stopped Waving", a dark comic mystery about a missing cheerleading squad.

After graduation, Francis drove cross-country to Los Angeles. He wrote BUTTLEMAN in 1998 and spent the next few years raising the budget from private investors while working as a museum guide at Griffith Observatory. He also wrote several plays with titles like “Feeding Time” and “Christmas Gun”, which were produced locally, and co-directed a comic video short titled “looking for mr. miyagi”.


BUTTLEMAN is his first feature film.

SHEREEN HARIRI – Producer

Shereen grew up on the mean streets of Los Angeles and graduated from Cal State University Northridge with a BFA in Film Production. She got a crash course on filmmaking under extreme conditions when the Northridge earthquake hit her campus in 1994. After graduation, she worked for Tri-Coast Entertainment for several years as an executive assistant, production coordinator, post-production coordinator, and development head. A glutton for multi-tasking, in her spare time she organized punk rock shows with local bands, a job she carried on from her college years.


Shereen has written, produced, edited, and directed numerous video and film projects, in and out of school. She has been working as a production coordinator on commercials and feature films for the past few years. From a long line of female writers, Shereen had a poem she wrote at age nine published in a Persian book of poetry. She also has just completed her first feature screenplay and is working on a fiction novel.


BUTTLEMAN is Shereen’s first feature film as a producer.

 

THOMAS HARGIS - Director of Photography

Thomas grew up in Indiana and started out as a still photographer. He is a graduate of the University of Southern California School of Cinema/Television. He has served as Director of Photography on numerous
short films including, “The Book and the Rose,” “Timmy's Wish,” and “Hang Time,” and three feature films, “$40,000,” “Rites of Winter,” and BUTTLEMAN.

 

Thomas has received several cinematography awards including Best Cinematography at the Hermosa Beach Film Festival for his work on "Rites of Winter" and three cinematography awards for his work on "The Book and the Rose". "The Book and the Rose" was also a semi-finalist for the 2003 Academy Award for Best Short - Live Action.

 

Still very active in photography, he has amassed an extensive portfolio, including a series of images from carnivals around the country. Many of his photos have been seen in public exhibitions throughout Los Angeles.

ERIC DREW FELDMAN - Composer

Eric Drew Feldman is a veteran musician who has been in some of the most influential bands of the past three decades. He began his career as a member of Captain Beefheart, popular avant-garde band of the sixties and seventies. He then joined Pere Ubu, one of the first postmodern bands of the new wave era. He has appeared on albums and tours with The Pixies, Frank Black, the Residents, and PJ Harvey.

JESSICA KEHRHAHN – Editor

The daughter of a production designer and television producer, Jessica was born and raised in Germany and grew up around film sets, often appearing in front of the camera as an extra. She spent her teenage years in Cairo, Egypt, where she developed her interest in editing. She moved back to Germany after graduation and worked as an editor for German TV (ZDF) for several years, cutting TV series, MOWs and documentaries on a 16/35mm flatbed.

 

After she was accepted into the editing program at the American Film Institute (AFI) in 1996, she moved to Los Angeles. While at AFI, she received the Institute's Tommy Gross Award for Outstanding Achievement in Editing in 1997, and earned a nomination at the American Cinema Editors' (ACE) Student Editing Competition in 1998. Since graduating from AFI, she has edited several feature films, including the award-winning “Resin” and “Detroit”.

JOHN BARHAM – Production Designer

John grew up in Virginia but moved to Park Ridge, IL in ninth grade, where he befriended Francis. They formed their own video production company, Don’t Give Dogs, and made countless videos together. When Francis moved to New York to attend film school, John moved to Virginia and started his own construction company.

Ten years later, while catching up over the phone, Francis casually invited John to come out and help on the production and he packed up and moved to Los Angeles. On the film, John built several of the key sets, as well as designing the film’s single most impressive set piece: the washing machine that Harold stuffs himself in for a spin.