Thomas Sorriaux

Thomas Sorriaux has made a name for himself as a writer and director, alongside long-time collaborator François Desagnat. The two met in the late 1990s when both were deeply invested in the French club scene. Their shared appreciation for music soon blossomed into a tight-knit friendship and creative partnership. Their first collaboration was the comedy short "La Malédiction de la Mamie," which translates roughly to "The Curse of the Grandmother." Just three years later, they reunited to co-write and co-direct their first feature-length film, the goofy blaxploitation comedy "La Beuze," which cemented their reputation for unrepentantly absurd humor. The following year the pair co-directed the daffy comedy "The 11 Commandments," in which a group of doltish guys sets out to teach the world to laugh again through a series of wacky stunts. Then in 2008, Sorriaux and Desagnat helmed the adaptation of Vincent Ravalec's novel "15 Ans et Demi." The family-friendly comedy strayed from their zany comfort zone to tackle a tale of an estranged father trying to reconnect with his angst-ridden teenage daughter. The risk paid off, however, when many critics praised Sorriaux and Desagnat's sweet tale of father-daughter bonding, as well as the crisp comedic turn of French film star Daniel Auteuil.