Meet Bill McAdams, Jr. | Filmmaker and philosopher.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Bill McAdams, Jr. and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Bill, how did you come up with the idea for your business?
IDEA – a powerful word. I grew impatient on waiting for others to give me the opportunity to execute my creative ideas. Don’t depend on others when it comes to your idea. Make it happen yourself. Only YOU can truly see and do. See it and do it. NIKE just got tired of hearing the blah blahs. Great movie by the way speaking of business. I went to the theater to see Ben Affleck’s Air. I lived in North Carolina during ‘82 when Michael Jordan hit that championship game winning shot. I went out and bought a Carolina blue soda can with the team printed on it. Mike Jordan. Mom threw it away over the years. Oh well. And coming up with the idea for my business – Years and years of playing the waiting game and seeing others shine. Working with Matt and Ben on Good Will Hunting. Just a couple of Boston boys running around trying to figure out the meaning of life. Will Hunting had to take a leap of faith and he did. Damon’s character Sonny, in AIR had to do the same thing. Today, as I write this I received a memory pop up on Facebook and was reminded that my brother’s life was taken on the streets of Los Angeles, May 21, 2012. So, my little brother John tapped me on the shoulder days after he flew to Heaven and said, “You can do whatever you want Bill. I am good. Don’t worry about me. I’m not going to see you face to face again for a while but will hang by your side always”. I knew I had to keep making films for the both of us. Ironically, I was hanging around iconic La Grave baseball Field in Fort Worth and met the owners and they suggested a reality show on Jose Canseco who was a player/coach for the Cats also trying to save the historical ball field from going under. I didn’t know the world of reality TV but I said I’d do a documentary on him. Jose was my brother John’s favorite player growing up. John would love to have been a part of this. I got another tap on my shoulder and John said “Bill, I’m right here. I can hear you. Let’s do this!” Jose told me the story of his mom on her death bed. He was playing AAA Modesto and flew home. She had slipped into a coma and he made a promise to her before she died “I am going to be the best baseball player in the world. This is my promise to you”. His mom was gone. He was only 19. See, Jose and I had experienced the loss of a loved one. It hurts like hell. But you can turn that into something powerful. He became the best baseball player in the world. I opened up Aledo Film Group and made the film Jose Canseco: The Truth Hurts, many years later still going strong. Thank you, sister MJ, for letting me stay with you in your beautiful town of Aledo, Texas while I grieved our little brother Johnny and found my confidence to just go for it, starting my own business.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
What sets me apart from others? My diversity in film. I make the films people are afraid to. I love putting the unlikely characters together and teaching love and acceptance. Showing that we all can get along. We are all capable of love, forgiveness and acceptance. I got here today by perseverance – not giving up on story telling. Going with my gut. Instinct. After years of making movies and given this platform of story telling I have learned over the years to ask myself what am I saying and why? I make movies with a message. If I can move one heart I have done my job. If someone can learn a lesson or two and become a better person I have done my job. My films are art but also products that I do have to sell. Its a fine line but I will never give up the message to make a buck. After 10 films or so I know my job is to tell the truth, be honest with the story and entertain. Making films is hard as hell. You give and give and never stop giving pieces of you. When you think you can’t give anymore… you do. When the film plays its all given back. It all makes sense. Ever film is a journey. Like a boat on a restless river. Its going to get rough and you might overturn… but you always end up above water. Breathing this beautiful life again.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Well, I am a creature of habit. I know what I like. I like Blue Sushi in Fort Worth and next door is Eddie V’s for a tasty steak. Locally, and I mean down the street from me in Aledo is a hamburger Joint called JD’s Hamburgers. It has a little nostalgic. It was formally called Randi’s Knottie Pine. A cool little dive bar with pools tables and cowboys drinking before noon. It was the perfect location for my character Jake in my film with Ernie Hudson and Kevin Sorbo, Gallows Road. Got to bring it back around with a shout out to the local business and small-town, big heart, Aledo, Texas.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I just buried my father on April 22, 2023. He was 83. My mother and father were married in 1968 and had me in 1969. 54 years of marriage. That’s a great business run. That’s sticking together. Now, I lived in 24 houses before I was 24 years old. Guess it taught me to adapt quick to the new and different. Talk about life throwing you curve balls. But the love and compassion they had for each other and their four children never failed. My sister MJ, Little brother Matt, and my mother Grace are here with me on earth. Sticking together in these new and challenging times. Back to your question: A family counts as a person, group, organization right? My producing partner Therese Moncrief and her film company Flying Heart have been by my side on three films with three more in production. Thank you Producer Therese for your confidence in me as a writer/director and your very kind patience. You are the older sibling I never had and I love and respect your story telling and zest for film.

Website: bullyhigh-movie.com

Instagram: billmcadamsjr

Facebook: Bill McAdams Jr

Image Credits
I named each photo with persons and photog.