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MrWillyAdkins

Director - Actor - Producer - Adventurer

Mr. Willy's Personal Blog

RIP Dino Bradley

I learned today that a very good friend of mine in "Guitar Town" (as he always called Nashville when we spoke), passed away back in late December 2017 from a heart attack. Dino Bradley was not only one of the finest guitar players in the world (several gold records with Hank Jr, David Allen Coe, and others) but he was also one the best human beings I ever met. When I first planted my feet in Nashville to start college back in 1998, I stopped in at a little music shop called "Bradley's Guitars" and met one of the most humble, talented and welcoming people. What was planned to be a quick stop in a local music shop, ended up lasting for over 4 hours and included a jam session even after the shop doors closed for the day (a true honor to be able to say I played music with Dino). This became a regular practice and I even helped run the music shop on occasion and started building my own name by painting custom shop guitar bodies out of a closet turned paint booth in the shop. I soon met his wife (at the time) Sandy Hughes Bradley and also his young son Gordon Bradley (who along with my daughters, was the proud topic of many conversations I shared with him over the near 20 years since we met. Conversations in our absence have fallen a little further apart in recent years, as we both have had such busy lives in the world of entertainment, but always a highly respected friend, artist and human being. RIP Dino. You will never be forgotten and I look forward to another jam session when we meet again one day.

Willy, what film projects do you have coming up?

I've had a few people ask what new film projects I have coming up...  After we wrapped up production on Gordon Finn 2, I decided that I was going to take a short break from any new film projects with a couple minor exceptions.  Those exceptions are two LGBT micro-shorts, Infernal Angels and Untraditional (because I have a planned event for the two to premiere).  The next question I always get is, why?  It comes for several reasons really.  The first and foremost is that I have heard a number of people complaining about other filmmakers recently who constantly keep jumping from one unfinished film to another and to another and not getting any of them done.  Or getting something completely or just needing one minor task finished, but putting it aside for years without release when a huge number of people have worked on it for free with the only compensation being seeing the finished film (meaning, they aren't even getting "exposure").  I do not want to be that guy and I currently have 3 films in post production right now (Missing Peace, Spilt Blood and Gordon Finn 2).  So I have vowed to finish what I have on my plate before adding anything more to it.  Another major reason is that I have been working with my partners to reorganize how we do things.  Pulling the plug on Sister of the Wolf was the hardest decision I have made in my film career and not something I ever want to be forced to do again.  A large number of people put in a huge amount of time, talent and effort.  I recognize all of their work and will forever be thankful for all they have done.  I will also forever be in debt to them all for not being able to see the project to the finish line.  To prevent this situation in the future, I have a new plan to reorganize how we do our preproduction and production process.  I also recognize that we need to fill a few key crew roles with regular dedicated people so that I can concentrate on being a Director when on set, instead of wearing 10 hats because of lack of other crew able to do certain specialty roles such as Director of Photography.  

So, for everyone that has asked, thank you for taking an interest in my work.  And to those who have worked on past project and those who are sending me messages inquiring about getting involved in future film projects, thank you for your patience.  I don't want to make any time frame promises, but I'm estimating getting things caught up and reorganized by early 2018.  I'll be spending some time attending conventions to promote what we have done, while at the same time pushing to get everything we have done thus far available for everyone to see.  ~ Willy 

Saying Goodbye To 2015, A Year In Review

Hello Friends!  As we all say goodbye to another year, I like to reflect on people and things that took place over the year to offer not only praise to huge influences but also lessons learned, sad loss and great memories.  Tomorrow I will release another writing to feature new plans for 2016!  For now, here is my 2015 in review…

FILM FESTIVALS

In my business world, 2015 saw my film festivals & entertainment branch into new regions.  We debuted the Horror in the Hills & Smoky Mountain Film Festival in Gatlinburg, TN.   The events were small, but we did break ground and generated some new interest leading into the new year.  One upset for the year was the Afterlife Paranormal Conference & Film Festival that was to take place in another new region for us, Gettysburg PA.  Unfortunately, we were forced to do an online awards only festival due to lack of people able to make the event.  We have taken a great lesson from this situation and are implementing new ways to prevent that from ever happening again.  The Chicago Paracon & Film Festival had a double booking issues on the part of the venue, but we were able to downsize the event and reschedule in order to keep it going.  On the brighter side, all other events went well and we proudly put over 200 independent films on screen and provided over 100 awards to deserving filmmakers!  For this alone, I call it a successful year.  It was also a true privilege to induct Wolf McKinney, Anita Nicole Brown, Michael Schmid and Dragon Alexander into our Breaking Fate Hall of Fame this year.

