From The Octagon To The Director’s Chair, Keith Jardine Wraps Up Directing Short Film

In the early days of the UFC, Keith Jardine has faced some aggressive fighters like Chuck Liddell, Forrest Griffin and Quinton Jackson. Of the three, he only lost to Jackson via unanimous decision.

But these days, Jardine has tried his talents elsewhere.

Jardine, a retired MMA fighter, has since found himself in the entertainment industry. He’s starred in many shows and movies like “Hawaii Five-0,” “Logan” and “John Wick,” but he’s wrapping up another new venture – film director.

The 45-year-old is almost done filming a small budget, short film named “El Paso 11:55,” where he had to do “basically everything.” He’s hoping for a September release date, but first plans to get it shown at South by Southwest and Sundance (SXSW), a film and music festival to grab investors and the industry’s attention.

“I built all the sets with Cowboy. I wrote, produced, acted, directed, helped with the edit,” Jardine told FOX Sports. “It is a lot of pressure but I absolutely love it.”

“Cowboy” is Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, an experienced and beloved fighter in UFC history. He lost his last fight against Alex Morono via KO/TKO.

Meanwhile, Jardine’s last UFC fight was in 2010 and his last fight overall was at Strikeforce 2012.

“I’m busier now than I’ve ever been,” Jardine added. “But I’m fortunate. I didn’t want MMA to be the only thing I did and then just kind of drift away.

“Movies are a different world, but I’ll fight just as hard to try to be successful.”