Well, I didn’t think I’d make it this week for another installment of the Hit List. It doesn’t undercut the amount of content still forthcoming, especially with San Diego Comic-Con inbound so… looks like it’ll be another full plate this season.
For this, it is with great pleasure to have been able to share an auspicious chat with Adam Brashaw, someone whose work thusfar in stunts, film and television have been all but impressive. He’s only appeared in The Hit List a few times having done three shortfilms (two of which I have seen), and you need only to see the results for yourself apart from his exceptional work reel just above.
Probably the best way I can sum up the gist of my weekend is that 76 years and current box office gross of more than $450 million dollars later, I would say that Patty Jenkins has earned her place at the helm of a Wonder Woman sequel and Warner Bros. would be wise to oblige.
On to other matters, however, it’s a new week which means it’s time for another installment of the Hit List. Kicking off the first playlist in this week’s stunt reel category is Umar Khan now out with a compilation video in celebration of his recent 35th birthday. Rounding out the playlist are Leon Ngo, Beni Alexander, Aaron Hakala, Joon Poore, Barret Coates, Heather Lynn, Nikki Stanley, Veto Swarn, Troy Butler and Li Qiang, with coordinator and choreography reels by Jennifer Badger and Joseph Roark.
There’s more fight stuff to come. For now though, we’re switching it up a bit with the latest from a talented filmmaker and performing artist I’ve always enjoyed since I began following him in 2014. Jordan Cann, hailing from Virginia and currently based in Atlanta, Georgia, brings creative gumption to the forefront of his latest endeavor, DeTour, shot in a robust, energetic, colorful miniseries of four inspired visuals host collectively to an eight-minute medley of music, martial arts and dance.
Cann is joined by Kia Dawn and Taye Amegboh, and the aesthetic of Atlanta’s varying backdrops and the musical sounds of Mario, Sean Paul, Tory Lanez, Matias Damasio, and Omarion.
Time to close the deal this week and with a raft of fight and shortfilm material beginning with new practice pieces from Eugenia Guryleva, Singapore-based JKHH Films, and the latest from Wildchild Gil Sanabria and Samuel Olmo in Survival Of The Fittest, followed by a trio oTekken-themed promotional videos featuring Cha-Lee Yoon, Phong Giang, Can Aydin and Dee Yoon for 20th Century Fox’s theatrical German release of the new martial arts comedy, Plan B: Scheiss Auf Plan A.
Fledging fight training-for-film company Screen Combat Guys is up on the roster this week with Tony Chong opposite Ricky Barksdale and Stephon Reynolds, an ample bookmark to help promote their current crowdfunding initiative for a bigger, greatly-needed studio in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, New York City (You can learn more about the group at their GoFundMe campaign page for info on how you can help).
Stunt player Igor Tjumenzev picks up the pace with a stimulating MegaMan fight concept at Impulse Action Design, while Gun Cho and Tin Dang play at the most epic Jenga fight you’ll ever see in your lifetime – courtesy of Art School Dropouts and their appreciation for Kung Fu Tea and Hector Soria brings Hong Kong action cinema and stunt stalwart, actor and martial artist Robert Samuels (Red Wolf, No Problem, Beast) to the frontlines in the action-packed cop shortfilm thriller, The Call.
Culimating the playlist is the first of two long-form shorts, and no less deserving of an obligatory reshare here for the Hit List with Dance Nocturnal’s own Six Carolino currently raising funds to expand the potential serial universe following Garrett Atkinson’s award-winning November 2016 short, Gauntlet Run: Origins. Per the Kickstarter, the money raised will be used to purchase new camera equipment, lights, and other technical necessities as well as fight weapons to be used in the new stunts for the ambitious new action comedy series. Click here to contribute and/or share accordingly.
Last and far from least is a video by an equally-inspired and fine group of people whose love and passion for dynamic stuntwork and Asian action cinema has apparently sent a few of them to the hospital in the wake of their latest shortfilm, Supreme Art Of War. The project debut last week on late Monday and I couldn’t add it then, so I’m adding it here as a matter of utmost certainty for its rightful place in the Hit List.
