Jose Mari Hontiveros Avellana (May 6, 1941 – June 26, 2011[1]) was a Filipino actor, screenwriter, director, and production designer.
[3][4] His first major movie role was that of evil drug lord Ming in Cirio H. Santiago's Blaxploitation epic TNT Jackson (1974).
[5] This marked the beginning of a decade-long professional relationship with influential producer-director Cirio H. Santiago, during which Avellana took on various responsibilities.
Some of the more notable productions in which he acted include successful action-adventure outings such as Wheels of Fire (1985), Death Force (1978) and Bloodfist II (1990).
Later in his career, Avellana directed movies in Tagalog for the local market such as the family drama Kung Mawawala Ka Pa (1993) that won Best Picture at the 1993 Metro Manila Film Festival, Labanang Lalaki (1996) and the patriotic revolution tale Damong Ligaw (1997) that was awarded the FAMAS Centennial Award.