WEATHERING THE STORM: A Word With SOLD Star And Director Jennifer Li
Actress and stunt performer Jennifer Li talks making her graduation shortfilm, SOLD, her career goals and ambitions in our first interview.
Shortfilms
CYBER FIGHTER IndieGoGo: Jack Into William Joseph Hill’s New Proof-Of-Concept Martial Arts Action Comedy Sci-Fi Campaign
It’s been close to ten years since I’ve mentioned actor and martial artist William Joseph Hill’s name on this site. Not that he hasn’t been busy – quite the opposite, with other film projects and even getting a book published at one point. That brings us to Hill’s newest effort with Cyber Fighter, a shortfilm adaptation of his 2019 novel. Hill’s Indiegogo campaign is now up and running following completion of virtually half the film, with hopes of bolstering his proof-of-concept with enough momentum before audiences and market banners to get a feature film going in the not too distant future. Chronically underemployed and klutzy un-athletic videogame designer Brian Baldwin takes a temp job at major defense contractor Kirkman Enterprises, where he meets software programmer Humbert Cloogey who convinces him to volunteer to be the test subject for Cyber Fighter: A revolutionary new training program for military recruits. As part […]
NYAFF XXII: A Select Look At The Animated Shorts Launching For This Year’s Festival
The New York Asian Film Festival is already underway and for that matter, the narrative animated shorts showcase included in this year’s 22nd edition. I was motivated to take a page from Cesar’s style of coverage for the live-action shorts after covering a bunch of films I’ve reviewed and currently saved in drafts. I didn’t do all the shorts due to time constraints, but a good seven count ought to suffice. Click here for more info on the titles and other gems hailing this month’s festivities. Confusion Of The Afternoon Lee Yung-Chieh combines different modes of art for a vibrant stop-motion mini-adventure of introspection and growth, specifically exploring life from the POV of a boy growing up and discovering sexuality as his mind wanders the moment he accident touches the hand of his heterosexual classmate while playing cards. In the wake of all the music, dancing and joyous envisioning lies […]
FIGHT OR FLIGHT: Three Minutes, Thirty Stunt Guys, Tons Of Action In Godefroy Ryckewaert’s New Short
It’s worth a reminder that Godefroy Ryckewaert came under my radar just as The Hit List took off in late 2014. He was, and remains a recurring favorite around these parts and so his latest short, Fight Or Flight, should offer up a fair excuse to tout him accordingly. Per Ryckewaert, this was shot in four hours following six hours prep time and with the awesome participating stunt students of Campus Univers Cascade. Thirty of them. The result is three minutes of some of the dopest action you’ll ever see on the internet. Give Ryckewaert a push on the Subscribe button on his channel and follow along!
AGENT RED 2 Continues The Action-Packed Shortilm Saga In The Official Trailer
I’ve got a bit of an afternoon to tend to, but I’m also reminded that I’ll have to touch base with Kevin Barile at some point. I’ve been following his work for a decade now and he continues to be one of the most apt at assembling all the right components of action cinema-crafting, and his string of welcome festival premeires, award wins and noms is further proof of his veracity here. That brings us to Agent Red 2, spawned from a practice fight short piece Barile launched online last summer to the tune of 1.2 million views to date, and with a sequel that brings a more narratively-driven tale at hand featuring. Set to premiere at Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood, California on July 8, the short stars Camille Osborne in the title role along with Bronte Coluccio, and Nalani Pasion. Simon Longwright and Sherwin Frey also star, with […]
RED VALLEY Trailer: Swords And Will Power Cross In Greg Schwartz’s Debut Action Short
Last summer I had the privilege to check out a rough cut of Red Valley, an independently-produced fantasy action short directed by Greg Schwartz. It’s Schwartz’s first directorial gig as well after stunt-performing for several years and with post-production finally in his rear-view, the new sword-and-sandals indie epic now has a trailer with a July release in the works. After 100 years of bloody conflict, the opposing sides agree to have their two greatest warriors fight in unarmed, single combat to decide the war. Those warriors are Coleman Riley Taylor and Ben Chaverin with the rest of the cast front and center in the player below.
