#3 knee deep

[thaearthisflat]

Three Knee Deep @ the final show at transitions art gallery

[talentmonthlymagazine]

Filmmaker, William Lee, started his career early. As a young man, William saw legend Bruce Lee on screen for the first time. He asked his father to purchase a movie camera so he could replicate the famous martial artists’ exploits. His father agreed and within a year of making his first stab at filmmaking, he received his first film award at the Eye Music Festival in San Francisco. Since then, he has directed over 30 film projects, including 3 Knee Deep, Bad Fellaz, Army from Hell, Dark Target, Code Black, Demons Rising, Crak’d Pipes: Meeting of the Assassins, Soulripperz, Room 13: The Terrorist Project, Edge of Tolerance, and Treasure of the Ninja.

Tell us how you got into the independent filmmaking industry?

“In 1974, the KungFu movie craze was in full bloom, and being a kid from New York, I was quite naturally in the center of this explosion. My father purchased me a super 8 movie camera. The first film I ever shot was a Kung Fu action film called, Hands of the Kung Fu Dragon. My late brother, who was visiting us from Brooklyn, filmed the 4 minute epic, and the rest as they say, is history.”

How difficult is it making a film with little or no budget?

Until recently, most of my 40 years in this business have been making films with my own money and ingenuity. While some people see this as an excuse to avoid making a feature, or opting for the easy way out by making short films, I found ways to make features in my early teens, using real motion picture film. The hard lessons learned by having nothing, prepared me for the real world of feature film making. It taught me first and foremost to do the most with what little you had.”

“The only downside is that a notoriously shady company named York Entertainment never paid me a dime for a film they made big money from.”

What are some things that independent filmmakers can do to minimize cost?

“The biggest mistake made by filmmakers, is this keeping up with the Joneses crap. I have been amazed at the number of so called ”producers” who are more concerned with the bells and whistles on their cameras, than they are with the script and who the hell is behind the camera. No amount of Red Epic cameras, jibs, cranes, and fancy buttons can make up for a shitty script, or bad cinematography.”

Tell us about your first film. Was it exciting?

“Hands of The Kung Fu Dragon seemed like a natural thing from the start. It was fun, it was easy, and it got done. And it was in my blood. At the time of making that film, I had yet to see Bruce Lee, but from the other martial arts films I had seen and read about, I had a pretty good handle on what constituted good action. When I finally got to see Bruce Lee on film a few months later, I knew that this would be my life’s work.”

What did you learn from that experience?

“Short films are a practice ground for real filmmakers. The goal of any serious filmmaker should be to make features, not waste time, money and talent always producing these garbage short films as a career goal. If you want to spend your life ”practicing”, you were never meant to be in the pros. Sacrifice, facing adversity, learning to improvise come from shooting feature films because of the challenges they provide. Short films are you and your buddies having a good time and the weekend, and then patting yourselves on the back for your ”practice sessions”. I never wanted to be an amateur, and my first features I made began in my teenage years. My first film festival award came in 1977 at the Eye Music and Film Festival in San Francisco. I was 16 years old.”

Of all your films, which are you the most proud of and why?

“Code Black. It was the first film I had released by a major distribution company. Shot with no budget, it went world wide in 2008. The only downside is that a notoriously shady company named York Entertainment never paid me a dime for a film they made big money from.”

What projects do you have next?

“Our film 3 Knee Deep is currently in its seventh week at RED BOX, a substantial achievement for an unknown indie film producer. We are currently in post production for our next film for RED BOX, called MAGNUS X, which is about a revolutionary movement to combat police brutality and corruption in an American city.”

“Our films Badfellaz is about the world’s first black Mafia don, and Army from Hell, in which I play a Black Jesus who kicks the crap out of demons, are both looking for distribution. On the schedule for later this year is a film called Terminal Ground, and the subject matter is hush hush until we are ready to get it into production.”

Filmmaker, William Lee and a Legacy of Independent Film Filmmaker, William Lee, started his career early. As a young man, William saw legend Bruce Lee on screen for the first time.

[daveyxburns]

3 Knee Deep at FYA Fest 2015

Filmed by myself and @cameronnunez

[thaearthisflat]

Tampa, St. Pete ........ THREE KNEE DEEP

[daveyxburns]

3 KNEE DEEP. 

An actual outrageous band.