See that play button? Yep…Move on over and hit it!
The Hit List is an almost neverending stream of action-packed content from around the web and that string goes on from last week and the weeks and strings before it. Click here to take a gander and immerse yourself in the raw talent before you, and share the Hit List with friends and family.
The Hit List will be taking a break before returning on June 26, 2017, but don’t fret! We will still accept entries, and so as always, if you or someone you know has a stunt reel that needs to be seen to believed or deals in a quality and upscaling caliber of action on film deemably worthy of a spot in our weekly Hit List, hit us up at filmcombatsyndicate@gmail.com!
Well, I can’t say much about my weekend. Saturday was a 19 hour day and so Doctor Strange had to be put on hold, and my energy level on Monday was about the same as your average everyday housecat. That said, I did get to enjoy a cool Sunday night out with someone who’s been doing stunts for some time now and you can read more about that by clicking here!
On that note, The Hit List has arrived for this week and new stunt and action demo reels are here for your viewing pleasure with the first – a reel from an actress whose work I’ve been dying to share in a Hit List entry ever since I became friends with her on social media in 2014. Hailing all the way from London and fresh off of a stellar box office run thusfar in the U.K. and U.S. in Scott Derrickson’s Doctor Strange is actress and martial artist Katrina Durden with a fantastic new reel now viral, also featuring footage from Street Fighter: Resurrection. Rounding out the playlist is a raft of reels from Brazil’s own Renan Medeiros, Alexa Marcigliano, Steve Legate, Cassie Lee Minick, Donald Tucker, Jordan Sessions, Canada-based Malik Bouabid, and a ferocious new fight choreography reel by Bryan Sloyer who rightly deserves a such a credit on a feature film, and I’m hoping that happens between now and 2017.
Enjoy!
There’s only one trailer this week that I’ve come across for the promotional side of things and it’s from actor and filmmaker Phillip Ray Tommy out of Birmingham in the UK with a modern-day take on the Biblical tale of Cain & Abel. Tommy is joined by actor and martial artist Grant Stevens who dazzled the comic book fanbase as Nightcrawler in Cable: Chronicles Of Hope from directors George and Harry Kirby, and here and now with a project that further aims at showcasing Tommy’s ability to conjure dynamic storytelling, quality and depth in shortform. Of course, the trailer for it also teases some of the slickest action sequences you’ll ever enjoy in martial arts cinema and bullet ballet with Stevens in his element, and I’m sure not many will complain here. It works and I wouldn’t mind this as a feature film myself if the right investors stepped up.
Check it out!
At long last, we’ve arrives at this week’s roster of shortfilm fights and cinematic content that I (…in all caps) KNOW you are going to love.
We begin with the latest from Art School Dropouts where actor and martial artist Joey Min has arrived to demonstrate how to handle the recent spate of random clown incidents throughout the world…and in a drunken stupor no less! Also starring are Stephanie Pham, and your resident clown patrol played by Gee Jay, Andrew Kim and Cheech Vitale. From there, it’s filmmaker Naser Kazmi and his latest contribution to some satirical roleplay in lieu of this week’s presidential election with stunt players Thomas Lorber and Magalie Rouillart in a video aptly titled Hillary Punches Trump In The Face! Sure, it’s pretty far-fetched a spectacle but you can’t deny that it’s fitting of the tone of the election, and let’s just face it…anyone who can perform fight choreo with a B-twist deserves to have it filmed and shared.
