SL: Yes, she moved away to New York. She's a successful businesswoman, Harvard graduate, not afraid to speak her mind, whereas Regina's character is sort of the settled homemaker. So there's a real difference in the way they approach their lives, and there's definitely some drama. It's a family full of great characters and great dynamics and definitely lots of room for drama. [laughs]
MD: It's one of those laugh and cry type of films.
SL: Yeah, it's a bit of a dramedy. There's definitely some funny moments, but it gets serious sometimes. It's a holiday film.
MD: Which is what the holidays are about--when you're with family, you laugh, you cry--you don't know what to expect when you have them all around.
SL: Yes. Yes. Exactly. [laughs]
MD: What attracted you to the project? I know you've previously worked with Rainforest Films on Motives 2.
SL: I did, and I was looking forward to possibly working with them again, and also it's an amazing cast--Regina King, Loretta Devine, obviously Keith Robinson--
MD: A number of people you've worked with before on this project--Loretta and Keith and Rainforest Films.
SL: Yes, it's a nice reunion that I was looking forward to. And Chris Brown--just a really fun, talented cast, and the script is adorable, so I was just really into the idea of doing it.
MD: Can you relate to the basic storyline with a large family? Do you have a large family?
SL: I don't. I do have a sister, and a lot of the stuff I have with Regina is like that dynamic. I do have a sister, so I can kind of relate. The first two days of shooting we were just sort of sitting together, and we bonded. There's a great chemistry going on, so we're sort of vibing off of each other, and it should be fun.
MD: With this project and what's been going on with Dreamgirls, I imagine it's been sort of crazy.
SL: It's been crazier than usual for me! [laughs] I'm feeling very welcomed, and it's exciting.
MD: How has your music been going? Are you about to release something?
SL: I'm hoping to. I'm in meetings right now, and I'm definitely writing a lot. I'm in the studio a lot just kind of finding my sound. It's been pretty creative in the last six months just honing in on my writing. Hopefully I'll have something to announce within 2007.
MD: Are you open to returning to theater and the live stage?
SL: Absolutely. But for the right project--I live here in L.A., I'm a mom, I'm wife, so uprooting is a bigger deal than just flying away. So it has to be the right project.
