WAMG Interview: Joey Dedio – Writer and Star of TIO PAPI

Interview Conducted by Tom Stockman July 24th, 2013

Joey Dedio is a veteran of film, stage and television. As a youngster, Dedio appeared in After School Specials and on the NBC soap opera Another World; portrayed the title role in the NBC Series “The Karate Kid”; and served as the voice of “Wheeler” on the animated series “Captain Planet and the Planeteers.” As an adult, Dedio has worked as a regular in the serial “Sunset Beach”; guest-starred on such dramas as “Law and Order” and “Chicago Hope”; originated the role of Angel in the critically acclaimed off-Broadway play “Skin”; and appeared in more than 15 films, including the Sundance competition drama STRAYS. Taking on additional roles, the multitalented Dedio wrote, produced, and starred in DOWNTOWN: A STREET TALE and produced the award-winning documentary “The Providence Effect.” Dedio plays the title role in TIO PAPI, which he co-wrote and produced.

Joey will be in St. Louis to screen TIO PAPI as part of Cinema St. Louis’ SLIFF/Kids Children’s Film Festival. He’ll introduce the film and participate in a Q&A on July 27 beginning at  7pm.  The event takes place at The Missouri History Museum’s Lee Auditorium: Forest Park, 5700 Lindell Blvd. (at DeBaliviere Avenue).

Admission is Free.

We Are Movie Geeks caught up with Joey to talk about his film and his career.

We Are Movie Geeks: Have you ever been to St. Louis before?

Joey Dedio: No, but I’m really looking forward to it.

WAMG: How did you get invited to be a guest at SLIFF/Kids?

JD: My film that I wrote and star in TIO PAPI has been playing at a lot of film fest and it’s won a ton of awards. It’s one of the first family movies to come out in a really long time that’s not animated. It’s been included in a lot of events and we’re going all across the United States showing it at events that are geared towards children and families. The Cinema St. Louis People had contacted us and I thought they were really top notch with their big upcoming children’s event and we definitely wanted to be there. That’s what our movie is all about.

WAMG: Let’s talk about TIO PAPI. This is a movie that you wrote?

JD: Yeah, I wrote this movie about a guy living in New York City, living life to the fullest and unexpectedly his sister and her husband die in a car accident. Kelly McGillis plays a child welfare officer who drops off six of my nieces and nephews and tells me I’m the beneficiary to these kids, who are ages five to fifteen.

WAMG: How did you come up with this idea? Was it autobiographical or anything like that?

JD: No. I was in a park in Los Angeles. I was walking with a friend and he saw a very colorful party going on. A bunch of kids were jumping on a guy. They were all laughing and yelling “Tio Tio!”, and I thought that looked so nice. I thought it looked like such a nice family and my friend said “Yeah, he’s smiling because they’re not his kids”. And a light bulb went off in me and I thought about what it would be like if you suddenly had to become a parent. That’s how we got the idea.

WAMG: What was Kelly McGillis to work with?

JD: Incredible. A class act as a person and an actress. Unbelievable.

WAMG: Anyone else in the film I might be familiar with?

JD: Yeah, Frankie Faizon….

WAMG: Nurse Barney! (from SILENCE OF THE LAMBS and HANNIBAL)

JD: Yes! And Carlos Leon plays my brother-in-law….. and these six kids! Their careers are just blowing up. We have Fatima Ptacek, who starred in a  short that won the Academy Award last year. She was the star of that and also the voice of Dora the Explorer. Nicolette Pierini who just starred in THE MAGIC OF BELLE ISLE opposite Morgan Freeman is in it. The kids are incredible. They’re working like crazy.

WAMG: How is TIO PAPI being received at these film festivals?

JD: We’re very fortunate. We’ve had the honor of winning a bunch of them. We were honored by the Screen Actors Guild as one of the best family movies in New York, L.A., and Miami. We’re very humbled to have been nominated for the prestigious Imagine Award, which is like the Latin Oscars. We were nominated in five categories; Best Picture, Actor, Actress, Supporting Actor, and Supporting Actress. That will be televised on August 16th.

WAMG: You said Best Actor. Would that be you?

JD: Yes, I did get a nomination.

WAMG: Congratulations. How did you get your start in show business? Did you come from a show biz family?

JD: No, there was a kid at school that was on a soap opera. That was something I really wanted to do. I hounded him like crazy and kept asking him who his agent was. And he told me and I called the agent as a young kid. I must have been about 13 years and I called them and said that they need to meet me. They told me to bring my pictures, meaning some 8x10s but I brought them my baby pictures. I didn’t know what they meant but they thought that was charming and they sent me out and I was soon making television commercials. That’s where I began in this business.

WAMG: Yes, and you did soap operas and After School Specials. Were you in teen magazines?

JD: Yes, I was in bunch of them. Back in the day I was there with Johnny Depp.

WAMG: And the Coreys I presume.

JD: Yeah, I knew both Corey Feldman and Corey Haim, sure.

WAMG: Who some of your buddies in the acting biz? You live in New York, right?

JD: I live in New York, L.A., and Miami. I’ve worked so many people, people that I admire and look up to and have hung out with. People who have gone from having a dream to being on the cover of People Magazine. I worked with Vin Diesel in his first movie STRAYS, that he directed and starred in and I played his best friend in that. We took it to Sundance way back in the day (1997).

WAMG: How did you get the job doing voice-overs?

JD: I just auditioned. When I was a young kid, I did a campaign for Coca Cola. I was hired to do about five of their TV commercial. What happened was they needed a kid to go into a recoding booth and laugh and say “Coca Cola”. I did it and that started my whole voice-over career. That launched me into a ton of them and into cartoon voices.

WAMG: Right, The Karate Kid….

JD: Yes, The Karate Kid, and Captain Planet and the Planeteers which ran for eight years. The All Stars to the Rescue where I worked with the first President Bush. That little laugh for Coca Cola led to a whole career of doing cartoon voices.

WAMG: Was Pat Morita the voice of Miyagi on The Karate Kid cartoon?

JD: Yes, for the first season. Then the second season he was replaced by Robert Tito from Quincy who took over. So I hung out with Pat Morita, he was a great guy.

WAMG: Did you ever meet Ralph Macchio?

JD: I did a movie with Ralph later called A GOOD NIGHT TO DIE (203). There we met for the first time.

WAMG: I see you’ve written another film called 36 SAINTS. Is that a horror film?

JD: No, it’s a psychological thriller. The premise is that there are 36 people that, because they’re alive, the world won’t erupt into chaos. It’s being touted as a young person’s SEVEN. It’s a very smart movie, not your typical gory kind of film. All the pieces add up and it’s done very creatively and will keep you guessing right up until the very end.

WAMG: When will 36 SAINTS be released?

JD: It will be in theaters on September 6th.

WAMG: Is it for a teen audience? Is it PG-13?

JD: No, its rated R. It’s aimed more at people in their young 20s.

WAMG: Look forward to that. What’s next for Joey Dedio?

JD: What’s next? We’re working on spinning off TIO PAPI  into a television series. We’re also working on a feature that was base on a true story that made the front page of the Daily News in New York in the late ’70s. We’re working the people that were involved in this story, but I don’t want to talk to much more about it though.

WAMG: Okay then, good lick with TIO PAPI and all your future projects and I hope you enjoy your stay in St. Louis

JD: Thanks a lot.