Kung Fu Documentary??

[Hungfutkune]

Hello all,

How is everybody? I just thought I would try to post this question on here and see what type of response I would get.

I am a film maker in Canada and have had some experience in Kung Fu. I am thinking of making a documentary on Traditional Martial Arts. I have a few ideas of how I want to approach it. Now I know there are a lot of Docs out there, but I want to do something that is educational and entertaining, so I thought I would post this question to you all -

If I were to make a Documentary on Kung Fu, what would you like to see? Any styles in particular or any stories that you might have heard of?

Looking forward to some serious responses.

Thanks

[Lohanhero]

hello.
for me i would like to see veiws of older arts that are still taught in traditional ways, schools that practise applications not only forms.
see places that practise some skills, iron body, running walls ect...
would also like to see some nice performences of forms, traditional and modern.

and im sure if you manage to find some performences of arts that arnt to often seen it would ad to making your documentery special. things like interesting weapons, forms that havent been heard of much.

lol, this ofcause would all depend on how much you can find.

I wish you much luck on your journey.

[Kristoffer]

lol.. yeah, all traditional fighting arts teaches how to run walls

I'd like to see one comparing how different arts train. That would be interesting

[Fu-Pow]

Where in Canada are you? I live in Seattle and I'm just getting into documentary. Would you want to collaborate on something?

[SPJ]

There are already tons of wushu, weapons and forms instruction vcd and dvd flooded the market.

It would be nice just to follow a lead on a personal level.

Why we still practice TMA in the 21 century?

Interview with students and teachers, report their stories and summarize your conclusions. Visit a couple of schools and individual practitioners. They are more indiviuals practicing alone and not associated with a school.

You may follow a style or several and trace the culture and heritage back several generations.

We are in the beginning of the 21st century. There are so many stories at the end of the 19 th century and the 20th century.

What would be the future?

What do modern people may gain from all these practices in the 21th century?

[Xiao3 Meng4]

Kudos on even approaching the subject. It's huge. Here are two ideas.

What if you traced the development of Kung Fu: from the time before the Qin dynasty when wars were decided by dueling leaders (and their family styles,) through the Qin dynasty and the mass dissemination and use of combat skills by soldiers, past the inclusion of combat into Taoist and Buddhist awareness practices, the use of Kung Fu in rebellions and national image development, and finally to the arrival of Kung Fu on Canadian Shores?

Or, what if you focused on one particular thing that there is mass curiosity about - like the National Chinese Kung Fu Tournament of 1928? You could look at all of the styles that entered, including history, famous personalities, training regimens, and competitors?

Good luck choosing a path.
CSP

[gwa sow]

nothing against it but no shaolin stuff........ martial arts in modern times. clf, hung gar, mantis, wing chun, popular stuff that would be more readilly available to people. something to introduce martial arts as something practical and useful that anyone can train in. get rid of some the misconceptions that many people may have. Show that it is hard work, useful for self defense, not just forms and "heeeeeeeyaaaaaa's". (convert some mma's hehe) We had a sifu from hong kong that came to our school to visit recently and he could move better than anyone else i have seen and he was 59. His school trained very hard. It got me to thinking.....All of our styles were created by people who did this every day, all day, for thier whole life. They needed this to live and to survive. Thinking about these two things bothered me when seeing all the bad martial arts there is today. Now, we don't need martial arts in the same way so most people do not need or want to train for 8 hours in a day. But i think that for Kung fu (and other styles) to continue people should respect what the people before them have done and try to put the same passion and respect into thier training. So, i think that those might be some things to introduce into the doc. To show what has gone into developing martial arts today

[Yum Cha]

What topic gets the most interest in the board? That might be an indication...

Traditional Kung Fu and the evolution to MMA, i.e. NHB, K1, UFC, all that. Thats guaranteed to get the juices flowing around here, and elsewhere.

Look into the roots, the training, the traditions and techniques and the evolving westernisation, popularisation. Compare and contrast, leave the conclusions for the viewer.

Of course, you'd have to be able to recognise good traditional from "crippled children".
And you'd have to get info out of people who would probably be quite happy remaining silent. To work with the "loudest mouths" wouldn't really serve the proposition fairly...

Of course, its still common for most punters not to know the difference between Karate, Kung Fu and Ju Jitsu, so you got your job cut out for you.

[mickey]

Greetings,

Suggestion:

The ongoing struggle of maintaining the older traditions in modern times. Each person can identify what is traditional for them. And maybe sense whether there is a a need for a new paradigm in order for the older traditions to survive. This can be contrasted with the newer emerging styles that are taking the world by storm. One, then, can see whether or not traditions are really fading away or simply has taken on a new face and is just as strong and vibrant as ever.

mickey

[froggy]

Hey Fu-Pow, your private messaging is full. PM me.

[45degree fist]

GONG SAU
Or Challenge Matches

Go over Some of the history known

There is always Controversy over the whole wing chun vs. choy la fut rooftop fights.

I would watch that I'm sure any MA guy would.

[Fu-Pow]

Hey Fu-Pow, your private messaging is full. PM me.

Done...........................

[brothernumber9]

I'd like to see a documentary on the general history of some traditional CMA as it has arrived and developed in North America, particularly pertaining to New York, San Fran, and I suppose Vancouver or Montreal or whatever the old hot bed of CMA was for Cananda.

A general overview would be fine and some individual or style specific details would be fine, but even better if parts on style specific had some sort of "community" type photos or evidence they could present that may show a sort of CMA community within more than just the Asian American and Asian Immigrant diaspora.

A focus could be on those schools or teachers that have been around the longest and/or have taught to westerners the earliest, such as the SF Hung Sing Kwoon, Fu Jow Pai, Dean Chin/ Hoy Lee Jow Ga, Moy Yat WC, C.C. Liu/ Willie Lin, Chan Tai San, Poi Chan, Lum Sang, Ark Wong, C.C. Chen, Brendan Lai, etc.

[Hungfutkune]

Thanks for all your input guys.

I will try to keep you all informed on how things progress!!