It's always welcoming to see original content stake its claim in the eyes of the film viewing world. As tough as it is to sustain, however, opportunities for things like this most certainly advantageous, and so director Michael Neal is now ready to heed the call with crowdfunding at his disposal for the hopeful support of his newest webseries, Swords Of Insurgency.
There's no doubt that this one assures quality in its inspired vision between production values and cast performances. I had the opportunity to screen the pilot episode myself awhile back and observe lead actress Rebecca Hausman in the lead role and was very impressed with what I saw in an episode full of drama, intensity and phsyicality worthy of capturing on camera with great fight action put together by indie action design team, DC Stunt Coalition, led by oft-contributor to Film Combat Syndicate, fight choreographer James Couche.
The set design, costumes and overall indoor and outdoor settings were fantastic, and all done with a small investment and it goes to show the level of talent you have to have in achieving that sort of thing. Clearly the talent is there with Neal, Hausman, Couche and the rest of the cast, and with the help of Kickstarter through generous donations in exchange for some tasty perks - including an exclusive viewing of the first episode, Swords Of Insurgency will surely be a feat to enjoy in a webseries with all the trimmings.
Decades have passed since the great apocalypse destroyed civilization. The world has now become a reincarnation of the dark ages, warlords rule and fight for domination. Firearms are now scarce and held only by a few who use it to maintain power; hand to hand warfare has returned as the dominant form of control or liberation against tyranny.
Our story begins with Abigail a proud warrior with dark past, now imprisoned in a brutal political prison, run by the Emperor Taneg and his son Droll, a demented psychopath with a disturbing infatuation for Abi.
On the outside a rebellion grows against the monstrous Taneg and his prison, Abigail must find a way to escape and join the rebels and their mysterious leader. But to what extent will she go? And what awaits her on the outside, is she stepping out of the frying pan and into the fire?
A vicious world has been formed and Abi will find out first hand what it takes to survive and what it means to be human, in world full of beasts and monsters.
It's always a good thing to see independent action cinema make festival moves. Things like this gain exposure and some of these do take quite a bit of effort and waiting, it's a huge payoff for giving original content an extra pair of eyes. Exposure and other prospects come into play and hopefully that will mean great things for debut filmmaker and Kiai-Kick founder and editor Michael S. Moore with his latest webseries, Cornered.
The series, starring actor, martial artist and stuntman Donald Brooks Jr. has already taken off on social media via Vimeo as of the top of June. Now, word via press release indicates the series will be making its way to the Capital City Black Film Festival next month. The episodes are tentatively offline for this reason, so it would be in your best interest to follow the fan page on Facebook for further information. Otherwise, read the press release below from Thursday!
Austin,TX – July 23, 2015 –Kiai-Kick Films announced today that its martial arts action short film Cornered has been invited to the third annual Capital City Black Film Festival (CCBFF), an Austin, Texas-based organization dedicated to films written or directed and produced by Black filmmakers, films with Black actors in principle roles or that are about Black characters, subject matter or issues related to the Black community.
“Cornered” is a martial arts 90’s style actioner about Austin super cop Adam Matrix, who finds himself running a gauntlet of lethal fighters in order to save a young woman and keep a super weapon out of the hands of Texas underworld boss Kellogg Deveroux.
Cornered is among 60 films that will be shown throughout the three-day festival that includes networking, panel discussions, workshops, dynamic film screenings and parties.
“I am incredibly happy that Cornered will be a part of the Capital City Black Film Festival.”, says director Michael S. Moore, “Cornered features something sorely missing from action cinema: an African-American hero in a genre of film that needs more heroes of color. I was blessed to work with a talented and diverse cast and crew.”
The Festival will begin this year with Harlem Lights!, which includes a reception at 6:30 p.m. and the show starting at 7:30 p.m., August 13, 2015 at the Palmer Events Center in Austin, TX. Harlem Lights! highlights the history of Austin Area African Americans in film, will feature live music, rare photographs, film clips, local actors and will be hosted by film, television and theater veteran Julius Tennon. This historical presentation honors Austin’s own Harlem Theater and lifetime achievement awards will be given to Austin's own Tennon, actress, comedian, music performer “Damita Jo” LeBlanc, and jazz musician Gil Askey, one of the architects of the famous Motown sound.