FILM PROJECTS

I also held open auditions in Gatlinburg, TN for the very first time back in February and met many amazingly talented individuals from the area.  “Did I Scare You” became my first film produced in the Smoky Mountains area as well.  It was great to work with some already established film family from Chicagoland as well as some new faces from the Smoky Mountains region.  This year we world premiered “What in the Sam Hill”, “Guardianship” and “A Woman And A Gun”.  Several of our films were selected by various film festivals in different parts of the country and we even brought home a good number of awards.  The award I’m most honored to have this year was presented to me by Randy Lee Beasley at The Smokey Night Film Festival for Best Actor in the film “Gordon Finn”. This is my very first time winning a Best Actor award and it is the first time I’ve really ever received any major acknowledgment for my work as an actor.  A very close second was a simple Thank You award presented to me by my dear friend and actress Anita Nicole Brown to honor my commitment to the Indie Arts.  With all of that said, the absolute biggest efforts in our film work have been in the production of my feature film “Sister of the Wolf”.  Over half of the film is now shot and man was getting that accomplished a HUGE undertaking.  We have yet to get it completely wrapped up, but we have been working on plans for that to happen in 2016 finally and for good.

CREATIVE

This year I signed with Talent Trek Agency in Knoxville, TN in effort to get more acting work in television.  TTA is a great organization that I unfortunately, haven’t been able to take great advantage of yet.  I was in Chicago filming “Sister of the Wolf” through much of the busy season.  Hopefully, 2016 will see more things from my new relationship with TTA.

PERSONAL / PEOPLE

I’m a guy with thousands of acquaintances and few truly close friends.  Both of which I truly appreciate greatly and can never express enough gratitude to.  I’m going to take a moment to acknowledge just a few individuals who have had some kind of major impact on me either personally or professionally in 2015…

Dixie Belle & Bethany Madison – My daughters.  You both give me purpose in ever single day, when I would feel I have none otherwise on many of days.  You are my heart and soul and always my number one above all else.  I love you both so much and take great value in every moment we have together.  I thank you both for simply being the sweet, understanding, passionate, loving, creative and beautiful girls that you are.  You make me so very proud every day and I tear up writing this because of how honored I am to be your father.  You are both by far the best thing to ever happen to me in my life.  I love you both.

Mikka Rosen – We somehow managed to make 7 years together this year.  It is amazing to think we have been together that long… Time just slips away.  I know we have seen our struggles, as any relationship does, but I have to thank you for making sacrifices along with me and continuing to stand by my side through both the good times and the bad.  I love you very much and can’t imagine you not being my family.  Thank you for sharing in moves, holidays, family events, financial headaches and creative projects.  I love you!

Clarisse Behr – We have known each other for a few years now and it has been awesome to see our friendship grow so much in 2015.  I easily call you one of the closest people to me right now even tho we are hundreds of miles apart.  Thank you for being there for me so much this year and dedicating so much of your time and heart to making me happy.  I love you!

Wolf – What a hell of a year we have shared.  I think you and I both will agree that 2015 has been a hell of a challenging year and it is easy to say good riddance.  Regardless of the people lost, health battles and major struggles, I know damn well that it would have been 10 times worse without you to share the battles with.  Thank you for being family.  Much love brother.

Britney Gavin – Bitch, I love you!  Thank you for being the best in bestie this year!  I’m excited to have you living much closer again and hope to see more of you in 2016.

Suzzanne & Alex – Thank you for letting me be the star of the new series “Living in Suzzanne Monk’s Basement”!  I was made to feel like family as I invaded your home for two months and I’m forever grateful for your hospitality and wide variety of wigs & accessories!  Much love to you both and Happy New Year!

Nicole Rose – RIP Beautiful… You were such a huge personality in a little body.  I have always had the upmost respect and love for you.  I’ve shed many tears for you this year both before and after you left this world for a greater place.  Watching you battle for so long was a true display of the strength that you have always possessed.  You made such an impact on my life and that of many others who also loved and adored you.  I look forward to seeing you again one day.  RIP Love.

Michael Wexler – Thank you for the several years of random phone calls and text messages in effort to simply brighten my day or make me laugh.  Thank you for being in my directorial debut film.  Thank you for sharing the screen with me.  Thank you for hosting my festival event.  Thank you for going the extra mile to benefit what I do.  And thank you for being a very positive person in my life offering nothing but the best in laughter and friendship.  RIP Wex.

Ann Sheehan – I think this year we truly learned a lot more about each other and things we never knew we had in common.  It has been a great experience to know I’m not alone with some things and that you can be called on anytime needed.  It is even more an honor to be able to offer that same support to you.  I wish you nothing but joy and happiness in the coming year.  Much love.

