Behind The Real Podcast

My guest speaker D.R. Bellard is a theater trained actor, filmmaker, writer and standup comedian from Houston Tx. He's starred in multiple stage productions, independent films, national commercials and music videos including assistant directing Brandy latest music video "Baby Mama" ft. Chance the Rapper. He has directed and written 3 award winning short films (9 in total) He's best known for his latest "Shot by an Angel" receiving rave reviews and is a Merit Award winner in the "Hollywood Best Shorts" Competition.

The film qualified to be nominated for an Academy Award and also was just recently accepted into the narrative short film category at the prestigious LA Black Film festival being held Sept 10-13, 2020. He's currently looking for investors and distribution to turn "Shot by an Angel" into a feature length film and has also recently started the "Narrow Path Podcast" where he highlights under appreciated talented artists in the industry, while they just have fun and act a fool. He can be found on Youtube and most other podcast listening platforms.

He's a graduate of Theater of Arts Hollywood Performing Arts School with a Occupational Studies degree in Theatre and is also a graduate of New York Film Academy (Los Angeles) with an Associates Degree of Fine Arts in filmmaking.

My guest speaker Director Brandon Maurice Woodrin was born on August 23, 1987 in New Orleans, He's the oldest of two younger sisters, after graduating from high school, Brandon moved to Los Angeles in 2010 and enrolled at The Los Angeles Film School. Once graduating Brandon moved back home to New Orleans to work for NCIS New Orleans seasons 1 - 3 as a 4th set PA, after wrapping the end of season 3 Brandon moved back to Los Angeles in 2018, Directing a few music videos before speaking with his mentor about coming on as a Ex Producers for the movie. Recently Brandon Woodrin is directing the film “Me And The Dragons Daughter. We learn about this and more on “Behind The Real

My guest speaker actress/director/producer/dancer Keena Ferguson one of her quotes is “You don’t have to be great to get started, but you do have to get started to be great.” Keena Ferguson a Multi-artist, is known for her bright warm smile, strong presence and agility as an actress. She hails from Jefferson City, MO the “Show Me State” and she was most definitely born to be in “Show Biz.” A graduate of The Ohio State University where she received her B.F.A in dance, she moved to Los Angeles less than a week after graduation to begin her career. Her love of all things creative (dancer/choreographer, actress, VO artist, writer, producer, director) has led her to fully accept all of her many talents and Keena now calls herself a multi artist. Keena is currently starring in Tyler Perry’s new TV show Sistas on BET. You can catch her on Wednesday nights playing Leslie Davenport. She has also had roles on the hot Golden Globe and Emmy winning show Atlanta, S.W.A.T on CBS opposite Shemar Moore, recurring on Amazon’s Gortimer Gibbons Life of on Normal Street and many movies on NETFLIX such as RedLine, American Hero and more. She also is the voice of many popular video games like Fortnite, Spiderman, Star Wars, World War Z and more and can be heard at Disneyworld and other theme parks for the brand new Pandora World of Avatar and Star Wars Land.

She has danced for many notable artists such as Kelly Rowland, Gloria Estefan, Marc Anthony, Jay-Z and so many more. She also choreographed the 25th anniversary of the hit Broadway show DREAMGIRLS at the Ford Theatre.

Keena is also the writer, producer and star of the short film Kai that went on to screen in more than 35 film festivals internationally. She expanded her talents again and directed the HBO nominated film Lindon Passing that was also written by and stars Keena. All of the multifaceted roles she’s played has prepared Keena for her most challenging, but most accomplished feeling as an actress; when she performed her NAACP Award winning one- woman show Keena UnBranded. Playing over 10 different characters intertwining dance and live music, Keena UnBranded confirmed to Keena (and her audiences) that the power of honest artistry was a way to not only entertain, but also inspire.

Follow Keena at keenastar on Instagram and Twitter. For more info: www.keenaferguson.com

My guest speaker Kenny Henry aka: The King Konnector is from Lake Charles, Louisiana. The King Konnector is a Anti-Human Trafficking Specialist, Life Coach, and Lifestyle consultant. I connect people to the people and resources he quotes. He interviews artists, student’s, business owners, as well as entrepreneurs. Kenny’s 3 keys to success in life is inspiration, motivation, and action. He also landed acting roles, has a career in Fashion and continues to be a helping source for people. We learn about all of this and more on “Behind The Real”.