Following that is a video that happens to be one of my favorite things this month and it comes from Stephen Vitale, and featuring none other than actress and comedian Anna Akana in a role that just intrigues you to your core in the new Star Wars Fan Film, Hoshino. The opening title is just fabulous, as is the lensing with a story that tells of our young Padawan heroine and the pennance she pays for nearly succumbing to the darkside, and it’s a story that otherwise lends nods to empowerment and endurance with an important life lesson I think almost anyone might agree to. Proceeding from an unsuccessful Indiegogo campaign, it’s rather fortunate that this shortifilm came to pass, and given the result, I think it’s fair to see what could have been done if the right amount of funds were there. Don’t watch this just to spy some stylish and cool lightsaber action. Instead, watch AND enjoy it for its sheer depth and brilliance.
Up after that is a 2014 shortfilm that didn’t come my way until this week thanks to a mention during a chat with fight choreographer and filmmaker Fred Nguyen. He, actor and Temple shortfilm co-star Yue Qi and actress Michelle Jiang star in The Burglar, which tells of what happens when a perpetrator breaks into a home only to find himself pinned down in the dark by its uniquely skilled couple. Indeed, these are not your normal home invasion victims and it’s our title character who gets more than what he bargained for, and in the best, most entertaining way for a kung fu comedy short brimming with terrific physical comedy, wit and action.
Last and far (and I mean FAR) from least, is a shortfilm that has undergone an interesting evolution as a preamble to a much larger project out in Australia. For this, I invite you to read my March 13 interview with none other than Sam Gosper, to learn a little more about the prior history leading up to the current release of his newest shortfilm, Hunt For Hiroshi. The project is just the start for a more grand ensemble of feature film work for Gosper and the good folks over at Resilient Pictures, featuring the stunt stylings of Team 9Lives with a trio actors headlining the compelling action and drama about a ninja who comes out of hiding to settle an old score. Abe Taki stars in the title role opposite David Vuong and Laurent Boiteux who cross barrage of blades, bullets, fisticuffs and big kicks in this festive martial arts showdown between two antiheroes locked into battle with nothing but vengeance, redemption and bloodlust running through their veins.
Hunt For Hiroshi is a project that I am purely glad to have been covering, and that as hard as Gosper is working, more is hopefully in store for this project and I sincerely hope more stems from it. The cast is superb and the action and quality are fantastic, the drama – albeit edited for a tighter and more convenient narrative – is solid as ever. Lo-fi as it may be, this shortfilm deserves to spawn its own feature film franchise and if you love the kind of martial arts action you see in films like Isaac Florentine’s Ninja films and Netflix series Daredevil, or just have a distinct appreciation for the ninja genre dating back to the bustling 1980’s, at just twenty-four minutes in, I think you might even agree.
Watch all the shorts from start to finish, and by all means, enjoy!
If you still have time to spare, last week’s Hit List is all the more entertaining and full of goods to enjoy, so peep it and follow the channels on your own accord. And, as always, if you or someone you know is an aspiring stuntman with a fantastic demo reel, or a filmmaker with a love for action movies and with a trailer or a full-on shortfilm filled to the lid with slick and pulse-pounding action and fight choreography and you think it deserves a place in our weekly Hit List, hit us up at filmcombatsyndicate@gmail.com!
As it is, Yu is one of the dozens and dozens of people I’ve been following in the world of online independent film since 2004 when I first started watching Bilang.com tricking videos and Zero Gravity practice fights for my own evening enjoyment. (Sometimes my Quicktime player [I owned a PC, not a Mac] would crash, whereas my Windows Media Player would save the day. Fun times).
Good stories and good acting are key to making any film or TV show notable and watchable. The same goes for action movies, and in that respect, even greater action and stunt work is what’s required to sell an action product. Without it, most of our habits wouldn’t exist today.
His efforts in past year have granted him the necessary credentials, tools and people necessary to help fulfill his goals of becoming a top-tier action director in the film industry, and with more growth to come in film and television. I have to say, it’s rare for me to meet someone like Khan of his caliber who happens to have a team of his own that is just beginning, and having seen what’s out there from other groups I’ve witnessed in the last decade along with sampling a bit of what Khan has been up to, I have some high hopes.
Film Combat Syndicate: Greetings Ken! How has your year been thusfar?