“This year’s films represent the rich talent we have in this country and around the world both in front of and behind to camera,” said Winston G. Williams, Executive Director of CCBFF. Tennon, Co-President and Producer of JuVee Productions, and his wife, award-winning actress Viola Davis, have been supporters of CCBFF since its inception because they felt having a Black film presence in Austin was long overdue.
“Black films are important because they give African-American artists a place to showcase their work to our community, and to the wider communities across the country,” said Tennon. “They serve to shine a light on our stories and struggles, but more importantly, our success. They show that we are a force, and what we have to say stands for something.”
Each year CCBFF has used opening night to elevate the arts. This year local, influential organizations are adding to the prestige, including partnerships with the Austin History Center, the Texas Preservation of Black History Project and the African American Cultural Heritage District. After a tremendous inaugural year in September 2013 and experiencing unexpected growth in 2014, CCBFF continues to grow, going from two to five screens with a diverse slate of feature films, documentary/feature films, short films, documentary/short films and music videos. The film ratings will range from G through the maximum of R.
###For more information or to arrange interviews, please contact:
Media Contact: Michael S Moore (michaelmooreproductions@gmail.com)
Media Contact: CCBFF
Andrea Anderson
A Signature Group
Anderson.andrea7@gmail.com
214-334-7165
Event: Capital City Black Film Festival
When: Thursday, August 13, 2015, Friday, August 14, 2015, and Saturday, August 15, 2015.
It'll be a few months before we hear anything more on the long-awaited release of Canadian film duo, Matthew Bennett and Sasha Moric's indie action thriller, Concrete: Gangs Of Union City which will soon land in the U.S., the Middle East and throughout Asia. In the meantime, the two are pairing once more for another project they've been processing for quite a while in the form of the new webseries, The Terminal, starring actor and martial artist, Jonny Caines with Bennett directing and Moric handling cinematography.
I got to chat for a bit with with Bennett and Moric earlier this week learned a little bit about their own fascinations in film and what got them started on the project. With the latter, as it turns out, all it took was a RED camera, a little bit of creativity, and two very talented, physically able actors, and some very "brave" networking.
Bennett spoke on his own behalf regarding the series in its conception, with Moric lending his own personal insight on his career and how it led to collaborating with his newfound partner.
Bennett: Sasha is a genius with finding locations, so he found this amazing abandoned warehouse to shoot in, while I wrote down a vague story about two groups fighting over control of a secret computer system. We put out an advert on Craigslist for actors and actresses, they just came to the shoot, that day, completely sight unseen. They were very brave actually, we could have been anyone.
Then we all broke into the warehouse, dragged a generator inside, and shot for a few hours. We had a prop airsoft Glock 22, but some skateboarding kids stole it and took off. So basically, it was all about improvising the core of the idea on that first day - Sasha and I had to wing most of our way through it up on the spot.
Then we did another shoot day similar to that and met Jonny Caines and Craig Henry for the very first time, and they created an action sequence for us. It was a day that felt very fateful as we all bonded very well together, and we’ve been doing projects together ever since! After that I took the material home, cut it, added the VFX as well as voice-over work for exposition, basically in an attempt to construct a firm story out of it. And again, this was all on the fly, and nothing was really planned. This was before we sat on it for seven years while being busy with other things, and thankfully it was Jonny who rose like a Phoenix and really got things rolling, eventually getting award-winning producer Marc-Andre Miron to help pitch for IPF Funding, as well as the executive producer of Lost Girl, Plato Fountidakis.
Moric: Over the past few years I have relenquished my director's hat seeing as my passion nowadays has been cinematography. I have had the pleasure of working on some cool projects like last year's TIFF selection, The Editor, as well as shooting a feature last year called The Performance which is still in post. It was my first opportunity to work with some amazing actors, including Oscar-nominated Graham Greene from Dances With Wolves, lead actor Nick Mancuso who is an amazing talent and equally-talented UK actress Sienna Guillory, and Nick Campbell, also truly amazing actor. That film changed the course of my career, and I have been fortunate in securing an agent in L.A. and I have hopes to get into the Local 667 this year as a DP.
