Suzie HarrisonHe’s living his dream, but this...

Suzie Harrison

He’s living his dream, but this Laguna Beach entrepreneur filmmaker

wasn’t handed it, instead he created it, not letting obstacles get in

his way.

Constantly working on several projects at once, single father

Michael Spencer Taylor, 38, has been shaping his life, doing what he

feels passionate about with his 10-year-old son Dakoda by his side.

He’s instilled in his son important life lessons that they are

both learning along the way.

Taylor started working on a video catching cars going the wrong

way on the one-way frontage road, which parallels Laguna Canyon Drive

called “Frontage Road 101 Laguna Beach.”

“My son skateboards on the frontage road and almost got hit,”

Taylor said.

Children are often in the area where the Boys & Girls Club is also

located.

“The Boys and Girls Club is behind it, which is really nice;

they’ve been helpful making fliers and putting them up saying that

the frontage road is a one-way street,” Taylor said. “I called

Caltrans and they cut the bushes [along the road] and that made a big

difference.”

He took his video camera and started getting footage of the

offenders during rush hour.

“I gave out fliers and asked if they mind if I interview them,”

Taylor said. “I’d ask, ‘how come you’re going the wrong way?’”

Taylor is going to give a copy to Laguna’s traffic sergeant to

illustrate the danger.

“If you want to change the world globally, you need to start on a

small scale on something you believe in,” Taylor said.

Other roads he’s traveled have been tough for Taylor. A road that

includes some conflict with his father about his career choice.

It wasn’t until he was juried into Laguna Art Museum’s current

exhibit “The OsCene: Contemporary Art and Culture in OC” and his

short film “A Message from Our Leader,” was screened that Taylor

received acceptance from his father about his work.

“At the presentation my dad was there and this was the first time

my father validated what I did as a job,” Taylor said. “Before, he

would say, ‘get a real job, this is going to take you nowhere in

life.’”

“OsCene” guest film curator Keiko Beatie said Taylor’s film meshed

with the mission of capturing the work of local talented filmmakers.

“His film blended his two passions into creative artistry --

surfing and his understanding of politics and the world, and its

affects on society,” Beatie said.

“Most filmmakers can’t do the seriousness and the other aspects of

life and how it affects the world. I was deeply moved ... he was able

to do that and express creativity as well. That’s why I thought it

was important for his work to be [chosen.]”

Taylor has developed an impressive resume since first becoming

involved with extreme sports filmmaking, being a pioneer in many

ways.

His journey also included some impressive firsts. He worked on the

first cable-access extreme sports show, “Disgusted TV,” and founded

the first surfing video magazine, “Progression Video Magazine.”

After years in the industry, Taylor started a film company,

Catapult Enterprises. His film “Nobody’s Heroes,” has been two years

in the making and will be premiered at Laguna’s South Coast Cinemas

next month.

“I wanted to work on a movie that doesn’t have the same guys in

every surf video, meaning the top 40,” Taylor said. “I had no big

surf company giving me cash, so I filmed the guys blowing up my

backyard.”

Taylor filmed from Santa Cruz to the Mexican boarder and lived the

experience with the underground surfers.

He’s also been working on a movie called “A Piece of Laguna” for

the past 10 years and hopes to have it done by 2007.

“It focuses on the real Laguna Beach, not the made up MTV

version,” Taylor said.

He’s partnered with Digital Wunderland to distribute his movies.

“Our whole deal is [making rated] ‘E for everyone’ movies,” Taylor

said. “Our goal is making movies a family can watch, still ‘core,’

but doesn’t have the separatism or the degrading of women or men.

“I tell my son you help me as a person and I’ll help you as a

person. Be honest with things because you’re going to make mistakes.

There should be no shame, guilt or fear just learn from mistakes --

it helps you grow and next time make better decisions.”

Dakoda said he feels lucky being raised by his dad.

“You’re like a mom and a dad,” Dakoda said to his father. “You’re

always there for me. It’s like I have two moms.”

Taylor’s other projects can be accessed at https://www.adrenal

andhotelcasino.com and https://www.fiftyfiftywave skates.com.