THE HIT LIST: January 14, 2019
I had a busy weekend, frankly. No time really to BS or lounge about but for all good reasons… but that’s for another post.
dardrex productions
THE HIT LIST: November 27, 2017
Believe it or not, we’re coming down the wire with the Hit Lists of 2017! December 4 will be the last entry before I recommence things in January. Until then, I am also preparing content for the next several weeks in which I discuss upcoming films to look out for in 2018, so stick around for those as well.
For now though, it’s business as usual for The Hit List assembling the week’s stunt and demo reels and projects.
Stuntman, actor and filmmaker Diego Ramiro gives us an impressive showing this week with an spirited action comedy reel showcasing just what a versatile talent he is. He kicks off this week’s playlist with more reels by Kimberly Root, Andrew Nadanyi, Valisa Tate, Adam Carson, Marina Volkova, Geoffrey Boggs, Molly Thomas, Felix Cortes, Jeffrey Mayfield, Trevor de Groot and Chad Riley.
It’s time for some trailer gems and thus, the past decade or so have seen a sizeable raft of creatives among which only a handful have provenly taken the initiative in emulating visions that pay such organic, visceral homage to 80’s Hong Kong action filmlore. Australia’s own Adrian Castro continues this effort once more with three-part Girls With Guns action webseries, Tiger Cops, in reunion with actress Maria Tran who has performed at the forefront on similar conceptual proofs from Castro. The two are joined by Steven Oliver and legendary Hong Kong cinema star, actor and martial artist Richard Norton also star among the raft of characters now available in the latest trailer before we venture into the new promo for Noah Fleder’s own forthcoming endeavors at Force Storm with the new series, Legend Of The Kickmaster kicking off on January 18.
It’s time to round out the week’s fights and films and Dardrex’s Darren Holmquist set it off with a lesson in Anger Management with R Marcos Taylor and Angela Lynn among the cast. The next video sees the resurfacing of a group called Legionarius and their latest is called Combate Escencio, and that’s really all I have to go on since there’s nothing in credits or in the description while the short itself is a worthy view.
Pirhana Stunts members Danang and Evan, and director Majid shepherd Man Of Jungle with some fantastic and speedy fight execution before we make two revisits: a recent re-upload of action comedy skit, Invisible Danger, with David “Dax” Bauer and Seth Austin, and, and Juan Bofill’s Karate-infused Tatakai: The Battle, which proved itself twice with award-winning fruition at the Urban Action Showcase and Expo seventeen days ago.
Kingslayer Joey Min makes his final bid to akwaken a kingdom of live-action role players and their deluded king in the webseries finale of The Forbidden Kingdom: A Kung Fu Larp Story, and writer and Samuel Delitans Lee sets the stage for a shady businessman’s underworld brawl to rescue the love of his life in the new short, Rescue Before Dusk, led by Peps Goh and Shian Wen.
I’m looking forward to December 4 guys. If you have some time to spare then last week’s Hit List should be more than appealing! Sub to the channels and SHARE the Hit List with friends, and as always, if you or someone you know does action as badass as some of today’s crowdpleasing badasses and you would like a stake in our weekly Hit List, hit us up at filmcombatsyndicate@gmail.com!
THE HIT LIST: September 11, 2017
Peep the teaser and poster below.
THE HIT LIST: June 5, 2017
The past several days may have seen a slump of news. I admit, I kind of enjoyed it as I needed a bit of a breather. Best of all is I finally had a little time over the weekend to start watching Sense8 to see what the fuss is about and…
…I’ll be sure to give my feedback in a future post if I catch the writing bug by then. For now though, it’s time for this site to do what it does most prominently on Monday nights and with this week’s installment of the Hit List. Staff boss and Canadian alpha Catwoman Michelle C. Smith fires things up with her latest reel followed by a raft of stunt and training reels from some of today’s rising talents: Eugenia Guryleva, Caleb Spillyards, Anthony Javier, Jordan Davis, Tyson Arner, Meghan Whitfield (that makes two weeks in a row!), Dave Cutler, fellow FCSyndicate favorites Yadi Nieves and Irvin Nguyen, Into The Badlands familiars Nathan Barris and Morgan Benoit, and the latest reel by UK-based Movieworks Stunt & Fight Crew.
