In December 2012, Mobile-based filmmaker Drew Hall was preparing to unveil the second installment of an ambitious science fiction trilogy produced by local production company Mudbrick Media. The film, titled Skyhook: The Phoenix Rises, was set to screen at the Crescent Theater in downtown Mobile on December 15th.
Hall, a Mobile native and University of South Alabama graduate, had taken a winding path to the director’s chair. Growing up in Mobile, he spent his formative years frequenting local video stores and absorbing films ranging from the blockbusters of Steven Spielberg and George Lucas to the gritty cinema of the 1970s. A pivotal moment came when he entered a short film into an American Film Institute student contest, shooting on a VHS-C camera and editing with two VCRs.
From South Alabama to the Director’s Chair
At the University of South Alabama, Hall was among the first students to work with the school’s new Avid digital editing suites. Before that, he learned the craft on reel-to-reel systems, an experience he credited with teaching him the fundamentals of timing and pure editing. Professors Dr. Lia Hotchkiss in the English department and Dr. Richard Ward in Communications played instrumental roles in his development, allowing him the freedom to explore filmmaking on his own terms.
After graduating, Hall moved to Missouri, where he served as vice president of production at an advertising agency. There, he wrote and directed a branded web series that reignited his passion for filmmaking. When that chapter closed, Hall and his wife Sara returned to South Alabama, settling on Dauphin Island. He took a job making commercials in Gulf Shores, where he connected with filmmaker Dusty Bias, whose independent feature Prairie Love proved that compelling films could be made anywhere.
The Mudbrick Media Connection
Hall’s big break came through a phone call. Todd Hall (no relation) reached out on behalf of Mudbrick Media executive producer Denny Wilkins, who was looking to produce a feature film. Cinematographer Scott Lumpkin had recommended Drew as a potential director of photography. After shooting Mudbrick’s first feature, Counter-Clockwise, Wilkins offered Hall the chance to direct Skyhook, the first film in what would become the company’s “science FACTion” trilogy.
Hall described Mudbrick Media as a talent development center and creative playground for filmmakers. The company operated on a model reminiscent of the old studio system, providing resources and paying its crew while allowing creative freedom — as long as filmmakers could defend their artistic choices.
The Sci-Fact Trilogy
Written by Wilkins, the trilogy follows a team of brilliant scientists whose adventures carry a unifying theme: that scientists can be heroes too. In Skyhook, the team is tasked with building the world’s first space elevator, only to face sabotage from a mercenary who plants an agent among them. The sequel, The Phoenix Rises, finds the team recruited by a secretive Department of Defense program to develop countermeasures against an energy weapon, while dealing with threats from their past.
The trilogy was set to conclude with Sons of Liberty, in which the team would tackle dirty bomb detection while investigating a serial killer.
Rock and Roll Meets Filmmaking
One of the more unusual aspects of the Mudbrick productions was the involvement of Page Hamilton, frontman of the influential rock band Helmet. Hall and Hamilton had met at a Helmet concert in Mobile, and Hamilton’s music had been a formative influence on Hall since he first heard the band’s Meantime album as a teenager. Hamilton, along with his composition partner Patrick Kirst, a music professor at USC, composed the score for Skyhook and was working on music for The Phoenix Rises.
Building Alabama’s Film Industry
Hall was a vocal advocate for growing the film industry in Alabama. He praised the Alabama Film Office, led by Tommy Fell, as well as local film commission representatives Eva Golson and Diane Hall for their support of productions in the region. He pointed to locations across the state — Sloss Furnaces in Birmingham, limestone quarries in Huntsville, and historic sites in Montgomery — as evidence that Alabama could serve as a diverse backlot for filmmakers.
The biggest challenge, Hall noted, was building a deep local crew base. While many aspiring filmmakers gravitated toward directing and cinematography, productions needed skilled workers in dozens of other roles, from production designers and script supervisors to grips and gaffers. A stronger crew base, he argued, would give producers the confidence to bring more work to Alabama, following the model that had turned neighboring Louisiana into a production hub.