Hannah & Rob
Wedding Party
Marsha Strongin
Mother of the Bride
Hannah and her mom have always been insanely close. Her entire life, Hannah always told her mom everything - it was impossible to lie to her! From in kindergarten when Hannah broke Passover by sneaking a cupcake in at recess, through high school boyfriends and breakups, to getting married and what to expect, Hannah has always confided in her mom, who has been her pillar and rock throughout her entire life. They may not always get along, but Hannah and her mom don't really know how to stay mad at each other for longer than five minute intervals. Hannah is looking forward to sharing this weekend with her mom, who has relentlessly helped plan the entire wedding weekend. None of this - the weekend, or just Hannah's life in general (quite literally!) would be possible without her mom.
Robert Ozer
Father of the Bride
Some call him Bob, Bobby Ozer, or even Bozer, but Hannah calls him dad, or daaaaaaaaad when she wants something. Hannah is incredibly well educated of the many coffee shops in Austin because of her dad - the two have always had a tradition of finding a cool local spot to hang, sip cappaccinos and play chess. Hannah also became a world traveler at an early age through the awesome father-daughter trips her dad planned for her, and learned quickly that the coffee abroad is much better than in Austin! Hannah is incredibly grateful to have a dad who has always tried to make sure that she has everything she could ever need in life. She also owes many of her dance moves to Bozer, and is excited to see him rip it up on the dance floor on Saturday night!!
Janet Dewey
Step-mom of the Bride
Janet has always been the ultra cool stepmom to Hannah. Since the first time Hannah met Janet, Hannah was immediately wowed by Janet's ability to braid Hannah's hair perfectly. At an early age, Hannah loved that it was Janet who explained to her dad that sometimes all a kid wants is some mac and cheese (Hannah's poor dad was making six-year-old Hannah London Broil). And in high school and college, Hannah appreciated that Janet was WAY more chill about letting Hannah stay out late than her dad was. Today, Hannah loves that Janet gives her some of the coolest hand-me-down clothes, and plans the most amazing family international trips!
Geoffrey Strongin
Step-dad of the Bride
Hannah may have gotten off to a rocky start with Geoffrey (cut her a little slack, divorce comes with this kind of territory!) but they soon got into a good stride. Through her childhood, Geoffrey was constantly helping Hannah with all things DIY, including making a really awesome Queen Esther electric ring booth for Purim one year! He also made the best Saturday morning cinnamon rolls (whatever happened to that tradition??) and the world's best hamburgers, period. Geoffrey was also always a great moderator and mediator between Hannah and her mom. Also, Hannah may have made fun of him for it pretty much her entire life, but finally, today, Hannah can say that Geoffrey's hats might actually, finally, be cool.
Kira Thompson
Maid of Honor
Kira and Hannah met in Los Angeles - both worked on the Universal lot together. They got to know each other training for a half marathon (along with bridesmaid Aubrey) - running together every morning on the lot (past the Hitchcock house and the Jaws shark!) before work. The two were also roommates for 3 years (along with bridesmaid Kelsey), and Kira was very kind to put up with Hannah's general messiness and lack of organizational skills. Hannah very much appreciates Kira's love of cooking, wine, and travel - she gets to eat all the amazing food Kira cooks, drink all the fantastic wine Kira collects and ages in her (massive) wine fridge, and enjoy many great trips with fabulous itineraries that Kira always spearheads planning (Peru, Thailand, China, and Hong Kong, to name a few).
Sara Cook
Maid of Honor
Sara and Hannah have been friends since pre-school. They spent their early years putting on modeling shows with all of Sara's fantastic dress-up clothes (Hannah always stole the parasol). They were also both synchronized swimmers, and were duet partners for most of their careers, with Sara's mom coaching them. The two spent many of their early swim meets sneaking in hot dogs and soda before competition, and later on, waking up at the crack of dawn to practice, eventually competing at a national level. Growing up together, they spent most weekends watching Newsies, interpretive dancing to Mulan and other Disney movies, and inhaling Bluebell Cookie Dough ice cream. And most importantly, it was Sara who introduced Hannah to the Harry Potter books late one night at a sleepover - LIFE CHANGER!!
Ashley Johnson
Bridesmaid
Ashley is the amazing human who introduced Hannah and Rob for the first time!! Hannah and Ashley became close friends when they went to dinner one night together and realized they both shared a mutual obsession with Harry Potter. Soon after, they threw an epic Harry Potter party that involved over two months of planning and many DIY projects including making handmade wands out of chopsticks and Ashley actually baking clay into extendable ears. They also later found a shared love of pottery and joined a pottery studio together - where Ashley made some truly spectacular pots and Hannah made some lopsided ones. Ashley is also a wizard in the kitchen and often gives Hannah cooking advice - specifically when it comes to her new instant pot, which Ashley is a true pro at.
