Who is Kel Owens?
Kel Owens is quiet in a crowd, loud in the mind. Can turn any situation into a fit-to-film story. Never takes himself too serious but serious when listening to others. He’s a husband, father to 2 grown daughters. Long-time carpenter/general contractor and a Sag-Aftra Union actor, filmmaker. Started his own company Towering Entertainment Productions.
Kel has been in feature films, television shows, commercials, short films. He has played a variety of characters: cowboys, bikers, a coal miner, a serial killer, a judge and even the Devil.
He had a small role in Django Unchained. Quentin Tarantino and Kel hit it off because both have a sense of humor. Quentin would joke calling Kel “Kill,” saying: “Are you sure your name is Kel not Kill cause you look like one big, scary, mean-ass mother-for.” They would laugh.
Kel was in an episode of the ABC series Suburgatory, where he played a wacked-out hippie guitar player in a cult band with Mae Whitman as the lead singer. Lots of fun and laughter.
Kel had a lead role in Pineapple by Arkasha Stevenson, which played at Sundance and Tribeca film festivals. A great experience that got Kel thinking about making his own movies. So, he wrote a few scripts and started making his own films.
Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?
I remember as a boy enjoying television, and going to the movies was a treat. Disney movies and westerns and the wonderment of it all. And the unbelievably fascinating Planet of the Apes (1968).
Tell us about your project “The Legend Of The Bum-Barian” and “Christmas Card”.
The Legend of the Bum-Barian is a short film written, produced, and directed by me. My youngest daughter, Cheyenne, worked with me on this project. She did the cinematography, narration, and editing. I played the Bum-Barian. It did very well in film festivals and won some awards.
Christmas Card is another short film written, produced, and directed by me. Cheyenne plays one of the leads, and she also edited the film. I play one of the leads as well. We just finished it and submitted it to a few festivals, and it won a silver award in one of them.
Which director inspires you the most?
I like a lot of directors, like Ron Howard. But Clint Eastwood inspires me the most. His longevity and quality of work are amazing. He is very prepared, trusts his cast and crew. I love how he uses shadows on people’s faces. His focus on characters and storytelling is remarkable. Coming from an extensive acting background, I think, helps him create a low-stress, relaxing set.
What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?
Lack of compassion for others. Lack of compassion leads to conflict, and lack of understanding of different perspectives. I would eradicate poverty. Poverty limits opportunities and creates cycles of disadvantages. What stands in the way, becomes the way.
How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?
The last 15 to 20 years, technology has boomed. I’m inventing Smell-A-Vision for the future. So, when you are in the theater watching a scene of someone taking out fresh baked bread from the oven, the audience smells it too. Or in a scene where a character is outside and it starts to rain, the audience smells the Fall rain.
But you have to take the good with the not so good: maybe in a scene a character comes across a skunk, the audience will smell the skunk—or a scene even worse than that. LOL
What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?
When I first heard about Wild Filmmaker magazine, I thought: what a great idea. A magazine for Indie filmmakers out there. An advocate for us! I was hooked. It’s always interesting. A first-rate magazine.