Chuck Winstead – Thank you for being the one person to truly help me find my place here in the Smokies.  I appreciate all of your efforts in my film and festival work here in TN.  I would have not been able to pull off the things I have here without your help, support and friendship.  I thank you repeatedly for the friendship and projects that we share.  Happy New Year to you and cheers to another year of films, festivals and friendship to come! 

Dragon Alexander – Forever the most helpful, thoughtful, ever-giving and selfless person anyone could ever know.  Thank you so much for not just being a part of my life and career, but for being a true friend.  Warm wishes for a better 2016 full of friends, films and fun!

Tom McNicholas – Thank you for all of your support with pretty much anything and everything since the day we met.  I’m truly blessed to have you for a friend.  Happy New Year.

Betty & Paul – Thank you for being our Smoky Mountain family.  We are blessed to have you for friends and to have you always looking out for us.  Much love in the coming year!

Anita Nicole Brown – Always supporting and guiding me, I certainly notice and appreciate all of your efforts, support and love.  I hope 2016 brings big things for you.  Much love!

I could really go on and name off 4 or 5 times as many people.. But I am just going to highlight these great individuals and send my blessings to all others as well.  Tomorrow I will make another blog post about plans for the upcoming year including films, festivals, business, adventure and more.  With that, I wish you all a very Happy New Year!  May it be filled with all the love, enjoyment, life lessons and entertainment you seek.  ~ Willy

HELP WANTED: BREAKING FATE ENTERTAINMENT

I'm going to be looking for a lot of dedicated people to join new planning / production committees that I'm assembling for each of Breaking Fate Entertainment's film festival events. If you have an interest in getting involved, please watch the Breaking Fate Entertainment Facebook Page for postings / updates over the next few days.www.facebook.com/breakingfateentertainment

Film Festivals I will be seeking help for:
The Chicago Horror Film Festival (Chicago, IL)
The Indie Horror Film Festival (Gatlinburg, TN)
Laugh Or Die Comedy Fest (Northern Illinois)
Smoky Mountain Film Festival (Gatlinburg or Pigeon Forge TN)
The Chicago Para-Con & Film Festival (Chicago, IL)
Prairie State Film Festival (Illinois)
Horror In The Hills (Gatlinburg or Pigeon Forge TN)
Afterlife Paranormal Conference & Film Festival (Gettysburg, PA)
Hardcore Horror Fest (Northern Illinois)
Mountain of Laughs (Gatlinburg or Pigeon Forge, TN)
Fabulous Film Fest (To Be Determined)
Cinema Soup Film Festival (Mattoon, IL)
Smoky Mountain Paracon (Gatlinburg, TN)

DETAILS FOR INTERESTED INDIVIDUALS: Breaking Fate Entertainment will be celebrating it's 10 year anniversary in 2016 and the year will mark many tough decisions and do or die efforts. I've had a vision for this company for a long time and I still haven't seen it through 10 years later. I'm looking for individuals who believe in my vision of producing, promoting and distributing 100% independent art in all media types. This is and has always been about the desire to provide more opportunity and a stage for indie artists. It is not about money, but passion. However, my passion admittedly comes with many let downs, failures and heavy personal financial expense. One thing that I know above and beyond anything else is that I can not continue to do this on my own any longer without a solid team of dedicated individuals to help me build these events to their potential. I need to find individuals who can share in my vision and put in a true effort to help make these events what they should be. 2016 is the 10th anniversary and also my last effort before I have to pull the plug and consider other options. I am asking and pleading for help to keep my vision not just alive, but growing. Thank you in advance for anyone who responds and truly will offer their true effort.

I will be seeking help with: Sponsorship sales, Marketing, Street teams, booking, event planning, possible fundraising events to build more overhead if without sponsors (currently EVERYTHING comes out of my personal pocket), transportation & hospitality coordinator, vendor sales, tech crew, stage management, box office staff, security, contests, charity outreach coordinator (I wish to have ways to benefit charity with each event), venue / location scouts & coordinators, bookkeeping / accounting, publicist(s), Videographers (behind the scenes video at each event, also looking for directors / editors), Media producers (including award ceremony after effects style animations, commercial producers, etc.), Event Photographers (seeking photographers for each event to take pictures with step and repeat backgrounds as well as standard event photography), Awards dept. manager (will assemble judges for each event, provide media & judging materials and tally scores), Workshop coordinators, After hour events coordinators and so much more.

Beyond the film festivals I have several departments established within Breaking Fate Entertainment that are basically start up operations that I am waiting on the right individuals to help launch, because I simply can't do on my own including Breaking Fate Radio, Breaking Fate Records and more...

