A chess champion in his youth, Brandon Burrows, principal and founder of shingle Firebrand, approaches producing like a chess game. His love for film sparked at an early age when his father owned a video store. His producing credits include “Gallowwalkers” with Wesley Snipes, “The Perfect Weapon” starring Steven Seagal and “Altitude” with Dolph Lundgren. He created, wrote and produced “Pups Alone” starring Jennifer Love Hewitt and Rob Schneider, and executive-produced Western “The Last Son” with a cast led by Sam Worthington, Machine Gun Kelly, Thomas Jane and Heather Graham. He’s written the next two action thrillers he’ll be producing.

How has your world class chess-playing skills informed your producing endeavors? Do you find it useful when it comes to negotiating deals with agents, talent, sales and other areas?

There’s an old saying: Not all artists are chess players, but all chess players are artists. Chess is not just a creative game,...