With The Terminal, we have a really stellar team. I love sci-fi and action, and I have high hopes for this series. One thing I will certainly add is that anytime Matt and I have the opportunity to work together, there is magic that develops and I always look forward to the end result. We have quite an unorthodox system where we usually go out and shoot something; On set, I have tons of freedom to explore and gather footage before Matt goes back to his secret lair of solitude like the mad scientist he is to do what he does best. After all said done, he gives birth to some truly magical films. It’s a system that works for us, and I always get excited in seeing what he comes up with.
I couldn't discuss much about the series since it is still in a development and funding phase. However, on top of their previous testimonies, Bennett and Moric also shared a little bit about what their inspirations were behind the series in its technological setting.
Bennett: Idea wise, a big influence was the general history of invention and innovation. Quite often, the most important inventions or discoveries are actually byproducts or unwanted side effects of trying to invent something else. In The Terminal - the AI’s consciousness is a side effect of trying to develop a new telecommunication system.
Style-wise, the four biggest influences on this project are The Terminator (1984) for its handling of exposition, and dialogue between action scenes, Alien (1979) and Blade Runner (1982) for their production design and treatment of visual themes. Those films are incredible examples of designing around central themes, but making it work almost subconsciously at times. And the fourth would be Speed (1994), because it’s the ultimate example of narrative momentum. Plus, it’s just damn fun to watch too.
For The Terminal our ambition is to make it the most action-packed, edge of your seat online series of all time, all while still filling it with a huge amount of backstory and detail. In a way, this series is sort of the reverse of The Terminator and/or The Matrix, in that it features an A.I. that has to join with human minds to protect it’s own existence. Maybe that was a bit spoiler-ish to say on my part, but I'll let your readers decide.
My own favourite shows are actually just drama and crime shows, Breaking Bad, True Detective and The Fall were my recent favourites.
Moric: I agree with Matt wholeheartedly on his references. He really hit the nail on the head. Also, we want viewers to know that in no way do we want to try and imitate the application of these aesthetics. My goal, and I think Matt would agree, is to create a world and a style that has not been done before. But one thing is true, though: The character arcs and human stories of great dramas like Breaking Bad and House Of Cards are something we want to have in our series. If we can successfully combine great action with amazing characters set in a future world I feel we will have a true winner.
Bennett and Moric are currently undergoing a campaign to help finance the series through Canada's Independent Production Fund program, wherein they may hopefully move forward on the second phase of the process if they can get enough views. I initially shared the trailer three weeks ago, so if you missed it, watch it below or click here to view the trailer with a detailed synopsis.
I can't recall the last time I've ever seen an Asian cowboy myself, and you'd be forgiven all the same. However, leave it to filmmaking duo Erik Lu and lead actor and creator Michael Rosete who are hell-bent on setting the record straight with their latest fish-out-of-water dramedy webseries, Ty Burnham: The Last Asian Cowboy, a story filled with a good share of tongue-in-cheek moments as well as some purely dramatic, exciting and brutal moments to boot.
DESCRIPTION:
In a limited miniseries event, Ty Burnham, an earnest--and somewhat naive--cowboy, finds himself in New York CIty and experiences people, places, and situations you'll only find in the Big Apple. While searching for his brother, Ty navigates the good, the bad, and the sometimes ugly, and finds it harder and harder to stay true to himself the longer he stays.
Watch as Ty experiences three distinct worlds in these episodes: the unexpected, the obscene, and the violent.
The series, from Descendant Films, LLC, is here now with all three parts, with the third having just arrived on Tuesday made in collaboration with Cinematic Fight Studio featuring co-star and fight coordinator Lang Yip. Watch all three parts below and enjoy the adventure.
There are a LOT of videos this week, but the very last one will undoubtedly keep you here for more news in the weeks ahead...
...On that note, let's get some reels going with new footage from the folks at Eclipse Stunts, as well as Tyson Arner, Alexa Marcigliano, Leah Petersen and Kyle Thomas Schmidt, along with a new fight reel from Wolf Stunts's own David Conk who also released two cool test fights thos past week featuring Adam Lytle, Ben Aycrigg and Shane Ferrell.
