David A. Prior Explained

David A. Prior
Birth Date:24 October 1955
Birth Place:Newark, New Jersey, U.S.
Death Place:Mobile, Alabama, U.S.
Occupation:Film director, screenwriter, producer
Years Active:1983–2015
Relations:Ted Prior (brother)

David A. Prior (October 24, 1955  - August 16, 2015) was an American director, screenwriter, and producer.[1] Prior started his career with the horror film Sledgehammer (1983), and the action film Killzone (1985). Shortly after, he co-founded Action International Pictures (AIP),[2] his first directorial effort with this enterprise were Deadly Prey, Aerobicide, and Mankillers released in 1987. Subsequently, Prior made action films until the late 1990s.

Many of these films would star his bodybuilder brother Ted, and many of their collaborations became cult films.

From 2000 to 2006, Prior went on a hiatus. From 2007 to his death in 2015, he continued directing films including Lost at War (2007), Zombie Wars (2008), Night Claws (2012), Deadliest Prey (2013), and Relentless Justice (2015).

Career

1983-1985: Early films

In 1983, Prior made his directorial debut with the horror film Sledgehammer. Katie Rife of The A.V. Club said the film "has the distinction of being the first shot-on-video slasher movie. That film established patterns that would persist throughout Prior’s career, namely, extremely low budgets, hammy dialogue, outrageous action, and, most importantly, the presence of his brother Ted".[3]

In 1985, he directed the action film Killzone.

1987-1999: Action and horror film director

Around this time Prior met with veteran producer and director David Winters, and with him he founded Action International Pictures also known as AIP. In 1987, Prior's directorial efforts that AIP released were the horror film Killer Workout,[4] the action films Deadly Prey, and Mankillers. The made for VHS film gained a second audience two decades later as cult film that found its way on the internet.[5] [6]

In 1988, he directed Operation Warzone, an American Vietnam War film, Night Wars and Death Chase.[7]

In 1989, he directed Rapid Fire, Future Force a science-fiction film starring David Carradine,[8] and Hell on the Battleground.

In 1990, he is credited as the director of following films White Fury, Invasion Force, The Lost Platoon, Lock 'n' Load, Invasion Force, Future Zone,(Future Force's sequel) and The Final Sanction. That year, he was credited with the screenplays for Born Killer and Deadly Dancer.[9] [10]

In 1991, he produced Dark Rider and The Last Ride. That year, he wrote and directed Raw Nerve.

In 1992, he wrote and directed the film Center of the Web, starring Robert Davi, Tony Curtis, Charlene Tilton, and Charles Napier.[11] He also produced Armed for Action and Blood on the Badge, both starring Joe Estevez.[12] [13]

In 1993, AIP was rebranded West Side Studios, to signal that the company would work with bigger budgets and become more mainstream.[14] With the advancements of the company, Prior directed two films. One of them is Double Threat, with Sally Kirkland and Andrew Stevens.[15] The other horror-thriller film Night Trap (which won a Gold Award at the WorldFest Houston for best Fantasy/Horror), starring Robert Davi.[16] [17]

In 1994, he directed the thriller Raw Justice (which won a Bronze Award at the WorldFest Charleston for best Theatrical Feature Film – Dramatic), starring Pamela Anderson, David Keith, and Robert Hays.[18]

In 1995, he directed Felony and Mutant Species. Also that year he wrote Codename: Silencer.

In 1997, he produced The P.A.C.K..

In 1999, he directed Hostile Environment with Brigitte Nielsen, Matthias Hues, and Darren Shahlavi.

2000 to 2015: Hiatus and final projects

From 2000 to 2006, Prior was on an hiatus.[19]

In 2007, Prior returned to directing with Lost at War.

On March 15, 2009, Prior's Zombie Wars, a zombie apocalypse film, screened at the first Paranoia Horror Film Festival.[20] [21]

He also wrote the screenplay of The One Warrior released in 2011.

