Oklahoma filmmaker Brian Presley brings company to home state, quarterback son to Jenks

The arrival of a sought-after new quarterback at football powerhouse Jenks High School is connecting with news of an Oklahoma filmmaker moving his production company's headquarters from Los Angeles to his home state.

Writer, actor and director Brian Presley announced Monday that he is moving the HQ of his company, P12 Films, from L.A. to Tulsa.

Presley, who most recently wrote, directed, produced and starred in the Western  "Hostile Territory," grew up in the Tulsa area. A 1996 Jenks graduate, Presley played on the 1993 state championship football team.

The news that Presley is moving his film company back to his hometown coincides with the news that his son, Jackson Presley, will be attending Jenks High School. The 6-foot-2, 190-pound quarterback revealed on Twitter Saturday that he would be going to his father's alma mater.

Although he just finished eighth grade in the Los Angeles area, Jackson Presley, 15, has already received scholarship offers from the University of Arizona, University of Washington, University of North Texas, Florida State University, Texas A&M University and University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Jackson Presley will be moving to Jenks after the Tulsa World recently reported that quarterback Shaker Reisig, who as a freshman led the Trojans last year to their second consecutive Class 6A-I state title and the 18th in school history, had moved with his family into the rival Union district.

Filmmaking is family affair for Jenks quarterbacks

Along with playing football, Jackson Presley co-starred with his dad and his two younger sisters — Emma and Ruby Presley — in the harrowing frontier drama "Hostile Territory," which was released in theaters in April and is now available to buy or rent digitally on Amazon Prime Video or Vudu.

More Jenks sports: Storylines, players to watch at 2022 Oklahoma high school baseball state tournaments

"I needed kids that were tough kids. ... I knew I couldn't bring in a bunch of Hollywood kids with parents I don't know and accomplish the movie ... on an independent-level budget dealing with the winter and snow," Brian Presley told The Oklahoman.

"I knew I could get my own kids ... and I've coached my son's football team for years. So, I decided to pull in all the other kids who were from the football team. I've been coaching these kids since they were 7. They'd never been in front of a camera, but I knew the strengths of each one." 

Set just after the Civil War and inspired by a true story, "Hostile Territory" stars Presley as Union officer Jack Calgrove, who is presumed dead after his capture by the Confederate Army. Upon his release, Calgrove is horrified to learn that his wife has died and his three younger children — played by Presley's real-life youngsters — have been put on an orphan train to meet their older brother, Phil (Cooper North), a soldier on the move to Montana, where he has been tasked with protecting settlers from American Indian tribes angry at the encroachment on their lands.

Determined to reclaim and safeguard his children, Calgrove sets off across the wintry countryside to intercept the orphan train, accompanied by a fellow former prisoner of war (Craig Tate), a troop of Native American sharpshooters and a former slave (Natalie Whittle) searching for her own displaced child. 

Jenks football has informed filmmaker's career

Born in Midland, Texas — “Friday Night Lights” country — Brian Presley was still in grade school when his family moved to Oklahoma's own football hotbed. Along with playing football, he honed his musical theater chops at Jenks High School. He played football for one season at the University of Arkansas but then opted to move to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. 

In 2000, he was cast as a series regular on the "General Hospital" spin-off "Port Charles." He met his future wife, Erin Hershey Presley, while working on the soap opera.

Another Jenks alum: Oklahoma K-pop star AleXa wins 'American Song Contest'

After "Port Charles" ended in 2003, Presley shifted his focus to film, starring in "Guarding Eddy," "Home of the Brave" and the 2012 football drama "Touchback," opposite Kurt Russell.

Presley made his directorial debut with 2019's "The Great Alaskan Race," another demanding project he also starred in, wrote and produced. Based on a true story, the action-packed drama follows a dog sledder who treks hundreds of miles in the winter of 1925 to ferry diphtheria medicine to remote Nome, Alaska.

As with "The Great Alaskan Race," Presley filmed "Hostile Territory" primarily in Colorado. But with Oklahoma's new film incentive and growing movie and TV industry, he said he plans to bring his company's first production to the Tulsa area this fall.

"Oklahoma's tax incentive is one of the best ones out there. So, it's great for the state of Oklahoma being able to attract some really big movies and big projects," the P12 Films CEO and founder told The Oklahoman.

After the success of "Hostile Territory," his P12 Films will focus on producing Western genre films, along with limited series for various streaming platforms.

Exclusive: OKC's deadCenter Film Fest is returning, here's what you need to know this year

And football is sure to be a focus with Presley and his family moving back to Oklahoma.

"Growing up playing football at Jenks, the level of work ethic they instill in you while you're there, I've taken with me throughout my professional career," Presley said. "It's kind of helped me transition to the next phase as a director and what we're launching in the upcoming months."

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Filmmaker Brian Presley brings company to OK, quarterback son to Jenks