The UK is a dystopia, ravaged by a virus that has seemingly plagued residents with a disease that kills and reanimates them into zombies. Seven years since the fallout is where sophomore director and star Guy Bleyaert’s latest film, Transit 17, begins take off, joining Zara Phythian, Lee A. Charles, Daniel Pala, Kimberly Stahl and John Flanders.
Zombies attack, guns go blazing and fisticuffs ensue with a hard-hitting cast that also enlists martial arts exponents Zara Phythian, Silvio Simac and Lee Charles along with Kimberly Stahl and Daniel Pala among the co-starring. Post-production remains until further notice so check out the newest teaser below!
The film will be Mat Sunderland‘s directorial debut with a script by Mark Pallis. The cast so far includes a growing list of meaty martial arts action talents, namely joining Cao and the Shifu with actress Zara Phythian, actors Silvio Simac and Mark Strange, co-star/action director Vincent Wang, and as of this week, UFC fighter Alex Reid.
[UPDATE: 10/14/14] – The crowdfunding campaign for Iron Monk has officially transferred over to Indiegogo. As such, also links below have been re-edited to link to the Indiegogo campaign page for Iron Monk. The respective answers to the interview questions themselves have not been changed. CLICK HERE and visit the page.
Currently in progress is a new crowdsourcer for the latest contribution to the martial arts action genre from UK-based filmmaker, A.J. Singh. The longtime film purveyor is spearheading a funding effort for the new film, Falling Ash, in which he will also star as the lead.
Among a few other essentials, the project has secured a cast, namely actor and martial arts performers Silvio Simac and Mark Sears, and actress Marysia S. Peres. Singh‘s new film is the latest in what he suggests will be a promises will be a “unique of blend character-driven plot, with a grounded sense of reality; combined with the quality of action, prevalent in Hong Kong Cinema of the 1980’s”.
Here’s the setup:
Ashwin ‘Ash’ Singh (AJ Singh) is a man who’s never had luck on his side. His ‘simple’ life on the streets soon changes when he saves the life of Alvaro ‘Al’ Ciancio (Mark Sears). He soon becomes embroiled in Al’s business affairs, gets the attention of Al’s younger sister, Maria (Marysia S. Peres); as well as Al’s enemies – namely is ‘cousin’ Pasquale Salvitti (Silvio Simac).
Ash’s intervention on that fateful night, sets in motion a chain of events that will make Ash question loyalties, face dilemmas, matters of the heart, and his own demons…
Simac, whose credits notably include D.O.A.: Dead Or Alive and Transporter 3, is also poised to appear in writer and director Guy Bleyaert’s forrhcoming action thriller Transit 17 – also starring actress and martial artist Zara Phythian (Personally, I hope Simac plays M. Bison in this awesome webseries. *knocks on wood*).
In the meantime, for more info on Singh‘s new venture into 1980’s Hong Kong action fanfare, head over to the official Falling Ash indiegogo page and watch their new campaign video. And by all means, donate and/or share the page to your heart’s desire!
Actor Lee Bennett is ready to make 2014 his banner this year with the forthcoming production of his action horror directorial debut, 301 Troop: Arawn Rising. The project marks the first film for Bennett’s new production banner, Only The New Breed, since its launch a year ago led by Bennett, a three year veteran actor and action performer with a proven intense love for film and a passion to reinvigorate the current state of the U.K. action cinema with a fresh vision that harkens back to the glory days of hardcore action cinema for today’s audiences.
301 Troop: Arawn Rising introduces an original tale of two longtime friends – soldiers rejected after failing their commando selection examination, who find themselves in their biggest fight for survival the U.K. Northern wilderness against a clan of possessed Druids performing blood sacrifices in the name of an ancient Celtic underworld god. The film, which is set to go into production this year following further negotiations with distributors, will feature Bennett, actor Alan Calton and actress Cat LaCohie, with Jon Campling, actor and British martial arts cinematic heavy hitter Silvio Simac, and actor Wayne Gordon rounding out the cast.
In December of 2013, Bennett and his crew were finally able to take their project to its next phase, having initally filmed a trailer following a crowdfunding campaign two months earlier. And while the work being an artist and a film producer and director comes weighted with its well over its own fair share of tasks, Bennett‘s own faith in his brand remains unflinching. “Filming the trailer was such a mental week, but it was also the best time of my life.”, he says. “I’m happiest when I’m under pressure, against the clock, bruised and battered and hitting that shit day after day. I’m bringing action back strong, and I’m doing it where it hasn’t been done before, here in the U.K.”.
The footage itself will not be viewed publicly for just a little while longer as Bennett and his company are still handling the business of things. Fortunately however, Film Combat Syndicate earned an exclusive look at the well-over two-minute trailer for 301 Troop: Arawn Rising, and while there wasn’t much to see for just a trailer, it clearly introduces what Bennett is seeking to illustrate in his vision from both sides of the camera, promising authentic drama and physical, hard-hitting performances from himself and the actors themselves without wires or CGI. “I’m following in the foot steps of Sly Stallone. Writing, directing and acting in my own shot. No other British action film maker has ever done that,” he says. “We neither do, nor have we done proper action in the U.K. and I’m going to change that with old-school style action, but up-to-date with the next generation of authentic action actors.”.
With Only The New Breed making headway with 301 Troop: Arawn Rising this year, Bennett and his crew have a clear goal in mind, and fans will learn more about what that entails when the trailer finally arrives. For now though, their official website is up and running, with links to their Twitter and Facebook pages, and plenty of info to learn more about what Only The New Breed has in store. Also, feel free to follow Lee Bennett on Twitter for more exclusive content.
Stay tuned for more info!
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