A FATHER’S SON: A DETECTIVE JACK YU INVESTIGATION: Patrick Chen’s Chinatown Crime Noir Makes Its Riveting Fathers’ Day Debut
I’ve been wanting to see director Patrick Chen’s A Father’s Son: A Detective Jack Yu Investigation, since I first heard about it in 2019. The new shortfilm is adopted from the work of author Henry Chang’s Detective Jack Yu novel series, crowdfunded via Kickstarter and following production, subsequently became the recipient of ceremony at numerous festival audiences since its virtual premiere in Oregon last year. The most standout and alluring aspect about this shortfilm is its asthetics. A Father’s Son: A Detective Jack Yu Investigation immediately immerses you in 1990s New York City. The costumes, set designs and pieces bring coherence to Chen’s apt treatment of a story to compliment the powerful performances of its cast, led by actor and comedian Ronny Chieng, as well as a rich and substantive script by Chen and co-writers Eddie Shieh and the aforementioned Chang who exec produces. Be ready for typewriters and rotary […]
New BLACK SITE Promo Teases July Release For New Action Short Thriller
It’s been about a year since writer/director John Balazs launched the teaser for his newest action-packed shortfilm endeavor, Black Site. The project reteams him with the usual crew over at his Prima Lux Films label and actor/exec producer Matt Theo who also starred in Balazs’s 2021 feature debut, Rage. About a year later Balazs is already moving onward as we speak with the production of his second feature drama, Freelance. The project is just one in several films Balazs is developing at the snail’s pace process it takes for independent productions like these… This, while fans who’ve stuck with Balazs since the multi-award winning short, Dancer, can now take a gander at the newest trailer for Black Site which comes in July. Take a look below! Two remaining members of a special ops team must survive being hunted by Russian soldiers in order to make it to an extraction point. […]
BITERS & BLEEDERS: Chilling New Horror Short Launches First Teaser
The official trailer is here for Biters & Bleeders, a new horror short signaling horror fans and pending festival audiences as the summer approaches. Biters & Bleeders serves as the launchpad for New 32, a newly-launched, queer-owned, independent film company based in North Carolina. Beneath the thin veneer of their marriage lies a rotting core of regret, frustration, and contempt. Tad (Malcolm) and Penelope (Whisnant) have fallen on hard times. When Tad’s mother unexpectedly dies and Tad comes into possession of his stately family home, he believes it will be the key to solving everything. But what awaits them in that house is not salvation. What awaits them is the final push that will finally send them toppling over that razor-thin edge into the unknown. An infestation of monstrous bed bugs eat through the home and Penelope’s psyche. She becomes increasingly desperate for any escape from the countless new bites, […]
SOLD Review: Jennifer Li Runs, Hides And Fights In Her Brutal New Directorial Short Debut
Tautly, carefully-crafted fourteen minutes of near non-stop, intense action and drama ensue in Jennifer Li’s directorial debut, Sold. A stunt performer by trade, Li’s inaugural filmmaking feat which recently had its Graduation screening, is the result of time well spent at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design. Li takes the mantle here with Sold, wearing multiple hats behind the lens, including that of actor for the film’s perilously inclement three-day shoot. For this, we get the story of Ming (Jennifer Li) woman who volunteers to deliver money to pick up a camera for her dear friend, Kiki (Leifennie). Her trip finds her at a remote farm whose seemingly affable sole occupant named James (Kyle Toy) finagles her into coming into his questionable abode, and the result is as terrible as you would expect. What you don’t see coming is the “why?” of it all, but that comes about […]
