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Shadows aren't always problematic but some are. Hard shadows next to subjects against walls are often viewed as amateurish, unless it fits the scene (like in noirs, for instance). Here's some things to keep in mind.

1. Getting lights up high will move shadows lower so they won't show up as much and as noticeably in shots. Lights at a high vantage behind someone will serve as hair-light as well, outlining someone's head and separating them from the background.

2. Diffusion will soften shadows, though it will lessen the intensity of the light for the camera. Methods of diffusion include:
Shining light through translucent substance such as scrim.
Facing light in the opposite direction and bouncing off reflective material like a bounce sheet, silver or white board, umbrella etc.
Placing an intricately-shaped object (like a shrub) close to a light to create a soft shadow where the light is falling.

3. Flags and cookies. Playing with shadows is the next direction in my own lighting study, creating environments that are full of shadows and beams of light.

Exhibit A: A bunch of frisbees chained together on either side of Eric and Huyen, with two bright lights shining through on each side.



Cookies are generally patterned pieces of metal attached to the light to throw a soft shadow and light pattern. Flags are usually opaque shapes of cloth set in front of the light to create shadows or block off light. But you can use any kind of object to cast interesting shadows and change the distance to effect the hardness or softness of the shadows. I usually just cut off a tree branch and put it in front of a light. This will help mask any incidental shadows. For a fight you don't want too much black shadows cuz you'll miss moves, but you can have soft shadows that are simply dimmer than the bright areas.

Check out this example from some random useful creative guy I found:
http://flickr.com/photos/...in/set-72157600532172719/
http://flickr.com/photos/...in/set-72157600532172719/ (this could be like some reeds or something in front of a light)
http://flickr.com/photos/...in/set-72157600532172719/

I highly recommend doing this if you have a light set side for just the background!!!!! It will make a boring wall more interesting.

4. You can play with lighting a backdrop and keeping the subjects dark if silhouettes will work for a shot.

5. If you haven't played with lighting much before, experiment ahead of time with back-light/hair-light. Placing a light at some angle behind your subject to give them rim-lighting. This will help separate them from a dark background. Sometimes you can find a place to hide a light shining back your way so the subjects are backlit but an object like a beam or column is hiding the light and preventing lens flare.

There's a few ideas to keep in mind.