Krissy Forelli
Bridesmaid
Krissy and Hannah met in college, where they both swam on USC's swim team. They became instantly close, and lived together sophomore through senior year. Krissy was an expert chef, and constantly made Hannah gourmet meals - homemade gnocchi, ice cream in chocolate bowls (Krissy made the bowls herself, literally), creme brulee, and an insane Harry Potter Quidditch cake are just a few highlights. Hannah returned the favor by always doing the dishes (so yeah, Hannah got a pretty great deal). Since graduating, they may now live in different states, but Krissy and Hannah remain just as close today as they were in college, and Hannah enjoys being an "auntie" to Krissy's beautiful kids - Danny and newborn Emmie.
Nora Ozer
Sister of the Bride
Though they are over a decade apart in age, Hannah and Nora are very close sisters. From the day she was born til at least halfway through high school, Hannah enjoyed Nora thinking she was cool and always wanted to hang out with her. Today, Hannah's cool factor has waned a bit, it seems, and now Nora makes fun of Hannah a LOT, in particular for not dressing fashionably enough. Hannah retaliates by stealing Nora's clothes. More recently, Hannah invited Nora to come stay with her in LA, which was a great weekend. Hannah keeps waiting for Nora to invite her to spend the weekend with her at college, but for some reason that invitation hasn't arrived yet...
Mandy Mamlet
Bridesmaid
Mandy and Hannah met through working together on the Universal lot. They became fast friends, and their friendship was probably solidified the most the day that Mandy had the unfortunate luck of getting to travel with Hannah on a plane the day after she ate way too much cheese. Most recently, Mandy has helped Hannah learn the art of meal prepping and interior decorating (Mandy is a décor whiz), and Hannah has continued to hang out with Mandy after eating cheese. Hannah also takes full credit for introducing Mandy to Ben (who are recently engaged!), and the two couples try to double date whenever possible - especially if it involves dragging Mandy to horror movies she has zero interest in seeing.
Taylor Zea
Bridesmaid
Taylor and Hannah met while both working on the Universal lot. They got lunch one day together at the food trucks and immediately a friendship was born. Early in their friendship, Hannah had relatively few friends in LA, and was constantly showing up at Taylor's house unannounced and staying for long periods of time, begging Taylor to feed her (she always did). Hannah has always appreciated Taylor's love for planning all things fun, especially her annual ski trips, which have become more and more epic over the years (and which Hannah and Rob have attended together even though neither of them actually ski). But most of all, Hannah loves that Taylor is the amazing kind of friend who will always have her house door open, anytime, to welcome her in.
Aubrey Bendix
Bridesmaid
Aubrey and Hannah met while working together on the Universal lot. The two of them (along with Kira) got to know each other training together for a half marathon. More recently, Aubrey helped make a movie called To All The Boys I've Loved Before that all the girls watched on their girls' trip last year. This was a big deal particularly for Hannah, who has since become obsessed with the lead actor from this movie and is still waiting for Aubrey to introduce him to her! Aubrey was also a key part of keeping Hannah's nerves in check when it came to wedding dress shopping, which was a pretty stressful process! Hannah loves Aubrey's goofiness, kindness, and her ability to constantly make people laugh - she is an incredibly genuine person and a wonderful friend.
Emily Morris
Bridesmaid
Emily and Hannah met at lunch one day on the Universal lot, where they mostly discussed movies and scripts - specifically Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, which at the time was a REAL HOT script (the movie when it came out, not so much). Since then, they've become close friends through their mutual desire to become BOSS LADIES, their love of GAME OF THRONES, their obsession with OUTLANDER and then their growing de-obsession of OUTLANDER after the third season when it got real bad, and most recently, their absolute hatred of DEADLY CLASS. Most recently, Emily has been a great support to Hannah as she navigates the stress that is wedding planning, and now that Emily is recently engaged (!!!), Hannah is excited to return the favor! :)
Laura Leonard
Bridesmaid
Laura and Hannah met through mutual friends in Hollywood, and their friendship solidified quickly through the many weekends they spent together pretending to read the way too many scripts their bosses gave them, when in reality they actually just geeked out over Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, and pretty much anything nerdy. Though they have never lived together, they share wardrobes as though they do, realizing early on in their friendship that it was way cheaper to share closets than each buy their own. As luck would have it, both Hannah and Laura transitioned into the same career paths and are now both managers, and these days Hannah greatly appreciates that Laura is someone she can always call for career advice - or just a great venting session! :)
Kelsey Balance
Bridesmaid
Kelsey and Hannah met on the Universal lot, and have since gotten to be very close, particularly after living together for three years (along with Kira). It was Kelsey who introduced Hannah to Stagecoach - a country music festival that is literally the most fun thing ever. Kelsey and Hannah have spent many long conversations over the years together discussing life, happiness, careers, dreams - really anything and everything. Kelsey's passion and loving spirit make her an amazing friend - she has been an immense support to Hannah throughout their entire friendship - particularly in planning her wedding, since Kelsey was just married and therefore has all the best advice!
