ECHO 8 Trilogy: New Teaser And Stills Debut As Post-Production Fundraising Kicks Off
Help complete the Echo 8 trilogy!
takashi hara
ECHO 8: A Fourth Installment In Maria Tran’s Indie Action Franchise Is Possible
The “Echo 8” saga is currently in toe with two new chapters releasing between now and early 2026.
ECHO 8 TRILOGY: Post-Production Begins On Sequels To Maria Tran’s 2022 Indie Assassin Hit Thriller
The rogue assassin and protector returns in 2026!
ECHO 8: FIVE-BY-FIVE Reveals New Look At Maria Tran, Takashi Hara, And More As Sequel Production Commences
Two weeks into production, new stills and BTS images are online for the next chapter in the ECHO 8 trilogy!
ECHO 8 TRILOGY: Cast And Production Details Announced For Asian-Oz Assassin Saga As Crowdfunding Launches At Indiegogo
Crowdfunding is underway for Echo 8 sequels Echo 8: Five By Five and Echo 8: Beyond. Plans are underway to raise funds starting this week over at Indiegogo, with thirty-five days of principal photography commencing in early 2025, following script readings among the cast earlier this year. The micro-budgeted Echo 8 hails from independent production outlet Phoenix Eye Pty Ltd., shepherded by actress Maria Tran who stars in the title role. Tran also directed the film alongside co-star Takashi Hara from a screenplay by Elizabeth H. Vu (The Perception, upcoming Wake). Released this year on Amazon Prime and FAST platform Tubi, Echo 8 sees Tran in the title role, member of assassins’ organization, Zodiac, who begins questioning herself after being handed an assignment that takes a dark twist. Echo 8 also serves as atestament to the endurance of Western Sydney’s local Asian-Australian film community, staring down extensive hurdles brought about […]
Streaming Sleepers: ECHO 8 Takes Off On Reveel. Watch It Now For Free!
With casting recently done for the upcoming back-to-back sequels, the Maria Tran/Takashi Hara-directed sci-fi action drama, Echo 8 is now available to watch for free on Reveel. The website is easy to subscribe to and simply asks for your name and date of birth and password choice. Echo 8 hails from Phoenix Eye and stars Tran, Hara, and actors David Vuong, Gabriella Chan, and Mike Leeder from a script by Elizabeth H. Vu. The film centers on a underground organization of assassins, including Echo 8 (Tran), a professional killer whose mind starts flashing between nightmarish dream and her reality, forcing her to question her latest assignment which includes killing a grieving mother. Tran, Hara, Vu, and their team spearheaded the project beginning a production journey that galvanized Western Sydney’s Asian-Australian independent film production talent base comprised mostly of women. Its arduous journey, extended with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic […]
ECHO 8 Trilogy: Casting Call Underway For ‘Five By Five’ And ‘Beyond’ Through February
Film duo Maria Tran and Takashi Hara are kicking off principal photography in Q1 2025 for the back-to-back production of the sequels to the independently produced Australian noir action psych thriller, Echo 8. A casting call is now underway with submissions to be sent by February 8. The Echo 8 Trilogy represents a collection of urban action assassin films with a female- led perspective, crafted under the creative direction of Maria Tran and penned by Elizabeth H. Vu. This trilogy takes audiences on three distinct cinematic journeys: “Echo 8” (2023), “Five By Five” (2025), and “Echo 8 Beyond” (2025). Five By Five: Set three decades prior to ‘Echo 8,’ the prequel ‘Five By Five’ unveils the enigmatic Agent 5’s grief-stricken existence and his gradual spiral into chaos while climbing Zodiac’s hierarchy. Echo 8 Beyond: After the occurrences of ‘Echo 8,’ Anna finds herself pursued by lethal Zodiac operatives tasked with […]
ECHO 8 Review: A Lean, Inspiring DIY Psych Action Drama With A Beating Heart
Echo 8 is currently circulating festivals and will screen this Spring as part of the “Badlands” series at The Art Gallery of New South Wales. Click here for more info, and ollow the movie on Facebook for future updates. I’ve been writing about Maria Tran for about as long as I’ve been… well… writing. Her 2013 action comedy short with Adrian Castro, Hit Girls, was a fine catch at the time and provided ample introduction for me to the kind of artist and performer Tran is, further highlighting her caliber as a film creative with a number of short film projects, and often collaborating with fellow independent film cohort Castro in the process, along with select television projects and a few feature film appearances to top off her resumè nicely in the meantime. Such credits include working with the likes of legendary producer Roger Corman on Antony Szeto’s Fist Of […]