In 2012, he directed the bigfoot horror film Night Claws, starring Reb Brown.[22]

In 2013, he wrote and directed Deadliest Prey, a sequel to Deadly Prey.[23] [24] On making a sequel, Ted said that he and David "decided to do a sequel based on fan mail, screenings, and all that stuff. I’ve talked to lot of fans of the movie, and after having all kinds of ideas thrown at us, Dave and I have decided to stick to the basic formula as the original. Fast pace and hard hitting."[25]

In 2015, he was as writer for the screenplay of David Winters's .[26] Also he wrote and directed Relentless Justice starring Leilani Sarelle.[27] [28]

Death

Prior died on August 16, 2015, at the age of 59. His death was described by his brother Ted as "a long battle of failing health".[29]

Filmography

Year Title Director Writer Producer Notes
1983 Sledgehammer First shot-on-video slasher movie
1985 Killzone
1987 Mankillers
Killer Workout Also editor
Deadly Prey
1988 Operation Warzone
Night Wars
Death Chase
1989 Jungle Assault Also cameo role as "Drug Runner"
Rapid Fire Also casting director
Hell on the Battleground
Future Force
1990 Lock 'n' Load
White Fury
Born Killer Also second unit director
Invasion Force Also uncredited cameo as "Director in final shot"
Future Zone Also editor
The Final Sanction
Deadly Dancer
1991 That's Action Documentary film
Also editor
The Lost Platoon
Raw Nerve
1992 Center of the Web
1993 Double Threat
Night Trap
1994 Raw Justice
1995 Mutant Species
Felony
Body Count
1997 The P.A.C.K.
1999 Hostile Environment
2007 Lost at War Also editor
2008 Zombie Wars
2011 The One Warrior
2012 Night Claws Also editor
2013 Deadliest Prey Also editor, casting director and cameo role as "Man in Van"
2015 Posthumously released
Rentless Justice Uncredited executive producer and also editor
Posthumously released
Assassin's FuryUncompleted; Also editor
Shot in 2015 before his death with post-production being stopped cause of that.

