El Cerrito native Justin Tipping is kicking it in the big times now and credits his first indie feature, 2016’s Oakland-set “Kicks,” with Mahershala Ali, for paving the way to his biggest career milestone yet — directing and co-screenwriting the provocative new horror film “HIM,” a dark look at American football and fame.

“The reason I’m here is because Jordan Peele saw ‘Kicks’ and loved it,” Tipping said during a phone interview. “Around the time that was being released he had won an Academy Award (best original screenplay for “Get Out”) and had just started Monkeypaw Productions. He wanted to meet young filmmakers and wanted to meet me.

“So the seed was planted.”

Then came a nearly decade-long gap with Tipping venturing into various projects in the streaming and TV universe. When “HIM

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