Currently this week is quiet on promotional material, so tentatively I’ll be changing it up a little bit with some sweet parkour action in an ultimate test of endurance. This one comes courtesy of Calen Chan who recently took to the Skyladder course at Heaven’s Gate alongside Tianman Mountain in China, racked with 999 steps jam-packed with momentum and adrenaline at the business end of a GoPro. In his mouth! He’s the only person thusfar to achieve this effort and he’s asking for fans and viewers for a share and we here are more than happy to oblige him. Cheers Calen!
Rounding out this week is a sick rack of test fight action beginning with David Lavallee Jr. opposite Matt Healy and Jose Pacheco, Mannie B.‘s latest get together with performers Lovel Johnson Jr. and Charlit Daechalkhom, Meghan Koch‘s own throwdown with Hamamura Yoko and guest performer Jordan Thoma, some cool new POV test fight action by Filip Ciprian Florian, Luca Malacrino with an experimental action gem inspired by one of 2017’s biggest hit movies (you’ll know when Le Castle Vania comes on) and Yavuz Topuz and Kyle Potter getting work done with Bryan Sloyer behind the lens.
John Cihangir keeps the pace going with something quite storyesque and hilarious per his recent college graduation in Graduation Hustle, followed by a re-upload from Dardrex Productions featuring swordwielders Darren Holmquist, Martin Chan and John Rickard, Sean Kohnke’s latest one-man army gangster tale, I’m Out Johnny (CLICK HERE to go behind the scenes and stay tuned for the sequel), Nicholas Ortiz’s own inspired take on Nintendo Switch game, Mr. Shifty from Deviant Children Productions, and Joseph Roark’s inspired thematic action drama short, Cain with John Tervanis.
That’s about it for this week. Be sure to check out last week’s entries and subscribe to the channels to show your support. Also, SHARE the Hit List with friends, and if you or someone you know has an equally amazing and impressive project that suits our niche and may be worthy of a spot in our weekly Hit List, hit us up at filmcombatsyndicate@gmail.com!
THE HIT LIST: September 21, 2015
Off the heels of my most recent three year anniversary piece, I sit here writing this at the wonder of seeing so much content floating online. I feel proud to share it all in my weekly Hit List and I sincerely hope it further benefits everyone I share…
…and that includes those currently comprising this week’s entries, starting off with a meaty playlist full of stunt and tricking montages. First up is a drone-shot view of a recent Battle Of Fury 2015 tricking gathering thanks to lensman Nick Marino, with a slate of reels hosted by Trevor Logan, and a finshing round of female talent with Haley Wright, Cheri Haight, Amy Lynn Tuttle, Deanna Graci and PeiPei Alena Yuan all showing out their best.
As for trailers, quite a few are circulating right now including Daren Nop’s latest short film twofer, Shadow Of 13, the story of a homeless man who often risks his own life for the good of his neighborhood. Both shorts released between last year and this year and were tentatively removed as per requirements for their run at Cannes this year. They’re going back up soon, and so we have a compilation trailer now running.
Other trailers include a fight concept from actor and stuntman Alfred Hsing inspired by the Death Note manga and movie franchise, T.C. De Witt’s long-awaited Halo fan film, Fallen and the latest promo from Nathyn Masters for Crashing Darkness.
Trailer SHADOW OF 13 from Madjinn Films on Vimeo.
It’s been a while since I shared any real freerunning and parkour videos, so I thought I’d snag a few for another brief playlist full of snazzy urban tumblers, firstly with a trailer for Omar Zaki‘s channel, along with an update from Jesse LaFlair, a cool gathering of trickers by way of the Ronnie Street Stunts channel, a montage of stunts in Lepzig from the [IF] Crew, and footage from the summer from the Hurgan debut gathering in Mongolia!
And now it’s time to get fighting, and kicking this segment is a nifty little playlist of short test fights. Mykola Galagan starts things off with a robust little samurai bit followed by Joey Min’s latest spectacular testament to epic pillow fighting and Dylan Hintz in a challenge of water bottle etiquette courtesy of DC Stunt Coalition. Rounding out the playlist are fights also featuring Alex Au‘s latest exchange between Kaitlin Hiller and choreographer Joseph Le, a newly edited and isolated CQC scene from a 2011 short courtesy of Dardrex Productions, a stellar piece of high-flying “Evil Kung Fu” fight work by Airon Armstrong, and Cinematic Fight Studio’s newest piece, Roomies.
