John G. Thomas

Tired from the grind of production, Thomas dropped out of filmmaking for three years. During this, Thomas faced emotional difficulties of having to put his mother into a rest home. The experience led to the eventual production of his next film, Healer (1994). A true story that chronicles the bizarre and often humorous lives of two paramedics in a retirement town. Earning the spot of opening night selection at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, the films stars such actors as Tyrone Power Jr., David McCallum, Delane Matthews, and Turhan Bey. Tobey Maguire also makes an appearance in the film.

Thomas, unlike his peers, focused on Documentary film instead of the feature favored by his peers. Over the next decade, he made 37 documentaries, shorts, and television programs on a varied range of subjects such as aviation, genetic engineering, solar energy, and bluegrass music. He also photographed a land speed record attempt by Kitty O'Neil. During this period, he received many national and international awards for his work. His films were also shown at the Whitehouse and the Vatican. However, in 1983, Thomas decided to give feature films a shot.

His first feature, Tin Man (1983), is the story of a deaf computer genius (Timothy Bottoms) who invents a computer which allows him to speak. The film was received with much enthusiasm and earned the title of Official U.S. entry at the San Sebastian International Film Festival. Thomas' next feature, Banzai Runner (1987), starring Dean Stockwell, centers around the death of a cop mixed up in a race involving a group of wealthy drivers and custom high-speed cars on a deserted desert highway. Banzai Runner went on to become the "…top selling (non-studio) video in the first year of its release." according to Variety. The next film done by Thomas was Arizona Heat (1988), a film crossing cultural boundaries by pairing a tough cop with a lesbian cop in their mutual pursuit of a serial killer. Arizona Heat was also greatly successful.

Afterwards, he became fascinated with cameras, and began to work in still photography. Soon after, he was selling photos to the local newspaper and regional magazine. By his late teens, Thomas not only produced a local weekly radio show, but also worked as a cameraman for television stations and designed lighting for Miami nightclubs. He even organized a large rock concert starring The Byrds, Steppenwolf, and others. Thomas also became involved in local productions including such projects as Flipper (1964 TV Series) and Gentle Ben (1967 TV series) by Ivan Tors. Too young to legally work, Thomas was often paid under-the-table for doing jobs nobody else wanted to do. This sparked Thomas' passion in film, and soon after graduating high school he moved to Hollywood.

John G. Thomas (born January 19, 1948) is an American filmmaker. He has been in the film and television business for over 30 years.