Nicole Belisle
Bridesmaid
Hannah and Nicole met through a flag football league they both played in. Hannah was decent, but Nicole was basically the star of the league (she is REALLY GOOD). Soon after that, Nicole invited Hannah to go with her to Vegas, and Hannah accepted, because what else does a 23 year old want to do on a long weekend? Nicole's sole objective for this trip was to see T-Payne live, but the night they went to see him, literally during the countdown of T-Payne coming out on stage, Nicole fainted, and Hannah literally carried her over to a table where some nice guys gave Nicole some OJ. She ended up being totally fine, but it's pretty hard not to become insanely close friends after an experience like that!
Stephanie Gati
Bridesmaid
As Rob's sister, Hannah was probably more nervous to meet Stephanie than she was to even meet Rob's parents - there's something about wanting a sister to like you that felt even more daunting than parental approval. But upon meeting Stephanie, Hannah realized she is truly a very kind and gracious person who is easy to get along with. Both share a love for running - but Hannah has always refused to run with Steph because she's worried she won't be able to keep up! Hannah looks forward to having a new sister, especially one like Steph,
George Gati
Father of the Groom
The boss man. Big papa. The man, the myth, the legend. George Gati has been one of the most important parts of Rob's life since, well, he gave it to him. George instilled in Rob a zest for life, a big, hearty laugh, and to live with character and honesty. There's nothing Rob loves more than hearing the stories of his dad's escapades.
Leona Brenner-Gati
Mother of the Groom
The matriarch of the Gati clan. An impressive woman who kicked butt in the workplace and shattered glass ceilings. Leona gave Rob his sense of dedication, hard work ethic, and always striving to be the best you can be. Leona was always there helping on book reports, essays, and of course science projects. Rob owes a lot of his better qualities to Mom. Oh yeah, and his James Bond obsession too.
Jonathan Drum (JD)
Best Man
JD and Rob have been terrorizing the mean streets of the Millbrook neighborhood in Princeton Junction since 1995. They've had countless adventures together that can't be summed up. For over two decades, JD has served as Rob's go-to teammate, confidante, financial advisor, love guru, and much more. His reward for it all is having to plan an immensely complicated bachelor party consisting of 24 guys. JD has yet to beat Rob 1-on-1 in basketball.
Derek De La Rosa
Groomsman
Derek and Rob go way back to Team 7A in Middle School. Although the friendship didn't solidify until one fateful summer day in 10th grade when they both spotted each other at a summer politics program at Cornell. Their fates would be intertwined since that day, ditching political theory classes (lets get serious, they were both focusing way more on the girls) and following their passions for all things movies and TV. Fast forward to 2010, Derek came out to visit Rob the summer he moved out to LA. Little did they know that very weekend Rob's roommate would say he was moving out, and Derek ditched the east coast for LA and would be roommates for years to come.
Mitch Akselrad
Groomsman
Rob and Mitch were destined to be Angelinos together. They first met doing the high school musicals together. Rob was always the dude in the background, Mitch was always the lead (that bastard). Mitch wanted Rob to be the star of his feature movie he was directing in high school, but Rob was unable to perform due to a severe illness that struck him in 12th grade, senioritis. They both independently came out to LA chasing Hollywood glory, and by chance bumped into each other outside a bar in Santa Monica. The rest became history as they became roommates and Sopranos watching compatriots for years.
Dave Uppal
Groomsman
Rob and Dave met in college, where Dave was studying to become a chemical engineer. Rob always enjoyed hanging with Dave, whom he believed in school was his most formidable opponent for the king of laziness. You could usually find the two together sitting on a couch watching TV somewhere, not moving. Dave stepped it up since graduation, putting Rob to shame with his business degree and entrepreneurship. When the two get together though, there is a serene reversion to the days of yore. You can usually find them laughing at some stupid YouTube video together.
Mike Kratsios
Groomsman
Rob and Mike spent their senior year of college literally locked away together. Princeton assigns students to 6x4 rooms in Firestone Library called carrels to write their senior thesis, of which Mike and Rob shared one and got to know each other all too well. Their mutual love of basketball didn't help their academic pursuits, as they spent most of their time in the carrel watching Steph Curry's burgeoning college career rather than actually writing their papers. They managed to make it out alive, and have stayed close no matter where careers have taken them around New York, LA, SF, and DC. Mike even flew to LA for Rob's 30th birthday, and was the last survivor keeping up with Rob on his party bus that wouldn't end.
Danny Samit
Groomsman
Danny and Rob met as true nerds should - as freshmen officers in college for the Undergraduate Film Organization (UFO). Danny was webmaster and the key marketer, getting those butts in seats at the Frist Student Center Theater. And Rob was finance chair, tallying up the ticket sale totals. For years, Danny and Rob have shared a weird sense of humor that, of course given their start, would have them both wind up in the entertainment industry. They can talk Simpsons, Ninja Turtles, Super Nintendo for days. Danny was the trailblazer that got his foot in the door at Fox, and helped Rob get over there soon after.