Executive producer only

Assistant director

Works cited

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Intervista a David A. Prior . Francesco . Massaccesi . Italian . www.nocturno.it . March 31, 2011 . November 1, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130118123816/http://www.nocturno.it/intervista/intervista-a-david-a--prior . January 18, 2013 .
  2. Web site: August 17, 2015. R.I.P. David A. Prior Dies At Age 59. 18 August 2015. Bloody Disgusting.
  3. Web site: R.I.P. David A. Prior, direct-to-video legend and director of Deadly Prey. . 18 August 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408043839/https://news.avclub.com/r-i-p-david-a-prior-direct-to-video-legend-and-direc-1798283145. 2019-04-08. 14 January 2017.
  4. Web site: Blu-ray Special Features Revealed for KILLER WORKOUT, SHOCK 'EM DEAD & More. 2015-08-07. Daily Dead. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408063148/https://dailydead.com/blu-ray-special-features-revealed-for-killer-workout-shock-em-dead-more/. 2019-04-08. 2019-04-08.
  5. Web site: INTERVIEW: David A. Prior from Deadly Prey Cinedelphia. cinedelphia.com. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408050237/http://cinedelphia.com/interview-david-a-prior-from-deadly-prey/. 2019-04-08. 2019-04-08.
  6. Web site: Killer Workout Director David A. Prior Passes Away. Rigney. Todd. 2015-08-18. Dread Central. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408050427/https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/120024/killer-workout-director-david-a-prior-passes-away/. 2019-04-08. 2019-04-08.
  7. Book: Budnik, Daniel R.. '80s Action Movies on the Cheap. McFarland & Company Inc.. 2017. 978-0-7864-9741-6. North Carolina. 190. Operation Warzone.
  8. Book: Budnik, Daniel R.. '80s Action Movies on the Cheap. McFarland & Company Inc.. 2017. 978-0-7864-9741-6. North Carolina. 220. Future Force.
  9. Now and Then We Time Travel: Visiting Pasts and Futures in Film and Television, By Fraser A. Sherman - Page 208 Future Zone (1990)
  10. Comeuppance Reviews, 5/15/2018 - Invasion Force (1990)
  11. Web site: Center Of The Web TV Guide. TVGuide.com. en. April 10, 2019.
  12. Web site: Armed For Action TV Guide. TVGuide.com. en. April 10, 2019.
  13. Web site: Blood On The Badge TV Guide. TVGuide.com. en. April 10, 2019.
  14. Web site: AIP renamed West Side Studios. Klein. Richard. February 26, 1993. Variety. en. April 8, 2019.
  15. Web site: Double Threat TV Guide. TVGuide.com. en. April 10, 2019.
  16. Web site: Mardi Gras For The Devil TV Guide. TVGuide.com. en. April 10, 2019.
  17. Web site: 2012-07-01. Davis Winters. 2019-05-11. Dance Mogul Magazine. en.
  18. Web site: Raw Justice TV Guide. TVGuide.com. en. April 10, 2019.
  19. Web site: Direct-to-Video Pioneer DAVID A. PRIOR - The Career Restrospective [sic]]. 2018-09-12. We Are Movie Geeks. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408051630/http://www.wearemoviegeeks.com/2018/09/direct-video-pioneer-david-prior-career-restrospective/. 2019-04-08. 2019-04-08.
  20. Web site: Gingold. Michael. 2009-03-05. CA's Paranoia Fest debuts with strong movie lineup. https://web.archive.org/web/20090405162709/http://fangoriaonline.com/home/news/9-film-news/1621-cas-paranoia-fest-debuts-with-strong-movie-lineup.html. 2009-04-05. 2013-12-02. Fangoria.
  21. Book: Dendle, Peter. McFarland Publishing. 2012. 978-0-7864-6163-9. 232–233. Peter Dendle.
  22. Web site: Standal. Jeanne. 2012-11-22. First trailer & poster for Apex Predator aka Night Claws!. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408061312/https://www.filmofilia.com/first-trailer-poster-for-apex-predator-aka-night-claws-125193/. 2019-04-08. 2019-04-08. FilmoFilia. en-US.
  23. Web site: Tal. Tim. 2014-01-28. Director David A. Prior talks "Deadliest Prey" (exclusive). live. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408062207/http://bzfilm.com/talks-interviews/director-david-a-prior-talks-deadliest-prey-exclusive/. 2019-04-08. 2019-04-08. BZFilm.com. en-US.
  24. Web site: THE MUSCLE OF HORROR RETURNS! An Interview with David Prior: Deadly Director. 2014-02-09. Tavern of Terror. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408065319/http://tavernofterror.com/2014/02/david-prior-interview/. 2019-04-08. 2019-04-08.
  25. Web site: 2011-08-15 . Interview with cult B-action film actor Ted Prior . 2023-02-17 . en-US.
  26. 2014. DVD. English. Hannover House. HH4468.
  27. Web site: David A Prior . en. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408064550/https://iscfc.net/tag/david-a-prior/. 2019-04-08. 2019-04-08.
  28. Web site: INTERVIEW: Bristol Bad Film Club speaks to David A. Prior, director of Deadly Prey. 2014-09-16. Bristol Bad Film Club. en-GB. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408064802/https://bristolbadfilmclub.co.uk/interview-bristol-bad-film-club-speaks-to-david-a-prior-director-of-deadly-prey/. 2019-04-08. 2019-04-08.
  29. Web site: JonathanBarkan. 2015-08-17. R.I.P. David A. Prior Dies At Age 59. https://web.archive.org/web/20190408043600/https://bloody-disgusting.com/news/3357575/r-p-david-prior-dies-age-59/. 2019-04-08. 2019-04-08. Bloody Disgusting!. en-US.