If a director wants something special “built” for a film these days, he or she has the luxury of using a team of CGI specialists to digitally construct it.
What about those who want to build custom motorcycles inspired by sci-fi movies, though? They have to create something tangible. It only gets harder if they live in a place like Vietnam, which places high tariffs on vehicles and parts.
Daryl Villanueva, founder of Bandit9, doesn’t mind that because it forces him and his company to innovate. He told the site psfk, “We don’t take on client bikes and we don’t take client requests. This is a brand that builds new products or injects new life into older motorcycles that are completely designed in house. Over 90 percent of the bike is built from scratch.”
Villanueva’s resourcefulness, combined with inspiration from the works of such people as director Christopher Nolan and manga artist and filmmaker Katsuhiro Otomo, has resulted in unique creations. Bandit9 has used Chiang Jiang, Yamaha, and Honda two-wheelers as starting points for what can be seen as attempts at bringing the reality of modern motorcycles to the point they’re at in our imaginations.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
