Hey everybody. Big news. I will be doing my first feature length film in about 2 months. I have to start choreographing in july. I am working with non
martial artists so I was thinking of ways to work around the lack of impressive kicks. I thought maybe going with wing chun and hung gar styles for the new
guys. Anyway here are the fights.
1st fight- Me vs. Hero (Taekwondo, kung fu vs Wing Chun?)
2nd fight- Me vs Hero, and Friend (Taekwondo, mantis kung fu vs eagle kung fu and wing chun?)
3rd fight- hero and friend vs two bad guys (eagle claw and wing chun?, vs I have no idea)
My idea is to have the non martial artists doing fancy hand work, but I'm worried that the fights will seem like big fillers. Any and all help is
appreciated. Thank you in advance.
Jason.
0 Kudo
A Big Project
| Author | Comment | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 Jason Xang |
A Big Project |
Lead | |
|
Posts: 17 (06/17/08 07:48:28) |
|
||
|
darrenh7 |
|||
|
Posts: 2471 (06/17/08 11:36:19) Action Hero |
Cool dude... show some footage later.
DARDREX PRODUCTIONS.
No life! A camera! And High kicks! Kung Fu San So, Shotokan Karate, Muay Thai, Taekwondo, and Jeet Kune Do. http://www.youtube.com/user/dardrex777 |
||
|
stuntpeople |
|||
|
Posts: 6853 (06/17/08 11:38:36) Administrator |
I think you're assuming incorrectly that good handwork is easier to perform than good footwork, let alone complex stuff like mantis and wing chun.
Non-martial artists are going to have a much easier time learning kickboxing choreography over mantis or anything like that, so maybe you should dedicate a
month to teaching them the basics. Your actors will have a hell of a time picking up on that complicated stuff.
Also, I wish you all the best on making a feature-length film, but why are you going for that length?
Eric Jacobus
The Stunt People |
||
|
Jason Xang |
|||
|
Posts: 18 (06/17/08 13:56:55) |
I think your right about the kick boxing Eric, so thanks. As for the whole feature length thing. I've been studying film at school for a few years now and
I petitioned to have a school movie done. The whole school is contributing to make an action comedy. I really pushed to get the action in there
 . This
project is going to boost the portfolios and resumes of everyone involved. It is a pretty big task, but the combined experience of our schools media and
communication tech departments should give us a good product.
I will admit though that I am nervous. I've gotten stuck with script writing, choreography, and editing. I really want the choreo to look good. I told you guys before that after two years of kung fu, I wanted to become a stunt man. This is sorta my big break into the film bussiness. To be honest, I wasn't to big on film (didn't think i could do it), then I saw a few of your shorts, and after watching contour I realized it was possible to make a movie. I know I won't make something this good on my first attempt, but I will try my best. |
||
|
stuntpeople |
|||
|
Posts: 6854 (06/17/08 15:20:17) Administrator |
Thanks for the kind words. I think you're going up against something huge by attempting to do a feature film as your first project. Perhaps consider doing
a short? Because unless your script can keep a movie going for 90 minutes (and don't let Contour be an example of that, but we DID have about a half hour
of action to keep it rolling), you're best off keeping it short. A good short is so much better than a boring/bad feature. But if you really have a action
story that can survive off three fight scenes, and all the people involved are dedicated, then maybe you'll do alright.
Eric Jacobus
The Stunt People |
||
|
Jason Xang |
|||
|
Posts: 19 (06/17/08 16:24:27) |
Thank you for the kind words. Luckily I have done quite a few shorts for school projects. My first was actually a crappy kung fu spoof that I appeared in after
my first kung fu lesson
 . As bad as it was, a lot of shorts later (non action mind you) I have crafted my craft to a level I'm happy with. Not to
say I can't do better, because I accept that I will always be learning.
Now again, you're probably right when you use the term "survive" for the amount of fights. I want to sneak in a gang fight pretty badly, but the lack of martial artists around here, heck the lack of commited actors around here makes me think it won't happen. if you have any ideas though, we could sneak in a few fights. There are a few action sequences that involve a quick takedown, maybe I can lengthen those. Do you have any ideas. Nothing is set in stone. |
||
|
stuntpeople |
|||
|
Posts: 6855 (06/17/08 22:01:24) Administrator |
Best of luck. Sounds like you're bent on doing a feature and I thought I'd just advise.
Eric Jacobus
The Stunt People |
||
|
darrenh7 |
|||
|
Posts: 2474 (06/17/08 22:59:36) Action Hero |
As far as Wing Chun being hard for beginners.... yes and no... I mean for my Infernal Affairs project Tyler had no martial arts training and isn't a
kicker.... so I based the choreography around Wing Chun and Kali to give more use of hands rather than kicks.
Most of the time a person new to screen fighting won't be a kicker... however general punching is kinda human nature so they already have the basic idea... from there just instruct them through punching in a way that looks presentable for the camera... By the same tokken Wing Chun is heavily difficult handwork.... I mean I believe it's the coolest style for handwork but it's a lot more complex than a simple 1, 2 punch coming from a boxer... so it could be difficult for beginners to understand how to move. Anyway I hope it turns out well for you.