Tsubaraya Prods. Teases ULTRASEVEN IF STORY Seven-Minute Concept Short Releasing Later This Year
From the annals of history made at Tsubaraya Productions comes the return of another classic to the table with Ultraseven IF Story: The Future Of 55 Years. The project is a seven-minute concept flick that explores a connecting aftermath of the events of the original series from 1968, and will also have the show’s original actors, Kohji Moritsugu and Yuriko Hishimi also appearing. The sun was sinking towards the western horizon, and darkness was approaching the industrial area on the bay shore. A silver wing that flew from nowhere crash-landed on a deserted beachside. It was the Ultra Hawk 1 that crash-landed due to a time paradox created by Alien Pegassa to prevent an accident that occurred 55 years ago. Earthlings that survived by deciding to destroy Pegassa City that interfered with the Earth’s orbit. An alien that lived in solitude after the city of its species was destroyed. And […]
SOLD: Jennifer Li Fights For Her Life In The Official Trailer For The New Graduation Shortfilm Thriller
Par for the course with covering stunt performers on my platform is the hopes that one day these professionals will get to expand themselves behind the lens. Vancoverite, actress and stunt performer Jennifer Li is no exception, and well into her craft for a decade now she leaves her mark in the director’s chair for upcoming survival thriller, Sold. The fourteen minute survival thriller is written, produced and directed by, and stars Li in the role of a devoted friend forced to fight her way out of captivity when it becomes clear that she’s been sold to traffickers by the last person she expected would do so: Her best friend. That’s mostly what’s included in the shortform logline, but what I love most is that there’s a greater twist involved that I already know about which I won’t reveal here as the trailer below is plenty to get excited over. […]
Michelle C. Smith Unleashes THE VENGEANCE OF ASAJJ VENTRESS On Star Wars Day
Star Wars fandom wins the day on this, the fourth of May and as such, actress and stunt professional Michelle C. Smith is here to stake her claim in the arena with her take on a character series favorite from The Clone Wars in director Stanton Chong’s new short, The Vengeance Of Asajj Ventress. Smith teams up with Dan Ginnane and Kayla Cho and performs the key signature action with Sean Kohnke as coordinated by Brian Ho, and with a shortfilm that’s been long part of an effort by Smith to showcase her twirling and weapons skillset through her YouTube and Instagram social pages in hopes of nabbing a place in the Star Wars franchise. I’d call this a fair move on her part with all the current and upcoming shows and films still in toe, especially as long as the franchise continues to be lucrative for Disney. I vote […]
ASDO Throws Down, Kigurumi Style!
If you were to walk up and tell me that the future of action cinema is a guy somewhere in New Jersey getting together with his friends and doing martial arts shortfilms donning Kigurumi onesies, don’t be surprised if I shrug with approval. Joey Min has been on my radar since I discovered him for myself collabing with the likes of Fernando Jay Huerto and Jon Truei over the years with Min’s Art School Dropouts indie label in full tilt as an ambitious, self-nurturing and ever-growing wheelhouse of creativity with a keenness on kung fu cinema and comedy, Min can go fight a ham sandwich for all I care. I’m all in, and this latest video from the ASDO was cool. Enjoy!
Start Your Week Right With THE CLASSIC FIGHT SITUATION, And Drink Responsibly
It’s Monday morning as I write this, and I’m starting off with a gem by way of Maria Gnecchi with some respite action and comedy courtesy of stunt performers Luis Pan Venezia and Alessandro Xavier De Silva – just a couple of bros in Rome getting caught up in the kind of situation that usually ends up on camera and in front of eyes of action fans. “Classic Fight Situation” it is, yes? Simple as that. Enjoy!
