J.A. Steel

Last updated
J.A. Steel
Born
Jacquelyn A. Ruffner

(1969-12-12) December 12, 1969 (age 49)
Greensburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.
OccupationFilm actress, screenwriter, director, producer
Years active2000–present

J.A. Steel (born December 12, 1969) is an American writer, director, producer, editor, stunt person and actress best known for her role as C. Alexandra Jones in The Third Society.

Contents

Steel was born Jacquelyn A. Ruffner in Greensburg, Pennsylvania and raised in Harrison City. Her acting began at age seven when she appeared in numerous school plays (most which she had written) and continued until she received a scholarship of a summer theatre program at age 14. [ citation needed ]

Greensburg, Pennsylvania City in Pennsylvania, United States

Greensburg is a city in and the county seat of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States, and a part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The city lies within the Laurel Highlands and the ecoregion of the Western Allegheny Plateau. The city is named after Nathanael Greene, a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. The population was 14,892 at the 2010 census.

Harrison City, Pennsylvania census designated place

Harrison City is a census-designated place (CDP) in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 155 at the 2000 census.

Early career

Steel's career in the entertainment industry began at the age of 18 when she began managing bands and promoting rock shows, during the time she was attending the USC School of Cinematic Arts on a partial scholarship, and graduated from USC in 1992 with a degree in social science and communications. Shortly after graduating, she accepted a job as a production assistant for martial arts action star Sho Kosugi ( Revenge of the Ninja , Black Eagle ) Sho promoted her to vice-president development within six months. [1]

The USC School of Cinematic Arts —formerly the USC School of Cinema-Television, otherwise known as CNTV—is a private media school within the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. The school offers multiple undergraduate and graduate programs covering film production, screenwriting, cinema and media studies, animation and digital arts, media arts + practice, and interactive media & games. Additional programs include the Peter Stark Producing Program and the Business of Entertainment.

Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental and spiritual development; and entertainment or the preservation of a nation's intangible cultural heritage.

Sho Kosugi is a Japanese martial artist, actor, filmmaker, and writer with extensive training in Shindō jinen-ryū Karate, Kendo, Judo, Iaido, Kobudo, Aikido and Ninjutsu. A former All Japan Karate Champion, he gained popularity as an actor during the 1980s, often playing ninja. He starred in a trilogy of ninja-themed martial arts films produced by Cannon Films, before earning a starring role in the primetime television series The Master.

In early 1993, Steel left Sho Productions to start her own company, Warrior Entertainment. The company's main focus was on music management and in 1995, Steel negotiated the first contract ever between an American artist, Sasha Alexeev, and a Taiwanese record company, Rock Records. Alexeev's album, Wintertales, was released in 1996, as Asia's economy was on the verge of collapse, and record sales were slow. [2]

Taiwan Country in East Asia

Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a state in East Asia. Neighbouring states include the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the west, Japan to the north-east, and the Philippines to the south. The island of Taiwan has an area of 35,808 square kilometres (13,826 sq mi), with mountain ranges dominating the eastern two-thirds and plains in the western third, where its highly urbanised population is concentrated. Taipei is the capital and largest metropolitan area. Other major cities include Kaohsiung, Taichung, Tainan and Taoyuan. With 23.7 million inhabitants, Taiwan is among the most densely populated states, and is the most populous state and largest economy that is not a member of the United Nations (UN).

Rock Records record label

The Rock Records Co., Ltd. also known as Rock Records (滾石唱片), is a record label based in Taipei, Taiwan and founded in 1980s as the Rock Music Publishing (滾石有聲出版社) by Tuan Chung-tan and Tuan Chung-i. It is the largest record label in Chinese-speaking world and the second largest independent record label in Asia.

Asia Earths largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the Eastern and Northern Hemispheres

Asia is Earth's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the Eastern and Northern Hemispheres. It shares the continental landmass of Eurasia with the continent of Europe and the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with both Europe and Africa. Asia covers an area of 44,579,000 square kilometres (17,212,000 sq mi), about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area. The continent, which has long been home to the majority of the human population, was the site of many of the first civilizations. Asia is notable for not only its overall large size and population, but also dense and large settlements, as well as vast barely populated regions. Its 4.5 billion people constitute roughly 60% of the world's population.

The Third Society

During her two-year hiatus, Steel traveled extensively in Asia and even lived for a brief time in Singapore. Upon her return to the United States, she re-entered the entertainment industry and began planning her first feature from a screenplay that she had written in 1996. The screenplay, entitled Triad, was about an ex-motocycle racer turned cop Cody Reynolds and his Asian partner, Michael Li. Cody's girlfriend in the film was a vice-detective by the name of Sanchez.

