TONY KANDAH
Founder
Fueled by his passion for film, Tony Kandah graduated film school and landed a staff position at Dexter, Dryer and Lai, a major Los Angeles commercial production company. Mentored by founder, Ron Dexter, Kandah spent three years immersed in various aspects of film production, working on national and international commercials for reputable brands like Cathay Pacific Airlines, Jiffy Lube, and Buick.
Driven by an interest in feature films, Kandah transitioned to PM Entertainment Group, starting as a production assistant on “Ring of Fire II.” His competence and enthusiasm quickly earned him a promotion to Production Manager for four features: “Private Wars,” “Fist of Honor,” “No Escape, No Return,” and “To Be the Best.”
In 1993, Kandah secured funding for, co-wrote, co-directed and produced the action-adventure hit “L.A. Wars,” which garnered international acclaim. Building on its success, he developed and executive produced “Mask of Death” (1996), an action-adventure starring Lorenzo Lamas, Billy Dee Williams, and Rae Dawn Chong, which premiered on HBO. He further honed his writing and selling skills by developing the screenplay “New Breed,” which sold to Cinepix Film Properties (currently known as Lionsgate Films). Kandah’s diverse portfolio expanded with the sci-fi action-adventure “Starforce” (1999), which he produced and sold worldwide.
This success led Kandah to open Hollywood Wizard in 2004. A boutique sales and production company, Hollywood Wizard championed independent filmmakers by representing and licensing their feature films to distributors worldwide. As a sales agent and distributor, Kandah spearheaded the company’s presence at over 60 international film and TV markets, including Marché du Film, the European Film Market, the American Film Market, MIPTV and NAPTE. Through his participation in these markets, Kandah built a network of hundreds of buyers across 50+ territories, facilitating the sale of over 100 independent features domestically and internationally.
From 2006 – 2012, Kandah served on the Board of Directors of the Independent Film & Television Alliance (IFTA). Through Hollywood Wizard, Kandah served as executive producer, financier, and distributor for several independent films, including “Shira: The Vampire Samurai” (2005), “Horrors of War” (2006), “Ballistica” (2010), and “Always Faithful” (2014).
In 2019, Kandah expanded his passion for film with FlixHouse®, an ad-supported streaming platform offering independent movies, documentaries, TV shows, and over 150 live TV channels from diverse local and international partners.