Jeremy Lamberton has made a movie about one of Tulsa’s most famous attractions…. a guy named Biker Fox.
How did the movie come to be?
My first Biker Fox sighting was at a traffic light. He was on his bike, shaking his ass while staring at people in their cars. I pulled into a Taco Bueno parking lot next to an old bowling alley and he rode up next to my car and asked me if I was married. I told him I was (I wasn’t married at the time) and invited him to perform at Tulsa Overground. That night he told me about all the video he had shot of wild life around his house and that I had to see it. Later that week he gave me an entire box of hi-8 and miniDV tapes. I watched everything. There were hundreds of hours of wild turkeys, coyotes, opossums, rabbits, blue birds, bats and him hand feeding 50 raccoons. There were also tapes of him lecturing directly into the camera about the benefits of fitness and healthy diet. Biker Fox and I started shooting together the next week.
Was the film independently financed? Was it difficult to get going?
The film was paid for out of pocket. That’s why we shot Biker Fox off and on over a couple years. I would have to go work on other paying jobs and put that money back into the film. A few times when we were in a pinch or needed another camera Biker Fox would sell some car parts and loan me the money. Biker smashed several cameras while we were filming.
What made Biker Fox such an intriguing subject for a movie?
The footage he had already shot on his own was magical. He’s such a magnetic guy and it translated so well on video. But I didn’t think about it being a documentary until he started getting arrested. When trouble started swirling it grounded him and he became more genuine to his true character while shooting. And I thought it was funny that Biker Fox was continuing to preach his gospel of good health and happiness while at the same time his life was spinning out of control.
Do you think he acted any different when the camera was turned on?
Shooting with Biker Fox is like shooting a nature film. You can’t control it. You just hope to be rolling when something memorable happens. And Biker Fox has a tendency to perform in front of a camera. And he’s severely ADHD, so he’s constantly moving. He can’t sit still. The most effective way to show his true character – the character behind the character – was to make the film non-traditionally. So we set up cameras on tripods all over his house and in his shop and encouraged him to videotape himself. I would go to his house multiple times a week and pick up sometimes as many as 40 tapes at a time. He was shooting like crazy. Like video diarrhea.
Most documentaries have a message.. what is yours?
It’s important to realize that the health of our country is in trouble. Like Jack Lalanne said “Physical culture and nutrition are the salvation of America.” But even in the darkest times there is light. Biker Fox will lead you to the light and have you “Cogitate positive vibes to the cortex of your cerebellum.” It’ll make you feel like a kid again.
Do you think being in a movie will change the man’s life?
In Biker Fox’s case not too much. He’s been a celebrity in Tulsa and the cycling community for years now. He’s also well-known for his website, bikerfox.com. He’s made fans all over the world because of it. He’s especially big in Sweden. He’s comfortable in that role. If anything it will only strengthen his desire to help other people.
What plans do you have for the film. It all begins with the VOD release, right?
VOD for now. It comes out April 15th on iTunes, Amazon instant video, Vudu, Google Play, YouTube and Xbox. DVD release is coming soon!
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