ECHO 8: Asian-Australian Psych Action Thriller Launches Official Trailer And Indiegogo
An ambitious and exciting new feature production began over two years ago from film duo Maria Tran and Takashi Hara with psychological action thriller, Echo 8. Backed by a crew comprised of mostly women (including a prominent Asian-Australian cast), as well as volunteers from the local Western Sydney community, the film was shot in fourteen non-consecutive days following the start of principal photography a month before COVID-19 restrictions set in. Filming wrapped nearly a year ago followed by a lengthy post-production process, and a fresh new campaign that recently saw an exclusive live trailer broadcast last week which directors/stars/producers Tran and Hara are now sharing to the world as of Sunday. A highly trained assassin flashes between a nightmarish dream and her reality at a secret underground organization. When her latest mission involves killing a grieving mother, she realizes her target is closer to home than she realizes—much closer. If […]
ECHO 8: Catch The Brand New Poster Before The Official Trailer Launch On Friday
Aussie film duo Maria Tran and Takashi Hara are now days away from premiering the official trailer for their feature debut, Echo 8. The two jointly direct the pic as well as star in the film, which could arrive to audiences commercially as early as 2023. A highly trained assassin flashes between a nightmarish dream and her reality at a secret underground organization. When her latest mission involves killing a grieving mother, she realizes her target is closer to home than she realizes—much closer. It’s actually been almost three years since the start of production on Echo 8, hampered by some of the typical challenges of independent film – augmented by the severity of the Covid-19 no less. Production completed last February while Tran and Hara moved onto other work while plotting post production, with Tran herself having since taken up casting for upcoming Paramount+ Australia crime series, The Last […]
ECHOES FROM DOWN UNDER: Swords, Swings And New Beginnings With Maria Tran And Takashi Hara
I’m having a bit of a slow day here, so there isn’t a whole lot coming through in my inbox. All that aside, I thought I’d share this little tidbit from a rare night out I had on Wednesday evening here in New York City when filmmakers Takashi Hara and production partner Maria Tran of Australia-based Phoenix Eye Film Productions came to visit. The two had just wrapped up a journey with the Vingroup Elite Tour and had a gig shortly after at the New York International Auto Show this week, and so their schedule was certainly something to factor in our planning. We were supposed to link up on Tuesday evening and sadly, those plans got derailed that morning when a Brooklyn subway was terrorized by a lone gunman causing multiple injuries, several of which were critical and thankfully, none of them were fatal… You’d think a pandemic that’s […]
ECHO 8 Gets A Behind-The-Scenes Look At The New Aussie Indie Action Thriller Two Years In The Making
Believe it or not, twenty months have passed since Maria Tran and Takashi Hara turned on the ignition for their latest first narrative feature project, Echo 8, two Decembers ago. Obviously with a deadly and sweeping pandemic making the rounds in 2020, getting anything even remotely done involving numbers of people was going to be a challenge, and thus, Tran and Hara have since faced their hurdles head on leading up to the film’s final shots back in February. All that’s left now is post-production and the long haul that is the film market sales points as Echo 8 inches closer to a trailer launch and the possibility of acquisition news to come. Both Tran and Hara will also be relocating from Australia to their new home in Las Vegas, Nevada sometime in the not-too-distant future, which means film locals in the state should be in luck if they need […]
OBSIDIAN: Don’t Miss The Trailer For The New Psych Action Sci-Fi Short Thriller From Takashi Hara
