why 282 films ?

It all started when…

Mehdi-Frantz Darlis was born on April 27, 1988, in Guadeloupe, one of the only two French islands of the Caribbean. At a very young age (12), he moved to Reims, France, in order to pursue an advanced training camp with the French national tennis team.

After graduating from high school, Mehdi was selected to be part of Louisiana Southeastern University's tennis team as an NCAA scholar. He graduated in May 2010 with a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration and a double minor in International Business and Spanish.

After spending a year battling injuries on the professional tennis tour, Mehdi decided to continue his education by earning a Master's degree in International Business and Global Affairs at the International University of Monaco in 2013 in hopes of becoming a diplomat.

However, during his time spent on the French Riviera, he experienced his first Lions and Cannes film festival which inspired him to create his own production company on February 28, which has also inspired the choice of the company’s name, 282 Films (28/2), as a reminder to always follow his original plan in films no matter what happens. Mehdi quickly realized that the film industry would be the best way to express his creative abilities as a music producer/composer along with his business and management capabilities as a MBA holder.

His first project was a feature film-documentary focusing on the difficulties of the tennis pro tour, titled "Over The Net: Dream or illusion?" including tennis stars such as Jo Wilfried Tsonga, Juan Carlos Ferrero or Benoit Paire, which has been sold to various broadcasters throughout Europe. The production of the film lasted 3 years from January 2013 until January 2016 with the help of two co-producers – HILLDALE/SONGU'ART productions and private investors. The film premiered at the FEMI film festival in March 2015 in partnership with BNP Paribas. It was also selected to be part of the top 10 sports documentaries of the year at the LETTRES ET IMAGES DU SPORT film festival in Bressuire.

In January 2016 the film had its TV premiere on the number 1 French sports channel "L'Equipe 21". The film also later streamed on AFROSTREAM, FRANCE TÉLÉVISIONS, GOLOBOSAT, and TV5 MONDE.

Motivated by the hunger to learn more about the filmmaking business, Mehdi enrolled in the 1-year producing program at the New York Film Academy in January 2017, where he was able to write, direct, and produce several projects such as a short film entitled “Black Watch Matters,” but also a reality TV sizzle reel and a TV commercial.

After producing dozens of short films and TV commercials, Mehdi is currently developing his first feature film called “Good Morning. Please. Thank You”, under his 282 Films production company. The feature is a family drama based on what he considers to be a follow up to his documentary. The story focuses on a young tennis prodigy named Lisa that sacrifices her privileged teenage life as a way to please her father's dream of becoming a professional tennis star.

FILMOGRAPHY

• OVER THE NET, 2016 (completed)

• ALL THE THINGS YOU ARE, 2017 (completed)

• TRENTENAIRE CELIBATAIRE, 2017 (completed)

• MY NAME IS PEDRO, 2018 (production)

• ROSE IN THE RAIN, 2019 (in pre-production)

• GOOD MORNING, PLEASE, THANK YOU, 2020 (pre-production)

work

• SCRIPT DEVELOPMENT

• PRODUCING

• MUSIC COMPOSING

• SALES/ACQUISITIONS