Deon Taylor s an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He is the founder of Hidden Empire Film Group. His latest movie, Traffik hits theaters, April 20th, 2018.

 

 

Deon and I chat everything from growing up in the 'murder capital of the world' to playing for the NBA to segwaying into Hollywood to how an African Prince tried to swindle him out of a million dollars to his new film Traffik and tons more. 

Pre Show Notes

-- Amazon Studios Shuts Down Open Script-Submission Program - Now, Amazon Studios’ crowdsourced-script program is dead, a tacit acknowledgement by the ecommerce giant’s entertainment division that it will only produce stuff greenlit the traditional, Hollywood way.

-- Piracy as Marketing Tool? ‘The Man from Earth: Holocene’ Producers Have Made $45,000 From Self-Pirating Their Movie

"More than two months before its April 3 release on digital and DVD, they uploaded it to The Pirate Bay — available in up to 1080p HD format — and it spread to other services. The video is book-ended by an appeal from director-producer Richard Schenkman to consider donating some money if they watched the movie. “If you like it, support it, and remember that sharing is caring,” reads the note they included with the digital versions they distributed on piracy networks.

Since “self-pirating” their movie on Jan. 15, according to Schenkman and producer Eric D. Wilkinson, they’ve received nearly $45,000 in donations via their site, manfromearth.com, from fans and supporters around the world including China, Brazil and Europe."

— Want to help me make a short trailer project?

The weather is finally getting nice in Philly, and I’m finally going to make something again.

I’m aiming for a July 2018 shoot date for a fun, fake trailer project here in the Philly area. I’ll be looking for actors, a location manager, storyboardist, and a few other key crew roles.

If you’re interested in helping shoot me an email, [email protected] and put Fake Trailer Project in the subject line.

— Quentin Tarantino Writing Masterclass (A collection of advice)

Over 20,000 views, 750 thumbs up, and a ton of great feedback.

This is a video I edited together from various Tarantino writing advice I’ve heard over the years. Please let me know what you think of it.

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Show Notes

--  [00:03:14] - Growing up in Gary, Indiana

-- [00:04:13] Rampage - When three different animals become infected with a dangerous pathogen, a primatologist and a geneticist team up to stop them from destroying Chicago. Starring The Rock

-- [00:05:16] Donkey Kong - The games of the first genre are mostly single-screen platform/action puzzle types, featuring Donkey Kong as the opponent in an industrial construction setting. Donkey Kong first made his appearance in the 1981 arcade machine called Donkey Kong, in which he faced Mario, now Nintendo's flagship character. This game was also the first appearance of Mario, pre-dating the well-known Super Mario Bros. by four years.

-- [00:07:39] Predator -  is a 1987 American sci-fi horror action film directed by John McTiernan and written by brothers Jim and John Thomas. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as the leader of an elite special forces team which is on a mission to rescue hostages from guerrilla-held territory in Val Verde in Central America's Northern Triangle. Kevin Peter Hall co-stars as the titular antagonist, a technologically advanced form of extra-terrestrial life secretly stalking and hunting the team. Predator was written in 1985, under the working title of Hunter. Filming began in April 1986 and creature effects were devised by Stan Winston.

-- [00:09:29] Easy Rider -  is a 1969 American independent road drama film written by Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Terry Southern, produced by Fonda, and directed by Hopper. Fonda and Hopper played two bikers who travel through the American Southwest and South carrying the proceeds from a drug (cocaine) deal. The success of Easy Rider helped spark the New Hollywood era of filmmaking during the early 1970s.

-- [00:10:24] - Understanding worlds and feeling art as a director

-- [00:14:58] - Charlie Parker -  also known as Yardbird and Bird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Parker was a highly influential jazz soloist and a leading figure in the development of bebop, a form of jazz characterized by fast tempos, virtuosic technique and advanced harmonies. Parker was a blazingly fast virtuoso, and he introduced revolutionary harmonic ideas including rapid passing chords, new variants of altered chords, and chord substitutions. His tone ranged from clean and penetrating to sweet and somber. Parker acquired the nickname "Yardbird" early in his career. This, and the shortened form "Bird", continued to be used for the rest of his life, inspiring the titles of a number of Parker compositions, such as "Yardbird Suite", "Ornithology", "Bird Gets the Worm", and "Bird of Paradise". Parker was an icon for the hipster subculture and later the Beat Generation, personifying the jazz musician as an uncompromising artist and intellectual rather than just an entertainer.

-- [00:20:09] - Going into Hollywood with No Degree and No Creds

-- [00:26:35] - Making People Uncomfortable as an Artist

-- Dude, Where's My Car? - Two potheads wake up after a night of partying and cannot remember where they parked their car.

-- Clerks - A day in the lives of two convenience clerks named Dante and Randal as they annoy customers, discuss movies, and play hockey on the store roof.

-- Menace II Society - A young street hustler attempts to escape the rigors and temptations of the ghetto in a quest for a better life.

-- [00:33:14] Andre Ingram -  is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association(NBA). He played college basketball for American University, where he finished his four-year career as the school's fifth all-time leading scorer with 1,655 points. He then spent four seasons with the Utah Flash between 2007 and 2011, and 3½ seasons with the Los Angeles D-Fenders between 2012 and 2016. After a short stint in Australia with the Perth Wildcats, Ingram returned to the D-Fenders in March 2017. He continued on with the re-named South Bay Lakers for the 2017–18 season, before joining the Los Angeles Lakers in April 2018. Ingram is the NBA G League's career leader in three-point field goals, with 713. He has also scored the fifth-most points in league history (3,901) and won the D-League 3-Point Contest in 2010 and 2016.

-- Los Angeles Lakers' Andre Ingram, 32, has stunning NBA debut after decade waiting for a call-up

-- [00:45:14] - That's what it's about because you know why you didn't show up there because you were going to get something you showed up there because that's what you want to do.

-- [01:04:42] - Lies People Tell

-- [01:08:07] - Deon's story about trying to be scammed by an African Prince

-- Traffik - A couple off for a romantic weekend in the mountains are accosted by a biker gang. Alone in the mountains, Brea and John must defend themselves against the gang, who will stop at nothing to protect their secrets.

In the action packed thriller, Traffik, Brea (Paula Patton) and John (Omar Epps) are off for a romantic weekend in the mountains. Isolated at a remote estate, the couple is surprised by the arrival of two friends, Darren (Laz Alonso) and Malia (Roselyn Sanchez). Just when the weekend starts to get back on track, a violent biker gang turns up and begins to torment them. The foursome are forced to fight for their lives against the gang who will stop at nothing to protect their secrets. The film is written and directed by Deon Taylor, and produced by Roxanne Avent, Paula Patton and Taylor. Codeblack Films, a division of Lionsgate will release the film wide on April 20, 2018.

ContactDeon Taylor

-- Official Site -- Twitter -- Instagram

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