DARDREX PRODUCTIONS.
No life! A camera! And High kicks! Kung Fu San So, Shotokan Karate, Muay Thai, Taekwondo, and Jeet Kune Do. http://www.youtube.com/user/dardrex777 |
||
|
Jason Xang |
|||
|
Posts: 20 (06/18/08 02:49:46) |
Ya Eric, I am pretty bent on it. Next year is my last year at that school, and if I leave I won't have the resources to produce my film. So could you guys
elaborate on hand work, even though I do kung fu, I am a kicker at heart. My handwork needs, work. How exactly do I create good hand exchanges without it
becoming boring?
|
||
|
stuntpeople |
|||
|
Posts: 6858 (06/18/08 07:27:47) Administrator |
That's difficult. Your actors need to be comfortable with distances and doing proper reactions. Making it entertaining is up to you, and you'll find
yourself having a hard time once your fight goes past the 2-minute mark. Then you'll need to start changing things up, like going to a different place and
fighting differently, or introduce a story element.
Eric Jacobus
The Stunt People |
||
|
Jason Xang |
|||
|
Posts: 21 (06/18/08 07:52:37) |
So I'm guessing that past the two minute mark I have to choreograph more intricate or flashy moves than before. It's kinda like a story right? The
introduction to the fight, then the rising action which is a few good exchanges with a nice move here and there, then the climax where both fighters pull
everything out of their arsenal, then a falling action where one fighter slowly starts to defeat the other, followed by the resolution where one fighter ones
and the other loses. I think that's how it goes.
|
||
|
stuntpeople |
|||
|
Posts: 6859 (06/18/08 15:24:38) Administrator |
Yes.
Eric Jacobus
The Stunt People |
||
|
darrenh7 |
|||
|
Posts: 2477 (06/18/08 17:23:24) Action Hero |
Jason Xang wrote: You got the theory down... now execute it and you should be fine.
DARDREX PRODUCTIONS.
No life! A camera! And High kicks! Kung Fu San So, Shotokan Karate, Muay Thai, Taekwondo, and Jeet Kune Do. http://www.youtube.com/user/dardrex777 |
||
|
Shauntron |
|||
|
Posts: 1123 (06/18/08 17:42:32) Screen Fighter |
What's your plan on keeping a crew for the duration of a feature?
|
||
|
Jason Xang |
|||
|
Posts: 22 (06/18/08 17:53:22) |
My plan is to keep them well fed and motivated. We will film two days a week, because school is tough and shooting everyday would create conflict.
|
||
|
stuntpeople |
|||
|
Posts: 6862 (06/18/08 20:10:09) Administrator |
You have a production schedule?
Eric Jacobus
The Stunt People |
||
|
Jason Xang |
|||
|
Posts: 23 (06/19/08 02:55:21) |
I am working out one with my current crew members. The idea is to shoot tuesday , thursday, and on wednesday I will gather with some of the actors and work
choreography. We plan on shooting the fights a little later, I assume they tae tons of tries.
|
||
|
stuntpeople |
|||
|
Posts: 6865 (06/19/08 06:08:05) Administrator |
How long do you plan on the whole project taking to shoot?
Eric Jacobus
The Stunt People |
||
|
Jason Xang |
|||
|
Posts: 24 (06/19/08 11:38:48) |
Well we hope to have shooting finished for late april. Then we have to finish editing before the end of may. The only thing that is going to take a bit of time
are the fight scenes. the rest are pretty easy scenes that shouldn't require many retakes.
|
||
|
sifusocky |
|||
|
Posts: 578 (06/21/08 04:37:10) Screen Fighter |
I should point out that dialogue scenes are harder than you probably think. It's easy to think "oh we'll spend all our time doing the fights,
because we can nail the dialogue in a take or two" but you'll probably find that especially working with people who aren't actors, it can take
double the amount of time you'd expect to get a passable dialogue take.
Yeah, sometimes you will have a dialogue take that you'll nail first time. Other times you just won't be able to get the delivery of the lines right and have to do it again and again. I mean this because if you're doing a feature, you will need to have more story than fighting, and if you're planning to rush through 60% of a feature-length film half-assing on the dialogue and acting you're going to end up with a sub-standard feature. In other words if it's gonna be a feature you need to put serious devotion into the bits that aren't fights, too. Just a word of warning. 
~Mike
Reckless Ninja Squad (my stunt team) - http://ninjasquad.wayofthesocky.co.uk Way of the Socky (kung fu movie reviews) - http://www.wayofthesocky.co.uk |
||
|
Jason Xang |
|||
|
Posts: 25 (06/21/08 05:48:07) |
I totally get what your saying Socky. The only people with speaking parts are the actual actors. They have been doing drama classes for a few years now, so
I'm not to worried. We obviously won't nail the dialogue everytime, but it shouldn't be too hard. The actual dialogue itself isn't too bad, I
worked with students from our schools creative writing program to come up with a decent script.
|
||