Now that that's done, let's take a break and get to know a few martial artists. It was late last year that the folks over at Kung Fu Heroes took a trip to see the sights in China, including various kung fu schools. While there, they've introduced two videos for their current interview series introducing members Rachel Ott and Sebastian Castellanos. You can learn more about Kung Fu Heroes and their adventures in martial arts by visiting their official website.
The next two videos you're about to see I felt deserved pairing considering how contemplative they were. The first comes from actress and stuntwoman Amy Johnston whose latest debut editing contribution, Expressions, comes with great tribute to legendary action director Hung Yan Yan following their work on Johnston's forthcoming acting debut in Chris Nahon's Lady Bloodfight which wrapped in February. The second takes you into a stunning and contemplative and artful view of what it means to be in movement, titled Flux from directors Patrick Ryder and Alex Brock.
The fighting continues with three new short film and webseries teasers from three distinct filmmakers I've come to appreciate in the past few years since I began blogging. The first is a teaser for an upcoming test fight short titled One Cold Night from director Nathan Quattrini, filmed earlier this year between Anthony Hoang and David Lavallee Jr. Ironically, it was filmed in an abandoned warehouse on one night that just happened to be very cold...perfect huh?
The second is a teaser from Lunar Stunts' own Eric Nguyen that pays homage to the 70's in the upcoming retro crime action comedy, Tough Street, which will share limited screenings starting March 27 -- The end of the trailer gave me a small chuckle. The third is a teaser for Kiai Kick Films' webseries debut, Cornered from filmmaker Michael S. Moore which has since debuted its poster a few weeks agoDonald Brooks stars with fight choreography by Aaron Alexander, both who can also be seen in their own test fight short, Showdown Part 2 from the folks at Faux Fighting!
Last month's airing of filmmaker Bryan Sloyer's Looper: Part One was an impressive experiment in a style of fight-based storytelling that almost borders on Inception, and he now returns to us this week with Looper: Part Two which adds even more layers and wrecks to the silent conceptual drama. PeiPei Yuan stars with Jerry Quill, Alex Duong and Jay Kwon - the latter who can also be seen in the latest LBP fight gem with Sloyer titled Third Protocol just beneath.
At the rate which filmmaking continues to take shape in the past several years, it's become quite admirable how the idea of retro-revival has become so influential in that process. It's become a cult phenomenon for many moviegoers around the world and now the folks behind the official Facebook page of Scytron Entertainment are heeding the call this year.
Two new shortfilms are available on their channel as of January - the first propels you into a 16-bit dystopian neon-lit city where one man must use his own supernatual abilities to avenge his own death and rescue the woman he loves from a notorious crimeboss. Rage is name of the short with Dylan Grunn starring from a script by Ben Boyle and debut director Ryan Boosel.
The second takes you into a gritty contemporary crime story from director Russell Hasenauer in part two of his Bible Belt short film series, Angel Of The City, starring Larry Mihlon as a mysterious vigilante in the fictional crime-ridden town of Fremont where providence will him against the city's most dangerous drug peddler. Also starring are Jennifer Zefutie and Don Sweet.
Enjoy!
This next batch comes from filmmaker, actor and martial artist Taejoon Lee. Newly uploaded on his channel as of late is a dated three-part miniseries titled The K-Town Chronicles, a crime story centered on the tragic bond between two surrogate brothers with an introspective look at Korean culture and tradition, and a glimpse into what it means to be a warrior. Lee's own martial arts lineage comes from a highly respected family - the first family of Hwa Rang Do, a style wherein he earned his 8th and final Dan back in 2009 under series co-star master, Dr. DoJooNim, making him one of few in the world to reach that level in his years of training, and you can learn more about his story at this website.
Check out all three parts below (and yes, that's Mickey Rourke you see in Episode 2).
Four dudes in a fight over some emperial gold and somehow they all end up as buddies? How did that happen. Find out in Kazu Patrick Tang's latest short, Oh My Gold, an experimental homage to Jackie Chan's 1984 classic, Wheels On Meals.
