TAMPA, Fla. — There is a saying that cats have nine lives, but a Cat Named Mo in Tampa has about nine jobs. Most of them are based around entertaining the people of Tampa Bay, but he's also keeping them safe.
You may have heard him on The Cat Named Mo Show engaging with audiences on the radio.
"I have no idea what we are going to talk about. I never do," said Mo.
You may have also seen him on stage telling jokes as a stand-up comedian.
"It's you talking and an immediate response," said Mo.
There's even a chance you may have bumped into him at the Tampa Airport, where he works as a TSA Officer.
"Flip flops at an airport; it's ridiculous," said Mo.
However, this cat is actually named Maurice Jovan, and his dream job is just beginning.
"Never wanted to be anything but be a filmmaker; that's what I wanted to be," said Jovan.
So Javon not only started pursuing that dream but achieving it. His award-winning short film, The Purgatorist, is currently on Amazon Prime. It gave him the courage to pursue his first feature-length film, WDED Dead in the Morning.
"A zombie horror comedy that takes place in a radio station. Why? Because I had access to a radio station," said Jovan.
The movie made it into the Gasparilla and Sunscreen Film Festivals. It even featured many of his friends and co-workers. There was just one problem, and it wasn't the zombies.
"The pandemic, after two years of shooting on Saturdays," said Jovan.
So while searching through luggage, Jovan also began searching for answers, and that's when he decided to turn Dead in the Morning into the docu-movie Dead in the Making.
"It's just broken up by interview segments, and it also adds other elements like the premier party we had, reviews that came out with the film, it's all encompassing," said Jovan.
Dead in the Making premiers Sunday, September 12 at 6 p.m. at Sidesplitters at The Grove in Wesley Chapel. Doors open at 5 p.m. For more information and tickets, go to sidesplitterscomedy.com.
"It captures a moment in time or a moment in the existence of that radio station, that signal, that will never occur again, so it's a little bit bittersweet, but I got it on film," said Jovan.