My guest speaker Actress/Producer Cassandra Raphael She was born in Boston ,Massachusetts while attending the Lords Academy School at the age of 5, she discoverd they were having auditions for Goldie Locks and the Three Bears, she auditioned, and booked the role of Mama Bear. That is where Cassandra caught the acting bug. She then booked a role in every school play, including Miss Hannigan, where the director closed auditions right after she came in, because she booked the role on the spot. At the age of 15 years old she received her first agent, and then began booking commercials, print work, fashion shows and films. Her first film was In Our House where she played the lead and received acclaim for her performance. Cassandra then went on to book the film Karmaloop and Soul Sister. After graduating Northeastern University, she decided to move to Los Angeles where she booked commercials and films such as The Next One, Mick and Jenny, Assassin Behind the Glass, and Director Mark Ridely’s film The Board. Cassandra started the production company, C.Raphael Productions. The company went on to produce Life in LA, The 60 Second Project, A Raisin in the Sun, and currently now producing the feature film A Broken Chain. We hear about all this and more on “Behind The Real”.

My guest speaker Casting Director/Hip Hop artist Danny Flores was born and raised in South Los Angeles, his music artist name he goes by is Lord Roka. We talk about one of his latest films that he is currently casting staring Marcus T. Paulk which is currently in development that is being pitched to Netflix also we talk about his music career and the joy he has with the reward of helping others. All this and more on “Behind The Real”

My guest speaker Amber Nicole Lawson is a Detroit Michigan Native, who moved to Los Angeles with her car, and her dreams in 2014, after graduating Eastern Michigan University with a BA is Dance, Musical Theater and Arts Management. Currently as the Los Angeles Director & Actor with American Immersion Theater, she has helped develop troupes up and down California, training actors nationwide and writing on the bleeding edge of Immersion Theatre. She has traveled the world performing for the US Military, had a residency as the lead in the Off Broadway production of “The Video Games” and is a proud wife to a Naval Officer. She’s short, spunky, loves food, fashion and anything that can get her traveling! We hear about all this and more on “Behind The Real”

My Guest Speaker Eddie Lingo Jr is an Indie Screenwriter, Director & Producer originally from South Florida, now residing in Utah. Growing up he aspired to be an animator / illustrator. Using almost every aspect of comic books, television, gaming and film to fuel his artistic way, he never considered applying his creativity to writing. Eventually a debate about a feature film ended with the words “​Why don’t you stop talking about it and do it yourself?”​ At that moment it all became clear and in what seemed like the most natural transition, Eddie began writing. He taught himself the screenwriting process and loved it. But writing soon proved it wasn’t enough to satisfy Eddie’s creative drive. Without attending film school, Eddie surrounded himself with people in the industry. He made connections as well as great friendships that provided him the knowledge to become the Indie Director & Producer he is today. After collaborating on a series of projects Eddie finally created his own short film titled “Hypocrite” in 2019. While taking his short film on a festival run, Eddie became inspired to create a platform for low budget filmmakers to compete and showcase their work. Under his direction, the illume Short Film Festival was born.

Writer/Director/Filmmaker/Producer/Social Worker/Foster Mother Mrs. Mary Knight. She is a survivor of incest and child pornography her parents were members of the KKK and pedophiles. Mary’s upbringing was very rough!! Despite all she had endured she shares her testimonies through her films and one of her quotes is “Each ​film That I make has a message I feel compelled to tell.” She enjoys Yoga, Hiking, as well as spending time with her children. She loves to help people and she shares her journey right here on “Behind The Real”

Peachanda DuBose; Writer/Director/Producer: 2x NAACP award winning writer, playwright, director, author, and producer. Also she is the founder and creator of three award brands: The Peach Theatre Awards Cruise, The Mayan Industry Awards , and The Pioneer Awards. Peachanda DuBose is also the founder and CEO of her own production company Mayan Productions. On the podcast we talk a her journey growing up in Norfolk Virginia, How she became a playwright as well as becoming the first woman to have a residency at “The Hudson Theatre” we talk about this and more on “Behind The Real”!!