Awaken Yourselves Into Kevin Barille’s New Heist Action Sci-Fi, DREAM WAR
This article is a re-edit and republication from December 22 following the film’s continued festival circulation going into the new year, now presented with a new upload via the BarilliantAction channel. There’s no question director and action stylist Kevin Barille’s got some choosy nods bolstering the inspiration for his latest shortfilm release, Dream War. The 16-minute short sees Barille in the role of an agent and his team on a mission to acquire a code to funds hidden by a sword-wielding gangster, and while I won’t go too into detail here with the logline, I can earnestly attest to its award-winning merit following its festival run. Barille, who is a familiar favorite for the Action On Film Megafest (founded by late curator Del Weston to whom the shortfilm is dedicated) is the man behind the action. He is joined by professional traceur Sydney Olson, actors Calvert David Miles, actor […]
O DRAGÃO DE ROZAN: Help Shiryu’s Dragon Rise In The New Saint Seiya Fan Film From Raciocinando Filmes!
For the past ten years much of my focus has been on helping to advance the efforts of aspiring independent filmmakers in other countries, and in the course of my pursuits I’ve managed to network myself with numerous fight choreographers around the world. Today, you can thank Gutemberg Lins who I’ve managed to spotlight a few times in that same period, including most recently appearing in the upcoming hit kung fu stoner comedy, The Smoke Master. As of late, Lins has been actively collaborating with filmmaker Nando Rodrigues whose independent film production banner, Raciocinando Filmes, is now looking to etch itself a new mark in the Saint Seiya (or Knights Of The Zodiac) fandom following 2021’s A Lenda de Fênix. For this, we turn to O Dragão de Rozan, and the crowdfunding campaign Rodrigues and his team have unveiled over at Catarse to help earn as close to their 150,000 […]
THE BOOK OF PERSEUS: Bryan Sloyer Pays Tribute To The Hughes Brothers’ 2010 Dystopian Epic
It feels like it’s been forever and a day since I wrote about Bryan Sloyer, which now brings us to The Book Of Perseus, the latest entry to his body of work as a stuntman and by all accounts, a filmmaker with a strong storytelling caliber and ethic. The short pays a great nod to The Hughes Brothers’ The Book Of Eli which starred Denzel Washington as a drifter backpacking through an apocalyptic wasteland, carrying a mysterious book that supposedly holds the answers to saving mankind. Sloyer also gives his account in the post-film credits of how the project came to pass, collaborating with actor and stunt performer Aaron D. Alexander to help bring the project to life, ultimately attributing it to his love for the film, as well as his faith. The short also features Caitlin Hutson, Zar Succarotte, and Brian Jansa.
STRANGE BLADES: Catch The Trailer For King Vader’s Latest Fan-Inspired Ode To Marvel
I’m hella late on this particular campaign but fans who follow comics and YouTube creators regularly all know who King Vader is and can expect something only spectacular as we approach the March 23 launch of upcoming shortfilm miniseries, Strange Blades: Blade VS. Ghost Rider. I couldn’t find out much about this project except I managed to get in touch with one of the crew behind the action to provide me something to share along with the trailer. There could be a new one but, we’ll see if that arises. In the meantime, the trailer below from December is worth taking a gander at to see what to expect. When a normal night out turns into a nightmare, Blade must seek out what dark forces are at play in his life—only to discover a much bigger and more dangerous game than he could have ever imagined. I’m told a live […]
Shortfilm Trailer: Brace Yourself For…DRAGON COP!
France-based indie wheelhouse Masebrothers is proudly flying their Hong Kong action fandom flag with a teaser trailer for new shortfilm, Dragon Cop. Masebrothers are the directing team with action sequences by Cascade 31, and a cast led strikingly by Julien Phuong Le and Line Phé for its March 10 launch. Hong Kong Police Detectives Dragon Yuen and Cynthia Chan are about to bust a drug case involving Mr Chow’s triad and American criminal John Rickman. But they will be trapped by Chow’s men and will have no choice but to fight to stay alive. But Dragon and Cynthia will make a very strange discovery… Also starring are Nicolas Gruber, Lucie Charbonneaux, Arnaud Peries, Patrick Setsoua, and David Tieng Yang. Pay close mind to the opening production title logo as it pays quite the homage to a certain recipient of a certain upcoming Lifetime Achievement Award ceremony who once launched his […]
You must be logged in to post a comment.