THE HIT LIST - March 2, 2015

Oh look! More videos. It's funny, really. I always expect to run short every week and I usually end up with at least 20 or more. This week I'm just shy of a few and I wouldn't be surprised if I missed any. Some of these gems are not easily detectable through simple searches.

Anyway, let's get this list started with some tricking and stunting reels! Martial Club founding member Andy Le's is up first and while this isn't his first appearance in a Hit List article, it probably won't be the last. The reel slate also includes stuntmen Brian Ho, Alfred Hsing, Daniel Graham, Vincent DeComo Helvetic Tricking's latest feats within lush Swiss locales, a Bear Grylls Adventure segment featuring Greek traceur, Maria Raptaki!, and some kickass GoPro training with Hong Kong fight choreographer, Pound Of Flesh action director John Salvitti!

Brian Ho - Stunt Demo 2015 from Brian Ho on Vimeo.

Alrighty, time to put the dukes up...

Robot Underdog's Dragonball Z: Light of Hope became an online hit last week Tuesday upon its de layed release, which was quite fortunate considering the premise of the short and its date marking the 22nd anniversary of Ueda Yoshihiro's Dragon Ball Z: The History Of Trunks. At any rate, the short, starring Anton Bex and Jack Wald became an online hit acquiring well over 4 million views in just a couple of days, with immense press coverage that was nothing short of uproaringly positive. You would be wise to see it for yourself as it has now being touted as the solid go-to playbook on adapting Dragon Ball to film for Hollywood directors. In the meantime, a new making-of featurette is now online for you to check out as of last week with speaking segments by fight choreographer Lohan Buson and stunt coordinator Tim Storms. Watch below!

As far as short film trailers go, this one looks like a real treat. Following the celebrated debut of his 2013 shortfilm drama, Alone, London-based writer and director Richard Kattah's next is definitely geared toward fight fans in the forthcoming short action drama, Untamed. The story centers on Alfie, a cocky pugilist with a troubled past who works his way up in the underground fighting circuit only to bare witness to the betrayals of those he thought he could trust.

The project initially launched a crowdfunder back in May of last year which fell short of its goal. Fortunately Kattah's efforts to see this project through are now granting it a May 2015 release, and the newest trailer will hopefully peak your interest as it has mine.

Espionage, action, drama and comedy are the formula you can now sample in director Joseph Torrez's latest webseries pilot installment, Spies. Torrez executive produces and is writing the series centered on a group of agents on their adventures to save the world, and there is currently a crowdfunder ongoing to help fund what Torrez hopes will grant him a fifteen-to-twenty episode season.

To help generate interest, a Pilot episode was recently unveiled and you can now check it out just beneath, as well as a behind-the-scenes look you can watch by CLICKING HERE. Otherwise, feel free to hit up the official Spies Facebook page to learn more about the show and how you can help!

Up next is a new interpretive action shorts from the folks over at EMC Monkeys titles Dreadnaught, an experimental look into how a fight scene with quick cuts can still work without shaking the camera. EMC has been at this stuff for quite a while and as always, one can only hope the team gets its day with a budget to apply its craft into a full feature. They really deserve it.

Watch Dreadnaught below with Hollywood stuntman Stephen Oyoung and EMC's own Robert Dill.

Yasin Kamat and Teambay's own Vi-Dan Tran's latest short is a bit of a tease, but it's still fun to watch. The short is called Addicted, featurning a small story with our two actors as underworld characters in a drug deal gone wrong - a perfect set up for a nice little fight but...like a said, there is a bit of a cliffhanger. Check it out below and enjoy!

While we await further info on what CBS's upcoming TV adaptation of the 1998 action comedy, Rush Hour will entail, it's interesting that there is nary a fan fight based on this particular franchise which further helped ascend action star Jackie Chan to Hollywood fame. That said, stuntmen, actors Chris Jai Alex and Terry Taneie have put together a little short of their own in the respective performances as Detectives Carter and Lee. This was pretty well done and I enjoyed Alex's performances as I suppose its difficult to mimic actor and comedian Chris Tucker's comedic persona. Peep it below!

The next is a short, but otherwise TASTY exchange between Narayana Cabral and Hope LaVelle in a small short titled The Challenge. I absolutely loved how this was shot in certain portions, as well as some of the choreography involved. Very imaginative work on Cabral's part, and apparently its the first part of an entire project with more to come. Take a look!

And last but not least, respect the turtleneck! Actor and filmmaker Jose Montesinos takes the lead with co-director Brett Stillo in the retro action comedy short, Sensitive 70's Turtleneck Tough Guys! I had the opportunity to review the short myself a short while back, but its finally online now, with performances by Montesinos, and action actors, The Stunt People's own Eric Jacobus and Troy Carbonel as three superbad detectives in the 1970s embracing their sensitivity. Trust and believe...you're gonna dig it. Ain't no bull here.

Subscribe to these channels above and stay tuned for next week's Hit List, and be sure to CLICK HERE for last week's entries. If you have a QUALITY action project in the form of a teaser, trailer or shortfilm you would like featured, send us an email at filmcombatsyndicate@gmail.com!