Profile
Leanna has worked in the TV/FILM business for over 20 years; first as an actress, then as a producer and now as a photographer and director. Beginning with a micro-budget feature in film school, she grew into a prolific independent film producer and produced 10 feature films and ran production at a company she co-founded. She moved behind the camera with her study of photography and cinematography in recent years, and is now working as a photographer in addition to producing. She founded a non-profit photography program in 2001 that works with Latino immigrant teenagers in downtown LA. The program has since expanded to rural Oregon, Ecuador and Baja Mexico.
Experience
Photographer/Producer 2001-present
Founded a photography and production company called Creelphoto. In addition to family clients, Creelphoto develops and produces web and on-air content for corporate clients such as YAHOO!, NOKIA, THE FOOD NETWORK and HGTV. Shows include SNAP! a photography series hosted by Creel, CHEAP&EASY, a cooking show for the MTV crowd for Yahoo!, and a number of series for Food Network.com and HGTV.com. List upon request.
Writer/Director 2001-Present
Wrote and directed the award winning WWI short film OFFSIDE which has screened and won festivals around the world including Tokyo, Milan, Sundance and San Paolo. Roger Ebert said “OFFSIDE is an accomplished and effective film, one of the highlights of Sundance.” Luc Besson’s Europa Corp. released the film theatrically in France. Creel also directed a short film called PROM-TROVERSY! which won the Planet Out Grand Prize for best short, screened around the world and has been on the Top 10 CLICK-LIST on Logo.com for the past four years. She accepted an assignment for Imagine Entertainment, adapting a Civil War novel for the screen.
President of Production/Co-founder, Ignite Entertainment 1997-2000
Co-founded a finance and production company which was acquired by Lionsgate Films in 2000. The company financed and produced nine feature films for which Creel oversaw development, production and delivery. Features she produced or executive produced include: BUT I’M A CHEERLEADER (LIONSGATE), DANCER TX., POP. 81 (SONY), DESERT BLUE (SAMUEL GOLDWYN), THE SUBURBANS (SONY), GET OVER IT (MIRAMAX), MIXED SIGNALS (HBO), POSSUMS (ENCORE), and SIX-STRING SAMURAI (PALM). Creel brought three features to Sundance and worked closely with emerging talent.
Motion Picture/TV actress 1986-1996
Began career as a teenager, working in TV, film, commercial and voice overs. Her credits include playing “Tori” on SAVED BY THE BELL and an NBC/DISNEY series with her identical triplet sisters called PARENT TRAP THREE. Appeared in many popular episodic shows during the 80’s and 90’s including: GROWING PAINS, MY TWO DADS, PERRY MASON, ANYTHING BUT LOVE, NED AND STACY, PARKER LEWIS CAN’T LOSE, DAYS OF OUR LIVES AND BEVERLY HILLS 90210.
Education
UCLA — BS, History, 1993
UCLA — MFA, Motion Picture TV; The Independent Producer’s Program, 1996