Martial Art in a movie...

[Karate_Warrior]

Hello.
My brother are going to make a martial arts movie.
And he said that if I am going to be a part of the movie,
I had to do one of these martial arts:
-Ninjutsu
-Chinese Kenpo
-Karate.

I have no idea wich martial art I should choose.
Wich do you think I should do?

 

[Flying Crane]

None, if you haven't had any training in them.

Do whatever you are trained in. Don't try to fake it. it's terrible when people do that.

 

[Karate_Warrior]

ok.thanks

 

[Flying Crane]

It's just that people can tell when things are faked in a movie, esp. when it comes to martial arts styles. It can just be really cheesey. So unless it is your intention to make a silly parody, it's best not to do it.

If you have some solid training in something, then your time and effort would be much better focused on presenting that in a creative way in front of the camera. Go ahead and go wild, be creative, come up with some outlandish sequences, but base your technique on whatever it is that you really know and do well. It you try to pretend you are a ninja, everyone will see thru the farce. If you are really a karate guy, and you do it well, people will respect that much more.

Have fun, and good luck.

 

[Karate_Warrior]

I started to train ninjutsu for 6 weeks ago, so I think I choose ninjutsu, so it doesnt look like fake.
Thank you for the tips Flying Crane.

 

[Flying Crane]

well, six weeks of any art is very very little. Do you have any other training? If this is the extent of your training, then the truth is that you don't have the skills and knowledge to present the art in any kind of authentic or skillful manner. I'm just being honest, and it is good to face that, i'm not attacking you personally.

If this movie is just a fun, backyard project, then go for it and enjoy yourself. But if it is meant to be a serious film project, you need a lot more training before it will be any good.

It sounds like you have a tremendous amount of enthusiasm, and that is great. I don't want to throw cold water on that. But your training is at a very very rudimentary level at this point and I just think it is important to be realistic.

 

[Xue Sheng]

It's just that people can tell when things are faked in a movie, esp. when it comes to martial arts styles. It can just be really cheesey.

You mean Drew Barrymore of Charlie’s Angeles fame DOESN'T know and Martial Arts... My world doesn't make sense anymore

Sorry I couldn't resist.

well, six weeks of any art is very very little. Do you have any other training? If this is the extent of your training, then the truth is that you don't have the skills and knowledge to present the art in any kind of authentic or skillful manner. I'm just being honest, and it is good to face that, i'm not attacking you personally.

If this movie is just a fun, backyard project, then go for it and enjoy yourself. But if it is meant to be a serious film project, you need a lot more training before it will be any good.

It sounds like you have a tremendous amount of enthusiasm, and that is great. I don't want to throw cold water on that. But your training is at a very very rudimentary level at this point and I just think it is important to be realistic.

I have to say I agree with everything Crane has said.

 

[MA-Caver]

You mean Drew Barrymore of Charlie’s Angeles fame DOESN'T know and Martial Arts... My world doesn't make sense anymore

Sorry I couldn't resist.

Know what you mean here. Know that you're kidding but your question makes a point.
Barrymore is an actress, a well trained actress from a long line of acting family members and also (like hundreds of other actors/actresses) have personal trainers that review the "fight-scene" and know what skills are needed to pull it off. The actors are trained rigorously for hours and days to learn those specific moves. They are taught the basics of that particular style/art so to better help them understand the more advanced techniques called for in the film. They may choose to continue pursuing the art after the director yells CUT & PRINT! But most likely they will not.

Also they have very cleverly disgused stunt-doubles.

 

[Xue Sheng]

Know what you mean here. Know that you're kidding but your question makes a point.
Barrymore is an actress, a well trained actress from a long line of acting family members and also (like hundreds of other actors/actresses) have personal trainers that review the "fight-scene" and know what skills are needed to pull it off. The actors are trained rigorously for hours and days to learn those specific moves. They are taught the basics of that particular style/art so to better help them understand the more advanced techniques called for in the film. They may choose to continue pursuing the art after the director yells CUT & PRINT! But most likely they will not.

Also they have very cleverly disgused stunt-doubles.

Yup that about covers it.

I watch films like this and they sometimes pull it off very well, but there is always some point where they make a move or take a stance or throw a punch that is completely out of alignment and WAY off center. Now I am willing to admit that the people on MT are more likely to see it than the average movie goer, but to me at least it stands out like a flashing neon sign.

 

[Flying Crane]

Also they have very cleverly disgused stunt-doubles.

And more and more, they have skillful computer-generated imagery and choreography, the likes of The Matrix. These actors actually do very little of the fight choreography. They simply let their computer-generated image do the work.

 

[Drac]

You mean Drew Barrymore of Charlie’s Angeles fame DOESN'T know and Martial Arts... My world doesn't make sense anymore

Yes, it's a terrible blow but you're strong...

 

[Ybot]

I say do what ever you want in your brothers movie... I mean, it's his movie. The point of a movie is not to represent a Martial Arts Style realisticly (unless it's some sort of instructional), but to entertain. If your movie entertains don't worry about the rest, the average person doesn't know the difference between your above mentioned styles, they only usually know what you tell them in the movie anyway.

Though, I must say that even an average person can tell when someone is a beginner at a skill set. Not to discourage you, but at least take that into acount when deciding the tone of the movie.

 

[Grenadier]

As the others have stated, just be yourself. One time, a few friends and I tried to pull off making a short movie of our own, where a Karate guy fought against a Capoerista. The big problem was, though, that our best "Capoerista" had about 3 months of experience, and he would be the first to tell you that even with the best of coaching from a knowledgeable (but frail) person, that the footage of his performance as a "Capoerista" was "absolutely pathetic."

The overwhelming majority of us here do not have the $$$ needed to pull off what the folks in the studios do.

Remember, Hollyweird has all sorts of ways of making the below-average "martial artist" look like he can execute a real technique. These include:

1) CGI, digitally retouching everything as well
2) Changing camera angles during a move, to cover up awful technique
3) Hiring excellent coaches to give the performer an inkling of an idea of what to do
4) Using talented stunt doubles to perform the action

#4 is very prevalent, especially when the actor in question can't really perform the moves. Many of y'all remember the well-known Fumio Demura standing in for the brittle Pat Morita during "Karate Kid" when they had to show him fighting the young punks.

Many of the above can also be combined, such as in Star Wars III, when Christopher Lee's head was digitally "pasted" on top of a younger stunt double's body. It's a shame Lee was too old to do the sword work, since he had a most wonderful performance as Rochefort in "The Three Musketeers" during his younger years.