Now we move on to the longer-form material and first to the list here is the latest from Saudi Arabia-based Stunt Guys titled The Escape, directed by Helal Mohamad. It’s a little loosely produced and it’s entirely in Arabic with no subs, but it serves up a nice little action and comedy experiment with a few noteworthy set pieces and gags, including a woman on a cell phone and a jar of Vaseline (no, this is not that kind of video.). Watch!
Up next is the latest induction from EMC Monkeys in their newest short story centered on a boxer who makes a comeback against a few neighborhood bullies led by Robert Dill.. what a meanie!
Check it out below and don’t forget to support them on Patreon in the description!
The next short hails straight from filmmaker, actor and stuntman Michael Lehr whose career progression remains in training and helping out with various productions. Otherwise, he’s working on his own gems to share with action fans, including his current webseries in conjunction with Fight Factory Stunt Team, VerseS, which marinates our anti-hero, Finn, in a world of poetic violence, justified or not. You be the judge and catch the latest webisode below!
On our way out, Rising Tiger Films has been on a roll this year with the film festivals as they’ve been ramping up their channel on YouTube. As such, we now have their latest short, These Dog Days, making the rounds ahead of its Urban Action Showcase and Expo this November; a short and brutal tale of vengeance with Leroy Nguyen and Daniel Sim in the ring, and Buddy The Dog spectating!
And last but far from least, who knew that a good drink and a pair of sneakers would be the answer to life’s problems? Brian Parker directs Fists of Absinthe アブサンの拳 in association with YouTube Space Tokyo and Quiet Flame Stunts, and starring Chuck Johnson, Kawahata Masahito and Hayakawa Tomoko. Have a brew and enjoy this drunken and feudal tumble through time with ninjas, samurais, and bad teeth!
Wicked. And you know what? The same could absolutely be said for last week’s Hit List, so take it all in if you have time. As for beyond here, link to the channels and show your love and support. And also, if you make kickass action movies and/or have a superb stunt reel that are up to par, share it and send it to us at filmcombatsyndicate@gmail.com!
THE HIT LIST: September 14, 2015
It’s Monday, and that means another fully loaded Hit List has arrived with loads of stunts and action. This week has a few late entries that I’ve been otherwise inspired to share, and I think you all will enjoy them in some capacity.
Of course, we’re starting this off with a playlist that’s nice and light, graced with stunt and martial arts reels. Fabio Santos kicks things off in fiery fashion next to Jason Wingham, “Kid Haru” himself – Devin White, early 2015 demo reel footage from Team Raffaelli, industry fight choreographer, actor and stuntman Tim Man and the latest awesome tricking reel from Team Emig’s own Mackensi Emory (viewable only here).
Up next are a handful of trailers, a few of which are for foreign language projects on the way, and the first comes four years in the making from filmmaking duo David Vergne and Renaud Guin. Detour is the name of the short which focuses on three jewel burglars who discover a woman brutally beaten, and find themselves taking on a darker force of evil, and the short is currently in post production.
The second trailer hails all the way from Jose Manuel at North Compass, a familiar face I’ve already written about here at Film Combat Syndicate. His next potential webseries, Uncompromised, takes our hero on a quest to avenge his own death with symbolic enemies in the form of his own personal flaws. It’s deep, deep stuff, although I’m certain the project will put all the pieces together when released.
Both projects have trailers below, including Detour which also comes with some cool character promo art. The other trailers include Rising Tiger Films’s new action drama short, These Dog Days, and SG Action’s long-awaited sci-fi time-travel gig, The Mantis!
DETOUR [2015] Official Release from Renaud Guin on Vimeo.
View post on imgur.com
Now we get to the fighting, and as always, there’s plenty of it in the following playlist. Star Wars is the way to here as we set off wity two new videos, one from Noah Fleder‘s Force Storm Entertainment, and Logan Cross’s own short, The Force. Other fights include Tripp Pickell’s latest test choreo sampler with cohort Shannan Leigh Yancsurak, Allie Marrie’s kickass performance in Faux Fighting’s latest “Showdown” serial addition, A Better Workout, Dardrex Productions’s action comedy, Snatch And Grapple, Cinematic Fight Studio’s latest client-ordered project, The Sting, and independent action director Bryan Sloyer’s newest ode to Kurt Wimmer, Equilibrium: Gentlemen’s Game!
