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Actor-writer-director-producer David Heavener stays fairly busy. Through his Silver Lake International Pictures, Heavener has distributed 15 of the 22 films in which he's acted. Most all of his pictures are genre fare involving action or martial arts and are budgeted in the $750,000 to $2 million range. His most recent outing, Fugitive X - Innocent Target is an actioner written, directed, produced and starring Heavener as an advertising executive selected randomly by filthy rich gamesmen who give him eight hours to survive. The picture screened at the AFM and also stars Richard Norton (License to Kill ), Lynn-Holly Johnson (Ice Castles, For Your Eyes Only ), William Windom (Sommersby ), Chris Mitchum (Tombstone ) and Clement Von Franckenstein (LionHeart ). While Heavener has been successful with his niche-driven lower budget actioners, he has begun increasing the budgets and production values of his films though committed to keeping his sale prices about the same, accepting the fact that he may make a little less profit on each film. "It's really an investment I'm making in my relationships to my buyers," Heavener explains. He's trying to assemble a slate of seven pictures in the $2.5 million range, six in the $3.5 million range and four pictures at current levels. Heavener values the niche market he's operated within and is interested in keeping his presence there. Sure there's competition, "but competition doesn't always breed competence," says Heavener, whose plan to increase production values without charging his buyers more money may be seen as a direct attack on his action fare competitors.
Silver Lake carries a number of eye-catching films (whose titles alone compete with the Jackie Chan starrer Drunken Master for originality and visual oomph) including Bad Attitude, starring Leon and Gina Lim; Jurassic Women, starring Jan-Michael Vincent; the comedy (!) Desert Blues, with Monique Parent and Christopher Judd; and a slew of action titles such as Badge of Fear; Deadly Surrender; Dragon Fury (I and II); Eye of the Stranger; The Final Showdown; Gypsy Angels; and Mission of Mercy.
Between his writing, directing, acting and producing tasks, Heavener still manages to attend all major markets and prides himself on servicing buyer requests throughout the year. He claims to spend one-third of his time responding to buyer needs between markets. He is seeking to maintain relationships with one or two buyers in every territory, so he doesn't have to "put on a dog and pony show to entice brand new buyers" to take a chance on Silver Lake amidst a sea of low budget action title providers. "It's much easier -- and smarter -- to do everything you can to keep current clients happy rather than ignore their pressing needs while you try to lure in new ones," he says. Working hard to maintain current relationships while striving to improve production values and not raise prices sounds like an entrepreneurial plan to stay in business for at least another 22 movies. O.K., so now add "savvy businessman" to Heavener's hyphenate.