Phoenix Eye’s Maria Tran and Takashi Hara are back with another shortform thriller coming soon in Obsidian. It’s one of several projects from their repetoire that will be slowly rolling out in the weeks and months ahead, and it’s got an enticing trailer you can view above. A young couple’s dangerous run-in with loan sharks is thwarted by the arrival of a mysterious stranger. “Obsidian” is a contemporary drama with sci-fi elements written in the same vein as “Looper” and “Predestination”. With a gripping storyline, dynamic characters and a twist ending, “Obsidian” will captivate the audience, leaving them hopeful for the future. If you’re not subscribed to Phoenix Eye anywhere on social media just yet, consider this your heads-up, especially if you follow burgeoning creators and filmmakers alike. Hara directs as well as stars with Tran from a script by Elizabeth H. Vu, and with action sequences by Tran, and […]
OPERATION KUNG FLU Trailer: Maria Tran Takes Racism To Task In The New Action Comedy Short From Phoenix Eye
Taking a page from her own Tiger Cop fanfare, 80s Hong Kong nostalgia reigns supreme once more for filmmaker and actress Maria Tran in the official trailer for action comedy, Operation Kung Flu. The short is headed for an online release this month, marking the latest step for Tran and her devoted independent film crew who are more than steadfast and ready to place their stake in fighting back against the kinds of violent and racist reprisals against Asian communites around the world in the past year. Operation Kung Flu hails from Tran’s independent film production banner, Phoenix Eye Entertainment, in association with Diversity Arts Australia’s program “I Am Not A Virus”. The project was shot on a shoestring budget over two days involving sixty cast and crew members, marking a sheer collaborative volunteer effort of Western Sydney filmmakers and creatives to speak out on this topical issue during this […]
Maria Tran’s Hong Kong Lady Inspector Battles The Toilet Paper Bandit In TIGER COP: TOILET PAPER HERO
If you’ve followed the work of Adrian Castro and actress Maria Tran at all in the last ten years, then you’re probably familiar with their usual style and aesthetic as it instantly clicks for fans of throwback Hong Kong action cinema. Such is the continual jump off point for Tiger Cop, built from a spate of proof of concept trailers and even an ABC i-view series back in 2017. They’re back now Tiger Cop: Toilet Paper Hero, the latest installment of the independent IP from Castro’s Five Minute Cinema, showcasing local Australian action and martial arts talent, coupled with a fitting public service nod in the wake of news updates over hoarding as the Covid-19 pandemic swept the world. “When we saw the toilet paper crisis unfold in the media, and people literally fighting over toilet paper, this was seen as the perfect platform to make commentary on the current […]
ECHO 8 Scores A Trio Of Character Posters For Maria Tran’s Action Feature Debut
Three new visuals are online for the production of Maria Tran’s feature debut, Echo 8. Principal photography commences in January in Western Sydney, Australia with Tran directing her first feature, in addition to starring. From Tran’s Phoenix Eye independent company, Echo 8 centers on a highly trained assassin who finds herself in a strange house with no memories of how she got there, in the wake of a specialized mission gone awry; Think: Jaume Collet-Serra’s Unknown by way of Renny Harlin’s The Long Kiss Goodnight. “This will be my first directorial debut of an actioner and a shoe string budget production but with an amazing cast & crew.” said Tran in a Facebook post on Monday. “This production is fueled by the input of the independent artist community of Sydney and with the contributions of our international talents and it feels great to just make films because we can!” Elizabeth […]
ECHO 8: Maria Tran, Phoenix Eye Fast Track Independent Psych Action Thriller For January Production
Actress Maria Tran took to social media on Sunday to announce pre-production on upcoming psychological action thriller, Echo 8. Tran will star and make her feature directorial debut, as well as head a cast that also includes local actors Takashi Hara and David Vuong. Echo 8 centers on a highly trained assassin who finds herself in a strange house with no memories of how she got there, in the wake of a specialized mission gone awry; Think: Jaume Collet-Serra’s Unknown by way of Renny Harlin’s The Long Kiss Goodnight. Script is currently in the last stages of development with screenwriter Elizabeth H. Vu (Mr. Ghost, The Perception) finalizing the latest draft. The self-funded project hails from Tran’s Phoenix Eye banner where she and cohorts Therese Chen and Nancy Trieu have been working on their film slate with a number of titles, in addition to journeying between locations to share in […]
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