The next one offers a much more fair bit of high drama than anything. Following Hisonni Johnson's 2013 short, Grayson: Earth One, the director recently unveiled his latest inspired take on the alternate DC universe in Grayson: Earth One 1.5: The Boy and The Bullet, a centered on Jason Todd, a character who takes several shapes in the DC Universe of Robin/Nightwing. I'm not too familiar with comic book lore here so those in the know probably already have an idea what's happening. It's a great effort on Johnson's end considering these projects are hard to keep consistent due to the need for funds. Johnson's a terrific filmmaker and deserves every bit of support he asks for when the time arises. See for yourself!
By the way, I wouldn't fall asleep on that Power teaser at the start. Just sayin.
Ninjas, ninja farts and ninja flip farts for the win! YouTube host Dominic "D-Trix" Sandoval kicks off the week in Add A Ninja, with performances by Steve Terada and Gemma Nguyen, the gang from Martial Club and many more.
And last but FAR from least, I told you at the top of last year that there would be some amazing surprises to come from online martial arts action favorite, Vlad Rimburg, and if you thought me to be a liar, you couldn't be anymore wrong as his latest, The Betrayal is but one of several to slowly pour out from his current work pile of stunning action pieces. This one comes directly from the innerworkings of Force Storm Entertainment and its executive overseer and founder, Noah Fleder as it now marks a huge step forward his upcoming production base. Expect an exclusive official announcement real soon from Film Combat Syndicate.
Subscribe to these channels above and click here in case you missed last week's entries. If you have a QUALITY project in the form of a shortfilm/teaser/reel you would like featured on Film Combat Syndicate, send your inquiries to filmcombatsyndicate@gmail.com
I've actually written about independent filmmaker, actor and martial artist Joey Min a few times. He's been around nearly as long as any of the online content creators and stunt professionals I've enthused about in the last ten years and he's definitely one of the most talented people I've seen on both ends of the camera, and having finally met him late last year certainly made for a memorable evening among friends in 2014.
Alas, you can find out more about who he is through a simple Google search or a few runs on YouTube with shortfilm credits such as Fernando Jay Huerto's Fighter's High, Xing Yi Quan: Techniques And Applications with Keith Min, Mark Cheng's Operation: Red Retrieval, Eric Lim's Tokusatsu short, Secondary Education, and Bueno's boundless OTT Tokusatsu action comedy feature, Gun Caliber to name a few. In the meantime, Min wants to hone in something very special to him nowadays with the new webseries, The Forgotten Kingdom, a martial arts comedy series centered on a Tai Chi instructor forced to play along with a horde of invading LARPers (live-action role players) in an effort to beat them at their own game and bring peace to the park he teaches at.
The project has become a major priority for those involved, mostly consisting of people I've featured on Film Combat Syndicate since its heyday on Facebook in early 2013, including mutual friend and fellow stuntman and filmmaker Jon Truei, Eclipse Stunts's own DL MacDonald and YouTube personality KidHaru a.k.a. Devin White. Of course, what makes this an even bigger deal is the involvmemt of Hong Kong Stunt Legends Vincent Lyn (The Blonde Fury, Armor Of God 2: Operation Condor) and Bobby Samuels(Red Wolf, Don't Give A Damn).
Donald Brooks and Bobby Hernandez in the upcoming new series, CORNERED
The online independent action community is poised to add yet another to the list of entertaining gems viewable on the web this year. Dallas Fort Worth native and Kiai-Kick.com founder, Austin-based indie filmmaker Michael S. Moore has launched the official website for his thrilling new webseries, Cornered, and while no stranger to martial arts action, the latest bit of teaser footage he unveiled earlier this month offers something promising to look forward to ahead of its release.
Lead actor, martial artist and stuntman Donald Brooks headlines the story which forsees a cop's mission to fight his way through a gauntlet of deadly fighters to retrieve a briefcase and save the life of a woman from captivity. Interesting, as whatever is in that briefcase must be worth the extra effort, especially in a project themed with homages to a handful of the biggest names in recent martial arts movie history, and not for nothing either with actor and fight choreographer Aaron D. Alexander on hand to deliver the stylish coordination for a cast of this caliber.
At any rate, the series is also gracing hopeful fans with a fresh new poster which you can check out below.
