Don't Kill the Messenger with Movie Strategist Kevin Goetz Roxanne Taylor (Producer) & Deon Taylor (Writer/Director) Discuss Filmmaking, Movie Research, & More!
Kevin is joined by visionary producer and executive Roxanne Taylor and her husband, writer, director, and producer, Deon Taylor. Together, Roxanne and Deon have produced and directed Black and Blue, Fatale, Meet the Blacks, Meet the Blacks 2, The Intruder, Supremacy, and several others.
Roxanne Avent Taylor, Producer
Deon Taylor, Writer, Director, Producer
Roxanne and Deon co-founded the film company Hidden Empire Film Group, a multidimensional independent film company that has produced a strong slate of movies and TV shows. Through Hidden Empire Film Group, Roxanne and Deon find their projects, find the financing for the projects, create the marketing campaigns, and then distribute their own films.
Underrepresentation in Hollywood (4:08)
Roxanne and Deon discuss how they got their start in Hollywood. They both loved movies and wanted to make the kind of movies they wanted to see. One of their goals was to give opportunities to underrepresented communities in Hollywood, namely the African American community. Kevin Goetz touches on a project that he is bringing to historically black colleges and universities that aims to expose students in these communities to the business of market research in film and television.
The Cheat Code and making movies for a diverse audience(14:26)
Deon talks about audience testing and how he has come to believe it is like a cheat code for making a better movie. The discussion shifts to “the culture” and how the African American community was underserved by Hollywood in the past. The trio discusses how cultural shifts and trends cross racial barriers and how this affects filmmaking and audience testing in the wake of the MeToo Movement and the Black Lives Matter Movement.
The importance of allies (25:16)
Roxanne and Deon discuss the vision of Hidden Empire Film Group and their goal of making movies for everyone. They talk about the importance of allies and how striving to work with everyone allows them to create more opportunities for underrepresented people in Hollywood and makes good business sense.
The highs and lows of audience screen testing (37:49)
Deon tells the story of the audience test screening for The Intruder and touches on the range of emotions that filmmakers go through in the audience testing process. The trio discusses other audience testing experiences, including a film that tested great and one that didn’t test well.
Sage Advice (42:52)
Kevin asks Roxanne to offer a piece of sage advice to a young person who wants to get their start in film. Roxanne discusses the benefits of education and film school, but also how education differs from the real-life experience on a movie set.
Host: Kevin Goetz
Guests: Roxanne and Deon Taylor
Producer: Kari Campano
For more information about Roxanne and Deon's upcoming projects:
Website: https://hiddenempire.tv/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hiddenempirefilmgroup/
For more information about Kevin Goetz:
- Website: www.KevinGoetz360.com
- Audienceology Book: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Audience-ology/Kevin-Goetz/9781982186678
- How to Score in Hollywood: https://www.amazon.com/How-Score-Hollywood-Secrets-Business/dp/198218986X/
- Facebook, X, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Substack: @KevinGoetz360
- LinkedIn @Kevin Goetz
- Screen Engine/ASI Website: www.ScreenEngineASI.com