Dass Ramasamy is known for Dora (2017).
Dastan Khalili, filmmaker, charitable force, and poet, infuses humanity and global consciousness into everything he does. An award-winning director and writer, his latest film, the action/drama film, The Way, has garnered more than fifty awards and nine nominations worldwide. Khalili began his filmmaking career in 1995 after graduating with a BA from the Pomona University Theater Academy. His first feature film, which he both directed and starred in, a psychological thriller, Insomnia Manica, premiered in 2005 and was called by the LA Times "an elegantly shot mood piece set amid the downtown LA lost crowd, and the intense Khalili creates a striking screen presence." Since then, he has directed nine feature films, including the 2018 award winning documentary, Master, currently streaming on Amazon Prime, which tells the story of Master Zhou Ting, a globally recognized Qigong, Tai Chi and Kung Fu Grandmaster. His first book of poetry, 90 Two, based on a two word line format Khalili calls DiaVerse has just been published and is available at Barnes and Noble and Amazon, among other outlets. With decades of experience in directing, acting, writing and producing, the filmmaker is dedicated to telling compelling and illuminating stories inspired by the rich, colorful fabric of humanity. With a passion for eastern philosophy and literary classics, through his Alliance of Light Films, Khalili's mission is to combine his love of martial arts with a spiritual journey for his films' characters. The Way, inspired by Victor Hugo's novel The Final Days of a Condemned Man, tells the story of Jane Arcs (Eli Jane), who was condemned to death after brutally killing her opponent in an underground street fight. Jane undergoes a transformation under the tutelage of a fellow inmate and Qi Gong master, learning the way of Qi Gong and embracing her punishment in the spirit of redemption. According to New York Times top five action films to stream now, critic Robert Daniels, "I have a soft spot for meditative action flicks. The Way from the writer-director Dastan Khalili, not only fits the bill, it also includes a metaphysical twist." Born in Tehran, Iran to an Iranian father and an American mother, both architects, Khalili lived in both countries until the Iranian revolution, when in 1981, the family moved to the United States permanently. Khalili grew up surrounded by culture and creativity with a lineage on his mother's side of actors -- his grandmother was a theatre actress, and great grandparents were vaudevillian actors in theater and silent film. At a young age, his father introduced him to classic literature and to poetry, a love of which he continues to have to this day. He moved to LA to pursue acting in 1996, also working behind the scenes in almost every area of filmmaking and went on to direct a wide range of projects including the documentaries Making of a Dream and Earth Turns To Gold, which won Best Documentary at the New York International Independent Film & Video Festival in 2010 and 2011, respectively. Khalili balances his filmmaking career and family life with his charitable work advocating for natural building as President of the renowned California Institute of Earth Art and Architecture (CalEarth.) Founded in 1991 by his father, Nader Khalili, CalEarth is a nonprofit organization committed to providing solutions to the human need for shelter through research, development, and education in earth architecture. CalEarth develops and empowers the public in environmentally sustainable building designs--houses anyone can build, that meet modern-day standards for safety, beauty, energy efficiency, and comfort. CalEarth's designs have been studied by NASA, endorsed and used by the United Nations, featured in countless world media outlets, and awarded the prestigious Aga Khan Award for Architecture.
Dat Khou Nguyen Tien is an actor, known for Noble (2014).
Dat Phan is the Original Winner of NBC's "Last Comic Standing" and is a Headlining Comedian touring live across the U.S. He has made numerous TV and movie appearances including "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno", "The Family Guy" voice-over, and "Cellular". Most recently Dat has appeared on "The Tyra Banks Show" discussing racial diversity. Dat Phan was born in Saigon, Vietnam and immigrated with his mother to San Diego, CA. He suffered through financial hardships most of his childhood. After 9/11 he realized life was short and decided to go for his dream to pursue comedy full time. Moving to LA he had to live out of his car and even after being robbed at gunpoint he wouldn't stop pursuing his dream. Dat answered phones for The Improv in Hollywood during the day and tried to get as much stage time as possible at night; this meant he often went on well after midnight when crowds were often more drunk than coherent. Later, Dat took the risk and auditioned for the experimental, comedy based show produced by NBC that would launch his career. The rest is history as he was named the funniest person in America on August 5, 2003 Dat's culturally insightful comedy inspects ridiculous stereotypes, and shares his experience of being a regular American guy with a Vietnamese heritage. His youthful energy and truly unique life experiences, including all the tough times, are combined to create the message of living your dreams and reaching out for the stars. Dat Phan's mission is to bring a more positive portrayal of Asian-Americans to mainstream entertainment and Hollywood. "We want to be seen as more than just martial artists, or bad stereotype token roles in American TV & Movies." Dat Phan has been included in The Smithsonian Institution's exhibition of The Top 10 Most Influential Vietnamese-American Individuals. The DVD "Dat Phan Live" was released in January 2010 and is available via Amazon. His CD "You Touch, You Buy" was released in 2009. Dat's latest CD, "Born in Saigon...California" is now available on iTunes and Amazon.
Dat Phan is known for Shattered (2022).