Singapore Republic in Southeast Asia

Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island city-state in Southeast Asia. The country is situated one degree north of the equator, at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, with Indonesia's Riau Islands to the south and Peninsular Malaysia to the north. Singapore's territory consists of one main island along with 62 other islets. Since independence, extensive land reclamation has increased its total size by 23%.


Steel sent out the script, but development executives claimed it was "too ethnic." Sanchez became Jones. The executives were still not satisfied and wanted even more changes. In protest, Steel got rid of Cody's character completely and changed the Los Angeles Police Department captain from the 50-year-old male stereotype to an African-American woman played by Sonya Eddy. Jones became the main character, the film title changed; and The Third Society was made. [3] She turned down several offers to buy the script, and produced 85% of the film herself.

Los Angeles Police Department Municipal police department in California

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), officially the City of Los Angeles Police Department, is the police department of Los Angeles, California. With 9,974 officers and 3,036 civilian staff, it is the third-largest municipal police department in the United States, after the New York City Police Department and the Chicago Police Department. The department operates in an area of 498 square miles (1,290 km2) and a population of 4,030,904 people.

Sonya Eddy is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Epiphany Johnson in the ABC daytime soap opera General Hospital (2006–present). From 2007 to 2008 she also was a regular cast member on the prime-time spin-off, General Hospital: Night Shift. Since 2016, she played Tammy, a recurring role in the truTV series Those Who Can't.

Steel found herself both in front of and behind the camera writing, directing, producing, editing and starring in the film. She adopted the name J.A. Steel to direct, write and edit under. The "Jones" character in the final cut of The Third Society went uncredited, as Steel never originally intended to play the "Jones" character. [4] Steel was one of the first female directors who has written a nude scene for herself, as Jones spent a lot of time in the shower to wash away the grime from the fight scenes. [5]

Stunts and filmmaking

Steel races motorcycles, skydives, handles swords, competes in muay Thai kickboxing, is a Master Scuba Diver, and holds 22 marksmanship awards with various weapons. She spent two years in Army ROTC. [6]

Steel went on to write, produce, direct, edit, perform stunts and star in two more action feature films: the award-winning Salvation in 2007 [7] and Denizen . [8] Steel also directed the short films Dive the Deep Blue and A Change of Plans. Salvation was shot using an Arriflex super 16mm camera.

Steel tapped into her music roots to write the song Angel Tonight for the soundtrack of The Third Society; and direct the music videos for Doesn't Matter Anyway and It's a Beautiful Day, both by the Emily O'Neary Band for The Third Society. She also collaborated with Edith Fung to create the music for the soundtrack of Dive the Deep Blue. Her third film Denizen was released in April 2010. [ citation needed ]

Filmography

YearTitleRoleCharacterNote
2002The Third SocietyDirector, Writer, Producer, Actress, Editor, Stunts, SoundtrackC. Alexandra JonesFeature Film
2005Cerebral Print: The Secret FilesActressSexy Bounty HunterShort Film
Cerebral Print: End GameActressSexy Bounty HunterShort Film
2006Dive the Deep BlueDirector, Writer, Producer, Editor, ActressSelfShort Documentary
2007SalvationDirector, Writer, Producer, Editor, Actress, Stunts & Fight ChoreographerGabrielFeature Film
2009A Change of PlansDirector, Editor, StoryN/AShort Film
Denizen: Special Access JA SteelActressSelfShort Documentary
2010 Denizen Director, Writer, Producer, Editor, Actress, Stunts & Fight ChoreographerSierra DeaconFeature Film
Dive the Deep Blue: TiburonDirector, Writer, Producer, Editor, ActressSelfShort Documentary
S.C.A.A.R. 1.5Director, Writer, Producer, Editor, ActressSierra DeaconShort Video
2012Blood FareDirector, Writer, Producer, Editor, ActressCharonFeature Film

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Gallager, Sirens of Cinema, pg. 34-35
  2. ↑ Anderson-Minshall, Curve Magazine, p. 46[ ISBN missing ]
  3. ↑ Watt, Femme Fatales, p. 51[ ISBN missing ]
  4. ↑ Hansen, The Hollywood Reporter, p. 42
  5. ↑ Anderson-Minshall, Curve Magazine, p. 59[ ISBN missing ]
  6. ↑ Cater, Martial Arts Legends, pg. 81-82
  7. ↑ Griggs, The Salt Lake Tribune (page E2)
  8. ↑ Baisley, FilmSnobbery.com

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