Meet Derek Sulek of SulekFilms in Woodland Hills

Today we’d like to introduce you to Derek Sulek.

Derek, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born in Tracy, CA, and moved to Idaho when I was five years old. As a small child, I was enamored with movies. Meeting Val Kilmer and visiting his ranch with my family was a wonderful experience, and further inspired my dream of a Hollywood career. Initially, I wanted to be an actor. But the more time I spent behind the scenes, filming my student projects, the more I knew my true passion was writing and directing.

During middle school, I hung out with the wrong crowd and made a few mistakes, which led to a felony drug charge. Because I was so young, the court gave me a second chance and I took advantage of the opportunity to make wiser life choices. I became involved with the community and began working with special needs students and helping mentor them.

In high school, I joined the speech and debate club. I attended the Christian Science Church, and am the youngest member to join the in the same year as the oldest member of the Mother Church in Boston.

With my focus on my future squarely in mind, I worked hard and graduated high school in three years.

After high school, I moved to Southern California and attended Colombia College, Hollywood, which I also graduated in three years. The support of my church family and the scholarships from the Albert Baker Fund helped me finance my college education. While a student at the school, I met Monica Potter, Rob Van Dam, and Michael Hurst, who have all been influential in my life. I’ve developed wonderful friendships with these people, having tutored Monica’s son, Liam, a fellow student. Rob and I have had many adventures together after he stared in one of my short films. He’s a true inspiration to me. Mike was my favorite teacher, having learned the foundation of directing from him. I am grateful for all the valuable lessons he taught me.

Since graduating College, I have accumulated 400 days as a PA, and have since moved into writing, producing and directing feature films. My journey led me to a team collaboration with fellow producer, Oren Kamara at Creative 7 Media. I could not ask for a more generous mentor and friend. Our projects have taken us to Hawaii, and may soon take us abroad.

I have and continue to work on various projects from music videos, tv shows, web series and feature films.

It is my personal mission to address challenges facing women as I draw inspiration from the difficult social issues impacting all ages and diversity, to write powerful female parts and tell their stories.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Like all aspects of life, there are ups and downs and rarely smooth sailing. One of the struggles with making your way in Hollywood is that there is no direct path to success, and you never really know if you are on that path. I have learned over time to trust in God, and keep my head down, stay humble and remain focused on each project, grateful for every opportunity to work in my industry, earn a living, and grow in my craft.

You cannot compare your journey to other people’s journey, each is unique. You have to believe in yourself, to live job to job, gig to gig, never knowing when the next project is coming to you, which challenges most of the people who choose to work in this industry. In my experience, I cannot let money deter me from following my dream. It’s scary not knowing where the next paycheck is coming from sometimes. But staying on task, budgeting wisely, and trusting in myself has always kept me going.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with SulekFilms – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
My company, SulekFilms, focuses on telling unique stories, with different perspectives, that challenge today’s mindset. We are always looking for creative voices and ways to put those voices at the forefront. One thing I am proud of, and something we are known for, is our ability to tell our stories, no matter the budget. We often embrace the idea that money isn’t going to limit our creative vision, that financial obstacles are only going to make the story stronger.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
From a personal side, I am currently moving in with my wonderful girlfriend, Neginah. I am looking forward to our relationship continuing to grow and expand. She has been an amazing foundation in my ever-changing life and has always been by my side. She helps me stay focused and continue to self reflect and progress.

From a professional side, I am looking forward to continuing to adapt business practices to the world of Covid-19. The industry is ever evolving and changing day to day, and this virus presents new obstacles. I am also looking forward to releasing my short film “Coyote” starring the late WWE Superstar, Shad Gaspard. Working with Shad is one of my fondest memories and I still am in disbelief that he is gone. His passing is a tragedy and I wish only the best for his family. We are planning to release Coyote either late this year or early in 2021.

Contact Info:

• Website: Dereksulek.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: Dereksulek
• Facebook: Sulekfilms
• Twitter: DerekJSulek

Image Credit:
Sulekfilms

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