Moving on to some longer-form shorts nearing the end of this week’s Hit List, actor, dancer and filmmaker Jordan Cann released this newest drama, My Brother’s Keeper, last week. It’s the story of a friendship broken over a girl, and a rivalry that unfolds between three crews with a surprising twist at the end. Cann himself takes primarily on dance and so there’s plenty of it here as well as a dash of fight choreography for good measure. Take a look!
And finally, we cap things off in award-winning fashion. Australian actor, writer and director David No is still making the rounds these days with his latest short, Battle Of Wills, hitting the festivals this Fall. In the meantime, it was in a private message on social media he shared his 2012 period sword drama, Forged, the story of an impetuous martial arts student who reflects on his ill-fated upbringing with his master on the night of their death duel. The project won a great share of awards throughout the world, including several festivals in the U.S. a few years ago during its run, and you can see them for yourself at the official fan page.
For now, enjoy Forged (special thanks to David for sending this one over!)
Of course, coming from the folks over at Bat In The Sun, we’re bound sooner or later to find out how their next Superpower Beatdown will turn out. Their latest still is up and clearly this one looks to be a real Fall berzerker!…
Tune in to last week’s Hit List and catch up on all you may have missed, and be sure to subscribe to the channels listed. More importantly though, if you’re a filmmaker and you wish have your stunt reels or action shorts featured in a Hit List, shoot us an email at filmcombatsyndicate@gmail.com
Oh No, NOT ANOTHER PARKING LOT FIGHT!
Fancy some indie action to start your day? Are you up for a cool little fight scene in a parking lot?
No? Well, neither is independent filmmaker and online action creator Darren Holmquist in his latest comedic action interlude, Not Another Parking Lot Fight, with performances by Leonard Zhang and Alex Tasy, and cinematography by Atom Phly Media’s own Frank Hernandez . It’s awesomely tongue-in-cheek right down to the end, and if you’ve been a fan of independent action cinema long enough, you’ll get the joke (well, except for the weird part).
Check it out below, and with Holmquist catching up on a few other projects he plans on sharing real soon from Dardrex Productions, feel free to subscribe to the channel in the embed!
Dardrex Presents: DARREN HOLMQUIST V. SHAUN BEEHAG
Darren Holmqist tries to force Shaun Beehag into submission in their latest fight.
It’s not often that independent online filmmakers and action performers travel to other areas of the world to make short test fights for the simple fun of it. However, for online actioner Darren Holmquist, it was quite convenient a pairing when Aussie professional traceur Shaun Beehag flew to California recently on business and decided to pay Holmquist a visit.
Hence, we are offered a brand new test fight this week featuring Holmquist and Beehag, choreogrpahed much to the tune of Holmquist‘s “New Style” of evolving choreography that strays from the usual Hong Kong elements he’s incorporated in his projects over the years. The new short was also another opportunity for Beehag to help sharpen his performance level as a stuntfighter since going on hiatus early last year to establish himself as a fitness trainer and an obstacle racer.
The project is also one in a small handful the few have worked on several years ago, formulating a creative understanding they have grown to mutually share and benefit to this day. Needless to say, Beehag agrees. “Darren is really patient and understanding, which for me as someone coming off a year of no filming was great because it enabled me to pace myself and ease back into choreography again.” he says. “He would be great for beginners to work with, and for more experienced filmmakers, he’s very eager to collaborate and work together on coming up with the choreography which is a great experience.”.
Beehag also added, “The shoot was really relaxed and a lot of fun, and lots of laughs were had which eased the strain of two hours sleep and the chill of San Francisco fog. Plus, he’s got a great team behind him too. Frank Hernandez and Jeff Lunzaga were both really nice to work with.”.
Holmquist has a few more projects that the public will get to see this year, including a few that are now in post-production dating back to recent work in Redding, as well as a new stunt reel on the way two weeks from now. Meanwhile, Beehag will be more focused this year on Parkour training, matriculating himself into Brisbane’s film festival scene, film production and will hopefully attain the funds needed to build his own multifunctional freerunning and cinema stunt training academy at home.
In between all these and more, if the two can find a way to collaborate once again, Beehag assures it. “Next time I’m in America I suspect, or if he comes to visit me in Australia.” he says. “We are both looking at spending some time in Los Angeles in the future, so if that lines up right, there would be a lot of work going for us then.”.
Check out the video below and subscribe to Holmquist‘s channel in the embed below, and feel free to pull open the description and click the link to Beehag‘s Youtube platform where you may also subscribe.
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