Diana Lee Inosanto’s “The Sensei”

Posted on | March 4, 2010 | No Comments

Last Sunday, I was invited to attend Diana Lee Inosanto’s DVD release party of her directorial debut, The Sensei.

For most martial artists, you’ll recognize the name. She is the daughter of martial arts legend Dan Inosanto and the “honorary niece” of one of the world’s biggest icons, Bruce Lee. But what you might not realize is that she’s also an actress, stuntwoman, and producer.

Now, she can add writer/director to her long list of accomplishments.

The Sensei is about a female martial arts instructor who secretly takes on a gay student in 1980s Colorado during the height of the AIDS scare. Though not flawless, the movie is a courageous and powerful piece — particularly considering it’s a low-budget independent and is Diana’s first ever directing gig.

More details about the project later. For now, I highly recommend you check it out on DVD when it’s released on March 9.

When Zombies Attack! — A Cartoon!

Posted on | February 5, 2010 | No Comments

It’s about time. Check out this cool little ditty: a trailer for an CG-animation zombie movie.

It’s called A.D. and is directed by Ben Hibon, written by Haylar Garcia, and produced by Bernie Goldmann (300), Tarik Heitmann (The Sensei), and Renee Tab.

Looks pretty cool. I like the idea of taking the zombie genre into the digital realm — worlds of possibilities, I say, not just for animators, but for stunt coordinators and stunt fighters, too. A lot of people complain that with CGI movies, they’ll be less need for human actors. Not true. Look at Avatar or even how the video-game industry has revolutionized fighting games.

Any good animation director knows that to do convincing animated violence, you need flesh-and-blood stuntman to strap on a motion-capture suit to record his movements as the basis for a CGI character. That’s the only way to translate complex action scenes convincingly on screen.

With a successful zombie CGI cartoon, even more doors will open for the types of animated action that can be filmed — and for the variety of stuntman who can lend their talents.

So, strap on the mo-cap balls and let’s get undead, shall we?

Live Stunt-Fighting Demo at BlackBeltMag.com

Posted on | December 31, 2009 | 1 Comment

Check out this live stunt-fighting demonstration that I helped facilitate at Black Belt Magazine’s website.

It was held at the recent International Mixed Martial Arts Expo in Los Angeles and features stunt coordinator John Kreng and his stunt crew explaining the differences between a realistic MMA-style self-defense situation versus an MMA-styled fight for the movies.

It features the talents of actress/stuntwoman Lauren Mary Kim and professional wrestler/stuntman Van Asayit, among others.

Trailer for Jackie Chan’s The Karate Kid Remake

Posted on | December 24, 2009 | No Comments

Just caught the trailer for the Jackie Chan remake of The Karate Kid (AKA The Kung Fu Kid). After watching this clip though, maybe it should be called The Wushu Kid?

What do you think? After writing down my initial thoughts and now seeing some footage, I’m not sure what to think. Seeing Chan in a different type of role makes me want to champion it, but some of the other elements makes me just cringe.

Check it out for yourself below and let me know what you think:

Stuntwomen’s Awards in Black Belt Magazine

Posted on | December 23, 2009 | No Comments

My article about the recent Hollywood Stuntwomen’s Awards is featured in the February 2010 issue of Black Belt magazine and on the publication’s website.

Check out my story for a recap of all the excitement, from Jamie Lee Curtis receiving the Action Icon Award and Zoe Bell (Kill Bill) making an appearance, to actress/stuntwoman Natascha Hopkins (Spider-Man 3) tossing taekwondo expert Ilram Choi (Avatar) through a dinner table.

Let me know what you think!

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ScreenWarriorDotCom

Welcome to the blog of PATRICK VUONG: a stunt fighter and fight choreographer for films, short movies, and TV.

Here, you'll find his blog about the pleasures and pains of "fake fighting," get the latest news about his projects, and have access to his various demo reels.

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