Cornered will debut in four parts between episodes as long as seven-to-ten minutes. Brooks is joined by Kerry Ramsay, Sharmita Bhattacharya and Lindsey Lemke, with Bobby Hernandez, Rachel Wiese, Chris Cude, Geronimo Son, Yuki Ishiguro and Ron Leblanc rounding out the cast. Kindly pay a visit to the official Facebook page for the series to get a good footing of the content and further info that will be made available in the coming weeks!
This week's Hit List was another adventure. I managed to do this while accomplishing five write-ups this week for my friend over at The Action Elite and I still have a ton of work to finish regarding interviews I'm working on putting together. So, hopefully you'll like what's presented here. It's another epic mix of stuff and some of it may be a little too R-rated for your tastes, but I hope I made up for it in the end. At any rate, these should still be great vids to enjoy along the way. First off is a real from an awesome director who has already cut his teeth quite well in stunts and fight choreography. Remember the name Beau Fowler and be on the lookout for a trailer later this week for his most recent proof-of-concept action sci-fi short, Chameleon. His most recent director's reel from late last year has a few highlights from that very project among several, and the reel itself has quite a few other goods as well. Check it all out below along with other reels from Mohamed Benabdellah, Aridani Del Rosario Medina, Jay Kwon and Umar Khan!
Over here, well, I don't know much about teeterboarding, although it seems Damien Walters and his crew pretty much have it down packed. Check it out below and go freerunning with Dylan Baker just beneath!
Looking into some shortfilm material, there are two new trailers and several other videos out this month that I found from two very impressive projects and creators. The first is a teaser for an upcoming shortfilm titled Dogs, an action-packed collaboration between Rising Tiger Films and Deadly Dymes hosting a story of loyality and betrayal, featuring Edmond Shum and actress Yara Brown. I've written about Rising Tiger before and have even sampled their public and exclusive work, and truthfully, the work they're putting out is only getting better an better, so I highly advise paying attention as the months pass.
Beneath that one is a three-fer I'd like to share - the first is a teaser to the student-produced independent shortfilm, Jagon, about a warrior in search of a powerful rosary. Produced by Filmakademie Baden-Württembürg and SWR's own Hannes Hohn and Johannes Kunkel and directed by Murat Eyüt Gonültas, the teaser briefs us with some truly high-quality stunning visuals to boot. The YouTube channel its hosted on has some very cool behind-the-scenes and motion-capture choreography featurettes, and it looks like its all shaping up to be something truly special. Movie Do's own Eskindir Tesfay and Tolga Degirmen are credited for handling the action, and can also be seen in a new pre-viz choreography video for Degirmen's own group, Impulse, as well as the latest new message martial arts short from Movie Do and Movie-Do and Budosportcenter in Münster, Germany titled On Second Thought.
You may recall the unveiling of a poster for a James Bond-inspired shortfilm titled Sapphire from independent filmmaker Colin Emmerson over a week ago. It was supposed to release the following day but technical issues crippled any release plans thereafter and our dear director needed a few extra days to fix what needed fixing by its release earlier last week. The short is an inspired look at Bond-style action with an otherwise experimental take on how the classic M-16 agent would bode with audiences as non-white lead. This time, actor, stuntman and choreographer Jean-Paul Ly is taking the lead in this lovely dance of death, and the response has been nothing short of positive. If this is your first viewing, this may delight you more than a medium Vodka dry martini... shaken, not stirred that is.
The next video comes from independent filmmaker Shaun Charney whose latest collaboration with Nathan Lee and Ishida Sachiko happens to be one of the most entertaining. I've covered Ishida a time or two and by far, this one is her most hardest-hitting video yet, and as per most of Charney's videos, the ending is definitely worth a giggle.
Aside from all the giant robot v. monster spectacle in Guillermo Del Toro's Pacific Rim, the film did have a few little fight gems in it as well, and here we have some cool concept choreo by longtime fight choreographer Brad Allan with performances by Max Savaria and Eli Martyr opposite stuntman and up-and-coming actor Alain Moussi. Take a look at a few of the techniqhes and you might get an idea where this particualr sequence might take place.
Tsiknes Films is a channel I came across a few weeks ago while browsing some of their videos, of which there are several as of last month. From the looks of it, they appear to be newly established although their work looks pretty good so far. Their latest, Hide And Seek should serve as a good enough sample.