Most all of this list, minus a few minor exceptions, is stuff that I have been trying to do on my own currently for lack of sponsorship and inability to pay. This is why I need people who believe in my vision and have a similar desire to keep stages for independent art and think of that before money. With the right team for each event, I'm confident they will grow dramatically... Growth will bring income and reward for everyones effort. But, before that I need dedicated people to believe in the potential and join me in making it a reality. If this is you, then I can't tell you how much I look forward to talking to you. Many thanks for reading ~ Willy

Destination America's "Exorcism: Live" - Mixed Emotions

Happy Halloween and a blessed Samhain my friends!

As I dig into a little advertising work today (yes, I work on Halloween..lol), I glance at the worlds trends as I do every day when I first get to my desk. And today it seems that yesterday's Exorcism: Live! broadcast on Destination America​ has the world talking.

I did not watch the entire program, but I did have it on while I was at my desk working last evening and I have to say that I very much expected the heavily mixed reviews today... Most on the negative side... And my personal feelings about the broadcast (or even the idea of attempting to do so) are just like the reviews today... Very mixed and leaning more towards a bad idea overall.

Production reviews are very negative. This was to be expected, as in my experience in the paranormal (and also in entertainment), if you are doing a 2 hour live broadcast in regards to anything paranormal (that is honest / not staged) and expect anything extremely dramatic to happen during that time, you are always going to be let down. Most paranormal evidence you see on TV or in the media (that is true) is selected and cut from hundreds of hours of stockpiled footage & audio. This simple bit of common sense will tell you that most will be disappointed at the outcome of this broadcast, as most average joe's sitting at home watching this programming are expecting to see "crazy stuff" screaming and flying off the walls like major motion pictures would do. Also on the production side, and one of the biggest complaints I have read thus far (and one I agree with 100%) is that the programmings was overwhelming covered in commercial advertisements... That alone completely killed any chance of viewers having a chance to really grasp what is going on, because the moment you start to get curious and interested you were thrown into commercial and upon returning to the broadcast, everything was different.

On the more positive side, I have to lend my respect and personal thanks to the individuals involved as well as producers for not allowing this to turn into a series of staged false effects. I know several of the individuals involved in this event on a personal level and respect them for taking a chance with this production on both a spiritual and professional level. One falsehood on anyone's part could sabatash the credibility of everyone involved. Everyone already takes a professional risk by simply committing to this program knowing the mixed reactions that will follow. And I mostly commend them for putting themselves in a position that is seen as extremely dangerous on a spiritual scale. I myself would not have ever agreed to be part of this production. I am thankful to hear that everyone is doing ok and I do hope that everyone continues to be ok.

In the end, more than anything, I am just glad that everyone is ok. It wasn't TV that I was very excited about, but more so curious about public backlash towards individuals that I very much respect. I was happy to see nothing overly dramatic happen rather than the alternative, for which can be extremely dangerous. To my friends and colleagues involved in this event, please continue to surround yourself with positive energy and protection in whatever form you believe in and works best for you. Regards ~ W

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DDP Won Dark Image of the Day on Model Mayhem 3/1/2015!!

Deviant Desires Photo: Blog Imported Photos-photos &emdash;
Willy Adkins / Deviant Desires Photography won the "Dark Image of the Day" contest on ModelMayhem.com with this awesome image above featuring Model: Euphoria as a "Zombie Clown", shot on location at the old DDP Dungeon Studio in Dekalb, IL!

Thanks to all who voted for this image, and bravo to the other artists who contributed such awesome images to the contest!

DDP Won Dark Image of the Day on Model Mayhem 2/27/2015!!

Deviant Desires Photo: Blog Imported Photos-photos &emdash;
Willy Adkins / Deviant Desires Photography won the "Dark Image of the Day" contest on ModelMayhem.com with this awesome image above featuring Model: Genocidal Creation as "Clockwork Orange", shot on location at the old DDP Dungeon Studio in Dekalb, IL!

Thanks to all who voted for this image, and bravo to the other artists who contributed such awesome images to the contest!

THE FINAL CUT REVIEWS “GORDON FINN” & “BALLOON FEAST!

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Our friend Mark Krawczyk over at The Final Cut / Special Mark Productions just released a review of 2 new Breaking Fate Entertainment Short Films, Gordon Finn (Willy Adkins Producer / Co-Writer / Lead Actor) & Balloon Feast (Willy Adkins Director / Producer / DP / Editor)!  Both films can be seen this weekend at The Chicago Horror Film Festival!

DDP Won Dark Image of the Day on Model Mayhem 9/19/2014!!

Deviant Desires Photo: April Berry &emdash;
Willy Adkins / Deviant Desires Photography won the "Dark Image of the Day" contest on ModelMayhem.com with this awesome image above featuring Model: April Berry, shot on location at Bartonville Insane Asylum!

Thanks to all who voted for this image, and bravo to the other artists who contributed such awesome images to the contest!

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