Fresh off of making a splash at the Urban Action Showcase and Expo last weekend, actor, martial artist and stunt coordinator James Lew (Big Trouble In Little China, Best Of The Best, The Perfect Weapon, The Martial Arts Kid, Underdog Kids) will be hosting a seminar in Whitestone, New York’s Nubreed Martial Arts on Saturday, November 14. It’s his first ever stunt school seminar and in lieu of his forthcoming work on Marvel/Netflix series, Luke Cage, following his recent contribution to CBS series, Rush Hour, as well as Ben Ramsey’s UASE shortfilm premiere, Black Salt in which he plays a Shaolin abbot.
So, consider this a good time to be in the neighborhood with a cinematic legend who clearly hasn’t stopped and probably won’t for a long, long time if ever. If you want to be in films and perform stunts and martial arts for the camera, this would be a good step forward. Take note of the flyer below with all the details and get your butts to Whitestone!
I kinda think K&K are onto something!
Stovall confirmed this moments later, and if you are not aware of who he is, it’s likely you’ve been living under a rock. He’s done some amazing work as well in the world of film and martial arts stunt coordination with credits like the first and second season of Mortal Kombat Legacy, Bunraku (2010), Never Back Down 2 (2011), Dragon Eyes (2012), Universal Soldier: Day Of Reckoning (2012) and the current production of Max Steel. His more prolific work can be seen especially in director Isaac Florentine’s electrifying MMA prison actioner, Undisputed 3: Redemption (2010), the upcoming home release of The Raid 2, and in the recently unveiled teaser trailer for the new home invasion thriller, No Good Deed starring Idris Elba, which has a trailer you can check out just below Stovall‘s most recent reel at the bottom of the page.
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.
How long did anyone think it would be before directors Stephen Chow and Derek Kwok’s 2013 fantasy action comedy adventure, Journey To The West: Conquering The Demons would get an English-language remake? Because, well… that’s about to happen!
The inital film, one of a number of cinematc reworkings of classic Chinese folklore notably highlighting fabled legend Sun Wukong (a.k.a. The Monkey King) starred actress Shu Qi and actor Wen Zhang, and was released in China in February of last year, earning a total of well over $200 million at the box office throughout several Asian territories, beating several records previously set by director Wuershan’s 2012 fantasy thriller, Painted Skin: The Ressurrection and the Michael Bay’s 2011 blockbuster, Transformers: Dark Of The Moon. The new English-language iteration is now part of a newl diversified slate of film deals being announced this month between Oriental Dreamworks and three other Chinese companies for the production of five movies in total.
Production on the new remake will include the aid of producer Zhang Jizhong who also served as a producer on a recent TV show of the same name. Oriental Dreamworks states, “The classic adventure story will be transformed into an international action film integrating cutting-edge visual effects technology with an English-language script to bring China’s legendary hero to the world.”. ODW’s chief creative officer Joe Aguilar also added his thoughts on the new slate, saying, “With this new series of ventures supporting local producers, artists, actors and crew, Oriental DreamWorks will further its objective of creating entertainment in China for China and for export to the rest of the world, …”These three development deals represent leading local companies that we are proud to partner with.”.
The other four projects agreed to for Oriental Dreamworks include a three-film deal with Dreams Of Dragons Pictures for a “high concept comedy”, a contemporary high impact martial arts movie with “advanced choreography” and a currently untitled titled historical epic from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon scribe Wang Huiling, the author whose latest novel, The Crossing, was just attributed to an upcoming live-action epic drama directed by John Woo set for release this year. The slate also involves a seperate deal with producer and director Teng Hua for a Chinese folklore-inspired animated feature.
Oriental Dreamworks is the company behind the highly successful animated Kung Fu Panda franchise starring the voice of actor Jack Black, with the third installment heading to theaters on December 23, 2015.
For those interested, Journey To The West: Conquering The Demons is now available on DVD, Blu-Ray and VoD. Plans for a sequel are still yet unknown.
H/T: Variety
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