The Yin and Yang of Creative Production: Martial Arts Discipline, Independent Film, and Evolution with Michael Baez

I'm Michael Baez. I'm a writer, director, producer, and editor born and raised in New York. I moved out to California exactly 23 years ago to get closer to the movie industry, and while I was out here, I completely fell in love with yoga. Now I'm a yoga teacher as well.

It was a really cool transition because from ages 13 to 23, all I did back in New York was live and breathe martial arts. Karate was my whole life. When I moved to LA, I wanted something physical to keep me fit and active, but I definitely didn't want to start all over again from a white belt after earning my second-degree black belt and working as an instructor. Discovering yoga bridged that gap perfectly. I fell in love with it, studied deeply, and started teaching at different studios.

Eventually, I opened my own yoga school, which happened to be one of the very first yoga schools in the Bronx. Out of that space, I created the Awakened Warrior Yoga teacher training. I've been running that since 2011, and to date, we've certified close to 400 people from all over the world. We've even had students fly in to LA and New York from places like Australia, Japan, and Hawaii just to do the training. For me, it has been wonderful to have this balance of yin and yang. It allows me to counter the chaos and egos you deal with as a writer, director, and producer with the grounded, peaceful energy that keeps things centered on a movie set.

Absolutely, 100%. The discipline is probably the most important asset I took away from martial arts. Learning how to defend yourself is great, but thank God I've never actually had to use it in the streets, as it was always for competing in tournaments, practicing, and teaching. But I use that discipline every single day.

Right now, I'm working on a brand-new writing project set in the same universe as De La Cruz. Just this past Saturday, I sat down and wrote for nine hours straight. I think I took a single one-hour break to go for a walk and map out the next scene, but otherwise, it was nine hours of straight writing. That level of focus comes directly from martial arts and yoga.

Yoga is so similar to martial arts when it comes to flexibility, balance, concentration, and focus. In our teacher training, we always tell our students that just getting onto the mat is the hardest part, the same way people say just getting to the gym is the toughest hurdle. That discipline keeps me on track, keeps me moving forward, and keeps me practicing my craft.

With De La Cruz, it was a story almost 30 years in the making. People always talk about overnight success, but this was three decades of preparation. It started back in New York when I first entered the industry. I spent two full years writing the first draft of the script "Butterfly in the Fire" under a phenomenal mentor named Eddie Pomerantz. He really taught me how to put pen to paper, how to write screenplays, and how to build high, life-or-death stakes for characters.

Once the script was finished, I didn't have the contacts or resources to make it happen yet. I was straight out of the New York Film Academy. So, I put it aside and focused on real-world experience, directing commercials, a bunch of short films, and a very low-budget feature called Spanish Harlem. That was my true training ground. Film school is great, but raising money, holding auditions, managing cast and crew, and scouting locations are things you have to learn by doing.

By 2018, camera technology had evolved so much that you didn't need to shoot on traditional film anymore. I decided to shoot a 20-minute test version of the script to see if it was more affordable, and it was. A friend got inspired and suggested I look into filming in Colombia. I actually flew down there, but realized the script was such a New York story that it wouldn't fit the setting. So, I decided to write a prequel origin story centered around the main character, Yoli De La Cruz, called Muertos.

We spent years trying to get that off the ground, and then the pandemic hit and shut down the entire industry. I couldn't teach yoga, and you could barely even go outside. A close friend invited me out to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, where he has a beautiful place. Spending a few days out there was a massive turning point for me. I looked around and realized how affordable it was to live and operate. Between the Airbnbs, Ubers, and meals, I knew it would be much cheaper to produce a movie there. I immediately started researching, tapped into the film community in Guadalajara, and held auditions. That's where I met our lead actress, Sofia Diaz. She came in on a cold audition and just absolutely crushed it. The moment I saw her, I knew she was my Yoli. I spent three years traveling back and forth between California and Mexico scouting locations across Guadalajara, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico City, and Leon in Guanajuato. Finally, I told myself I wasn't going to go in circles for another 20 years. I made a promise to shoot the film before my 50th year was over, and we made it happen. Seeing it head to theaters and land on Prime Video, Tubi, Fandango at Home, Plex and many other platforms has been incredible.

The best way to adapt to change is to change and evolve with the times. For example, a big thing that has everyone talking in the entertainment industry is the Vertical series, also known as micro-dramas. These are short 60 to 90 second episodes that people are watching on their phones. They are incredibly engaging and captivating because they are all about hooking the viewer to watch the next episode.

I’m currently writing one set in the De La Cruz universe, and I’m really excited about it because we cut right to the chase. There’s no time for exposition or long, drawn-out scenes. We get right into the drama and the action. So while I’m simultaneously working on raising money and finding investors for my next feature, Muertos, I’m creating this exciting spinoff following our main character Yoli De La Cruz in a Vertical series that fits perfectly between the two feature films. This is how I’m personally evolving with the industry.

To me, being professional is everything. As a writer, director, producer, editor, and even as a yoga teacher or teacher trainer, I always aim to be a professional. It’s my highest standard. To always do my best, as it’s stated in the book The Four Agreements. I live by this in every aspect of life, as an entrepreneur, and even as a father and boyfriend. I give my all and be my absolute best. Always!

I hate to sound like a beauty pageant contestant, but as cliché as it sounds, World Peace. In yoga, one of our guiding principles is found in the 8 Limbs of Yoga, Ahimsa. It means compassion for all living creatures. When you look at all the violence, anger, hatred, division, separation, war, and destruction happening in the world today, we are in desperate need of a change.

Yoga offers the solution. The word yoga means union, to merge with a higher power, whatever that may mean to you. But unity is the way. It’s the only way. That is why I teach, because I want to leave the world a much better place for my dear son, Iysaac.