With 20 years in the entertainment business, Datari Turner has worked along side some of the biggest names in entertainment history. From 2010 to Date, as a feature film producer, Datari Turner has produced close to 30 feature films, making him one of the most prolific independent producers working today. "Another Happy Day" and "Salvation Boulevard" both premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2011. LUV premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2012. Ten Thousand Saints in 2015 and Gook premiering at Sundance in 2017. Turner produced, co-starred, and wrote the film "Video Girl" starring Meagan Good and Academy Award nominee Ruby Dee. The screenplay for "Video Girl," was recently accepted into the Academy of Motion Pictures Library and is on display in their exclusive archive. "Another Happy Day" starred Hollywood heavy weights Demi Moore, Ellen Barkin and Oscar winner Ellen Burstyn. "Salvation Boulevard" starred Oscar Winners Marisa Tomei and Jennifer Connolly in addition to A- List veterans Pierce Brosnan and Ed Harris. "LUV," produced by Turner, starring Rapper/Actor Common, Danny Glover, and Dennis Haysbert, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to rave reviews and opened in theaters across the country in January 2013. While working on "LUV" Turner also produced "About Cherry" starring Academy Award nominee James Franco, and Dev Petal, who starred in the Oscar winning film "Slumdog Millionaire." "About Cherry" premiered at the 62nd Annual Berlin Festival to critical acclaim. Turner then produced and starred in the popular indie comedy "Dysfunctional Friends "which premiered at both the SXSW and ABFF Film Festivals respectively. "Dysfunctional Friends" stars Turner, Meagan Good, Stacey Dash, Stacy Keibler, and NFL Icon Terrell "T.O." Owens in his acting debut. The dark comedy "It's a Disaster" produced by Turner, opened in theaters in April, 2013 and was rated one of the 5 Best Independent films of 2013 by the Huffington Post. "It's a Disaster starred Julia Stiles, and America Ferrera. "Kilimanjaro" starring Brian Geraghty and Abigail Spencer premiered at SXSW in 2013. The Neil Labute film "Some Velvet Morning" starring Alice Eve and Stanley Tucci, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2013. Turner produced Kilimanjaro and was an Executive Producer on the Neil Labute film. Turner produced, co-wrote and co-starred in the film "Lap Dance" starring James Remar, Mariel Hemingway, Briana Evigan, Omari Hardwick and Lisa Raye. The John Stockwell thriller "Kid Cannabis." And the Katherine Heigl film "Jackie and Ryan" which premiered at the 71st Venice Film Festival. Turner is credited as an Executive Producer on Kid Cannabis and Associate Producer on Jackie and Ryan. Thousand Saints, starring Ethan Hawke, Emil Hircsh, and Hailee Steinfeld, became Turners 4th Produced Sundance Film in five years. Turner signed a First Look deal with CodeBlack/ Lions Gate Films in 2015. Datari Turner is currently producing, writing, and staring in "Supermodel" a film about the fashion industry which also stars Tyson Beckford, Sessilee Lopez, Roger Guenveur Smith and many others. "A Girl Like Grace" produced and co-starred in by Turner, stars Meagan Good, Raven Symone and Garcelle Beauvais, premiered at the LA Film Festival last June. "9 Rides" produced by Turner premiered at the SXSW Film Festival to critical acclaim. Gook, a story about two Korean Kids who protect their shoe store in South Los Angeles during the L.A. Riots in 1992, won the prestigious Audience Award at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival and was acquired by Samuel Goldwyn for theatrical release in August, 2017. Supermodel was acquired by Netflix and premieres in the fall of 2017. A Boy. A Girl. A Dream is currently in production starred Omari Hardwick, Meagan Good, and Jay Ellis. In Television: Datari recently signed a First Look Television Producing Deal with the largest Independent studio in the world, Entertainment One, to create, produce and develop new original programing. Turner has produced over 100 hours of original programming for networks WEtv, BET, TvOne, Starz, and the Oxygen network. Most recent television credits include "Love Thy Sister" premiering on the WE Channel in January of 2015. Datari serves as the shows Creator and Executive Producer. "Growing Up Hip-Hop" is in it's forth season staring Angela Simmons and Romeo for the WETV Channel. Datari serves as the shows Creator and Executive Producer. Growing Up Hip has turned into a lucrative franchise and is currently the highest rated television series on WETV. Growing Up Hip-Hop Atlanta, the first spin-off from the franchise, is in it's second season. Datari currently resides in Beverly Hills, California and currently sits on the board of The Black House Foundation. He is an alum of the ABC/ Disney program and is repped at CAA.
Datdrion Lopy is known for Paradise Beach (2019).
Dathan Smith is the award-winning writer and director of the series L.I.F.E. Anthologies. In 2012 he moved from Dallas to New Orleans where he found a niche in stand-in work alongside A-list talent. During that time, he worked on Ryan Murphy's Scream Queens (Nick Jonas), Mr. Right (Sam Rockwell), Now You See Me (Mark Ruffalo), The Whole Truth (Keanu Reeves), and 22 Jump St. (Dave Franco) to name a few. Dathan, now in Oklahoma, also works in front of the camera as commercial and film talent in industry booming Oklahoma. Random Fact: Dathan graduated with only 11 other students in a town with a population of 231
Dathan Thigpen is the season eight winner of BET's "Sunday Best: All Stars." Dathan returned to win the hit competition series in 2015 after first making an indelible impression on season three of "Sunday Best" in 2010. The Atlanta-based singer/actor is a native of Jackson, Mississippi, where he honed his skills in music as part of the legendary Mississippi Mass Choir. He's also been featured on albums by John P. Kee, Benjamin Cone, III and the Mississippi Children's Choir. In 2007, Dathan was featured on the compilation "Wedding Songs," on a remake of K-Ci & JoJo's "All My Life." Dathan will release his solo recording debut in 2016 on Kirk Franklin's Fo Your Soul Entertainment/RCA Records. A talented actor, Dathan has appeared on Tyler Perry's hit series "The Have & The Have Nots" on Oprah Winfrey's OWN Network. He also starred in Perry's theatrical production "Madea's Neighbors From Hell." In addition to his work with Perry, the Atlanta-based entertainer has starred in other theater productions and musicals, among them Edward Fernandez's "What God Joined Together" and "Black Nativity." Dathan was featured on an episode of Travel Channel's "Time Traveling with Brian Unger" and also had roles in "Scary Movie 5" and the independent film "Lyfe's Journey."