Today we’d like to introduce you to Jason Taylor.
Hi Jason, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My name is Jason Keith Taylor, and I am the middle child of a Panamanian mother and an African American father, who survived them getting divorced when I was eleven years old. I became a storyteller, was nicknamed Baby Spike Lee, and have been raised by God ever since. I grew up in Koreatown, Los Angeles, CA, and was a quiet park kid. I spent a lot of my time at Ardmore Recreation Center, which is now Seoul International Park. I grew up enjoying my family and friends, but I enjoyed my solitude even more. I was that kid who listened to music 24/7, and there wasn’t a day you would catch me without a pair of headphones on.
Things for me started when I was nine, and I wrote a church play, but it wasn’t until high school that my career started to take shape. I became a hip-hop artist in my sophomore year of high school, and that furthered my love for writing and music. When I decided to pivot, God opened a door I didn’t know I needed, and I became an intern for a major TV Network while I was in college. That decision created my love for how the entertainment industry works. When I stepped away from that opportunity, I started my own production company and developed a few projects that I was passionate about. That created my love for storytelling and authenticity.
My first project was a documentary film titled “Fight the Force,” and my follow-up project was a silent short film titled “Validated Freedom.” I was new to Hollywood, so I made plenty of mistakes along the way. I kept pushing forward, and right when I found some real momentum, the world shut down. I took that opportunity to create as much as I could, and by the time the world opened up again, I went from having 5 projects developed to 40+ projects developed.
I wanted to be ready for the moment anyone in Hollywood came knocking on my door.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My career has experienced its ups and downs. There have been days I felt incredibly inspired to write, and there have been days when I felt like giving it all up. There are days when the ideas just flow like a running faucet, and there are days I can’t think straight to save my life. I remember being in production for a project and being on location at 5:30 in the morning, ready to go, only to be told they triple booked the location and I was bumped off. I had to notify about 18 people to go home, and I felt like I let them all down.
The biggest challenge for me was admitting to myself that my career needed some major improvements, and the one thing that needed to improve the most – was me. I wasn’t happy with 12 years of work, and I felt like I wasted the time of all the people who ever worked with me. I knew I needed to change things up, and I did. I started with myself and redefined my “why.” I fell in love with my favorite films again, and I fell in love with the process again. I needed to remember why I wanted to do this again.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
First, I am a writer, and then I’m a director. I love storytelling so much, and the opportunity to develop authentic and relatable characters and stories makes me feel good. To work with people who inspire me makes me feel good about what I’m doing. To me, every project is Boyz in the Hood, and I want to be around people who eventually branch out and become timeless megastars.
I also love dramatic writing so much that I can’t help but create characters who are so flawed but confident. It’s like I see a piece of me in them, and I want to give them and myself hope that we can make it out. I can write horror, action, suspense, drama, romance, and/or thrillers. I can write shorts and features, original pilots, adaptations, and specs. I can create the artwork, shoot the film, edit the timeline, be a PA, and plan the premiere. I can do all of those things because I love this.
What sets me apart from every filmmaker known to man is that nobody is me. God brought me into this world by myself. Nobody has lived my life, and the only way for anyone to understand what I’ve experienced is for me to share it with the world. I have an old school mentality with a new school approach.
I call myself a Visionary of the New School.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
For those starting out, my advice is simple… TAKE YOUR TIME. Don’t rush the process. Focus on the output and not the outcome. You can’t control how the world is going to react to what you create, but what you can control is how much time you put into making it the best it can be.
Ryan Coogler was asked which of his films was his favorite, and he responded that he doesn’t have one. He said when he worked on Creed, he wanted to make that the best film it could be. When he worked on Black Panther or Fruitvale Station, he wanted to make those projects the best films they could be. His focus was on whatever he was working on at the moment, and he took his time to make it a classic.
Just look at the success of Sinners. We all have passion projects that we want to bring to life, and when the opportunity arises for you to make yours, don’t rush it. Make it the best film it can be.
This doesn’t just apply to film. This applies to anything you’re doing in life. Don’t get caught up with other people’s deadlines. The world will make you feel like you should keep up with other people when the whole time you’re running your own race.
Pricing:
- Know your worth so you’re compensated for your talents
- Understand your value so others can know it
- You’re not cheap and neither is what you do.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.actknowledgeit.myportfolio.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/actknowledgeit/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009290235816
- Twitter: https://x.com/actknowledgeit
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jasontaylor6313
