The past several months saw some promotional footage revealed for No Mercy (a.k.a. Tanpa Ampun), a new crime thriller out of Indonesia from writer/director M. Yusuf. Yusuf is most notably known for directing horror features which makes this latest effort his coming-out party in the action arena, and rewardingly with a cast that features actor/martial artist Verdy Bhanwanta.
With Street Society helmer Awi Suryadi and actor and martial artist Andrew Suleiman still working the festival rounds with their latest Holy Bastards proof short, You Can’t Hear Me, You Can’t See Me, I’m guessing we are not too far off from its online release. As for what that means for its feature film prospects, I am uncertain, although the short itself guarantees something particularly fun for fans of the genre, and I’ve said that many times in the past year and a half I’ve discussed it.
For what it’s worth though and while we keep waiting for its full release, we do have at least ten seconds of it now online to share and view. For the unknowing, it’s ten seconds of Capoeira stylist, actor Verdy Bhawanta as a deaf mute during the key fight in which he and Suleiman in the role of a blind man, fend off a horde of hooded monastic thugs to protect actress Hannah Al-Rashid, a blind songstress who tunes everything out when she starts strumming her guitar and singing.
More of that when the short releases, of course, but for now, ten seconds of Bhawanta in his element, and kicking plenty of ass. Take it all in.
YOU CAN’T HEAR ME. YOU CAN’T SEE ME Proof of Concept Teaser Trailer from Andrew Suleiman on Vimeo.
The team for You Can’t Hear Me/You Can’t See Me, with Andrew Suleiman (left) and Verdy Bhawanta (right) on the bottom.
Upon discovering the world of independent action cinema for myself about a decade ago, I learned who actor, writer, martial artist and stunt coordinator Andrew Suleiman (pictured above, bottom row on the left) when I saw him in a 2004 project for Zero Gravity with actor Larry Leong titled Cha Cha Chinaman. From then on, Suleiman became a name I never let go of – even as my computer burned out back in 2008 and I was left to endure life without the internet for a few years.
Well, earlier today, I had the opportunity to acquaint myself with Suleiman in a fun, lively chat about his happenings, his career and what he’s up to now. And though many of us haven’t heard from the team as a whole, it doesn’t mean that its members aren’t staying busy in the field in one form or another. The same goes for Suleiman who has been back home in Indonesia working on his career, in addition to building up his credentials and craft as an actor, writer and martial arts performer with a number of projects in mind, including his latest ambitions for the upcoming Holy Bastards English-language action comedy short, You Can’t Hear Me/You Can’t See Me.
Imagine, if you will, a story of a blind guitar-playing hipster songstress who invites two men over for a small Christmas gathering-one, a blind former soldier/happy ending masseur, and the other, a perverted mute cat-burglar. A good time is had by all that evening until suddenly the two spot a small horde of hooded members of the occult set on kidnapping the very same woman. Of course, this must not be allowed to happen, and our two heroes must leap into action to save their beautiful female host from certain harm.
This is the project Suleiman is intending to approach with ample funding for a hopeful transition from a short proof-of-concept filmed back in February of last year, to a full feature-length production which also puts rising martial arts star and Capoiera maestro Verdy Bhawanta back on the map after starring in Pirate Brothers (a.k.a. Mortal Enemies) back in 2011 with actor Robin Shou. And not to rub it in, but I was fortunate to screen the proof-of-concept for myself today, and it is awesome!
While I cannot show you the actual proof-of-concept, what I can show you is the newly unveiled pre-viz stunt featurette now available for viewng on YouTube, featuring Suleiman and Bhawanta, the stunt team and choreographers Andry Ganda and Ivan Chen. With any luck however, the next few weeks of patience will grant us the opportunity to view the spectacular short that martial arts cinema fans will enjoy.
As a noteworthy mention, You Can’t Hear Me/You Can’t See Me is directed by Dicky Fa and Awi Suryadi, the latter who just wrapped up the Fall 2013 filming of his new racing action thriller, Street Society, set for release later this year with the trailer set to premiere this Friday on Twitchfilm. In the meantime, more news awaits this year as Suleiman looks forward to more projects, including a possible role in director Timo Tjahjanto’s The Night Comes For Us, and a reunion with several Zero Gravity members for future gigs, one of which could very likely see Bhawanta go toe-to-toe with fellow actor and Capoiera impressario, Lateef Crowder Dos Santos (Tom Yum Goong, Tekken).
Here’s to the best for Suleiman as the release of his new proof-of-concept short draws near. Check out training featurette below, and stay tuned for more info.
Bhawanta‘s film, Mortal Enemies, will release in North America on DVD and Blu-Ray on February 18, 2014.
Orphans Sunny and Verdy are like brothers, but are separated when Verdy is adopted by a wealthy couple. Their paths cross again when Verdy (now a successful businessman) and his fiancée are kidnapped by a crew of pirates while on vacation. With the ransom set, Verdy is reunited with his long lost friend – who, it appears, has joined the pirates. Will they be able to come together to prove that brothers don’t always have to share blood?
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