Think that old game you used to play in grade school... and then add weapons into the mix. The result is pretty gruesome and otherwise thrilling. Check it out!
It's not exactly disingenuous to allege that that filmmakers like Timo Tjahjanto and Kimo Stamboel have gained themselves a bit of cult fandom over the years, and their recent thriller, Killers, is a good example of this with a similar tone added to the following short, Vendetta: Part 1. The project is the first of a two part project from Canadian film groups Black Ice 140 and Wuji Films, written and directed Kyle Wong who stars opposite Joshua Zacharias in a story of two assassins vying for a place at the top. Quite the NSFW stuff here although not too gory to be honest, but discretion is advised otherwise. Take a looksy and keep an eye out for the sequel later this year!
Last year was a good year for actor, martial artist and filmmaker Leroy Kincaide to release his newest shortfilm, Freeman: New World Order, which has since been stated to be on its way to feature-length development. Details are pending in that regard, so in the meantime, Kincaide is still creating content of his own, and as such, has put together a little entertaining test fight gem with Freeman co-star Grant Steven, and its an excellent piece of work for the few minutes it lasts. Take a looksy!
Seems its gotten a bit grim down here, so let's pick it up with the next two videos now in the world of gaiming: The first video, Little Mac V. Dark Ness was an intro to a stage show called Gamers Against The Gridmark. DC Stunt Coalition designed the action for this particular project which originally premiered at MAGFest 2013. The second video just beneath is a clash of two game universes featuring an epic cosplay sword battle between Link and Marth now hosted on the official channel Ismahawk (home to creator Danny Shepherd's Nightwing series).
Up next is independent filmmaker Bryan Sloyer whose filmmaking has become pretty impressive in the last few years. He's gotten very creative and I love the rate at which he plays with certain ideas that now give a lot of his test fights more style and intensity with certain themes and how they're set up, and his latest, Looper: Part 1, is a wicked example of this. Kage Yami, Anthony Hoang and Amy Sturdivant star in the epic battle of foresight that ensues below!
For the next, we have Finnish filmmaker Mikkö Löppönen's latest take on what happens when love at first sight occurs between two people with a...well, a particular set of skills in a cramped space. Watch the new action short simply titled Hississä (or, Elevator), with performances by Jesse Liskola and Jaana Joensuu.
As you might guess with director Matthew Vaughn's Kingsman: The Secret Service now servicing movie patrons in theaters, there plenty of fandom o go around. With that in mind, VFX film producer and director Freddie Wong is back in collaboration with the one and only Yung Lee of Gak Attack directing the gentlemanly, yet brutalizing action seen in the brand new short, London Brawling. See it below, and by all means, go see Kingsman: The Secret Service. I know I plan to!
The laughs continue with the next video from our friends over at Martial Club. By all means, their specialty is exactly what their brand presents, which means they get a ton of inquiries about martial arts and their latest video covers a very important topic, hilariously spoofing an example of exactly the kind of learning environment you ought to avoid. Alas, it's time to Enter The McDojo with Andy Le, Daniel Mah and the one and only Brian Le!
Master Ken, you may have just met your match!
And finally, if you're curious to learn more about the latest feature work from actors Emmanuel Manzanares, Jose Montesinos and Sari Sabella in the upcoming Hong Kong action comedy homage, Unlucky Stars, my recent review should make for a good testimony. Beyond that, there are two final videos to this list: The first is Manzanres's latest via LBP Stunts Chicago, 挑战者 (CHALLENGER), an electrifying test fight short of epic proportions bringing together LBP's own Shawn Bernal with action actors Aaron Toney and EMC Monkey's own Malay Kim. The second and last, though far from least, is Montesinos's newest online gem, Sour Cream with performances by Sabella and Janna Davi. Principally it's not action-related, but it is as entertaining as Montesinos's work has always been, ans as I saw fit, there was no way I was NOT going to sharing it. You'll just have to watch and see why.
CLICK HERE to view last week's Hit List in case you missed it. Otherwise, subscribe to the channels above stay tuned in for next week's Hit List. If you or someone you know has QUALITY content you would like to share on Film Combat Syndicate, e-mail me at filmcombatsyndicate@gmail.com
