Meet Neil D’Monte

Neil, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
I basically do not have time to be scared. Nor do I ‘second guess’ myself. I just don’t have time for it. With years of practice, you will naturally develop the skills and know-how to get things done under stress and with very tight deadlines. I forgot whom the author was that said “If you do something for 10,000 hours, you will eventually become an expert at it.” Confidence comes with acquiring skills and the knowledge of how to apply those skills. And that takes time. We all have or have had self-esteem or self-confidence issues. And it can be a challenge to overcome them. Lord knows I sure did!  But with constant practice and will power, you too can make it happen.  It is all game…rock solid game.

Focus and determination are all you need with a side salad of passion! Just do it!

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
Thank you for the opportunity!

I work in Hollywood professionally as a producer with Robots of Awesome where I am the Head of Development. My partners are Producer Jacob Silver and Brian Rogers, who produced the Godzilla films with Legendary. With ROA, I bring in projects from friends to see if we can develop them into feature films, tv series and/or mobile app games. I love it because I always get to meet new and interesting people and it is fun trying to package talent with fun projects! Right now, we are packaging a film called CHRISTMAS EVE WILL FIND YOU. This will be my first role as a producer on a film with ROA and I am really excited about it.  Prep for the film will start once the strike is over as this is a union film.

I also work as a director. The TV series I direct, the political comedy series FRONT MEN is now streaming on Prime Video. With Episode 5 now complete and in the que uploading, we will have a full Season One up – right in time for the upcoming elections. Bringing creator Jon Simon’s vision to life has been a thrill and working with the cast and crew on that series is MAGIC! I just got back from Canada and had a wonderful opportunity to direct the pilot and first episode of a new series called MENSPEAKING. Created by Zissis Liolios and Executive Producer Kory (M.C Shadow) Neely, MENSPEAKING, is a show intended to enlighten a broad audience of Women and Men by directly addressing the perceived male environment in today’s society. It is a panel consisting of a moderator and 4 panelists – men from diverse backgrounds, experiences and demographics. Each episode focuses on a single topic that affects men’s lives and invites the participants to share personal stories and experiences to address negative stereotypes and promote positive societal perception for the audience. And with Robots of Awesome, we are just taking meetings for me to direct a microbudgeted ‘fanboy’ feature film in the horror/dark fantasy genre. Directing is fun even though you never have time to sit down and relax on set. As a director, you are in charge of everything sans the catering. Period! Even though it fun it is very challenging and you do have to have a certain type-a personality type to do it. I personally like using comic book angles for my shots which I feel give my work more depth and kineticism.

As an artist, both for storyboards and concept art, I really feel that my work has a dynamic style that people really like. I use contextualism to design my shots and love working with fellow directors and creatives to help them bring their vision on to the big and small screens.  Recent projects include Zach Levi’s THE UNBREAKABLE BOYand the post-apocalyptic films HEART LAND and THE ISLANDER.

I also play drums and sub as a touring drummer when I am not working on films. It is a great way to let off aggression and stress and it is fun getting to travel doing something I love! While I was in Toronto working, I took some time from my shooting schedule to meet up for a music session with friend, Canadian hip-hop pioneer and Museum of Canadian Music inductee MC Shadow (aka Kory Neely) who was working on his new single JUDGEMENT. Scheduled for release in 2024. The song features myself on drums to contribute to the vibe of the track. It is a follow up to the film video trilogy RESURRECTION, LOST & LULLABY OF PAIN. It’s about the disappointment and pain life can bring you. But it also has a positive undertone to it, a sort of light illuminating through the shadows. You can rise and fall in life, but perseverance can bring you back to life in the face of adversity.

And finally, my love of black clothing caught up with me when my business partners Alex Lugo and Geronimo decided to start Hellbilly Clothing – a gothic and metal-inpired line with a psychobilly flair. We had a well-received laugh party at Skybar last October with ScreamFest and our signature hoodies can be seen on members from The Cult, Ministry and Porno For Pyros on tour this summer. Doing this line has really been about empowering people’s darkside which is a fun thing for me and a great way to express myself.

I would say that my brand is really about precision and style. I try to make my art style that is classic and also something unique – a “Gothic Nagel”, if you will.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
I think passion is the number one quality you need. Without that, you have nothing. Secondly having focus is huge! You have to have that “tunnel vision” at times to get things done. And finally, COMMITMENT! Once you commit to your set time table and goals, you will see it come into fruition.