Where did your passion for the Japanese sword begin? What makes the katana special to you?
My father introduced me to Japanese Cinema and art at the age of 7. I watched every samurai film made. Kurosawa, Kobayashi, Okihatchi, inagaki.
My father was an exhibit designer for the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He got me access to the arms and armor dept and I got to look at many priceless katanas from the 16th and 17th century.
I went on to immediately study kendo and became more interested in actual kenjutsu. And continued to study for 35 years. The katana is a piece of art as well as a fighting sword.
What led you into stunt work and the film industry?
I have studied martial arts since the age of 8, starting with Aikijutsu and then Seido karate, Kendo, Northern Eagle claw, kung Fu, Kenjutsu and a number of other arts.
I loved movies. My heroes were Buster Keaton, Gene Kelly, Toshirō Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Kirk Douglas, Bruce Lee, Sammo Hung, Sylvester Stallone, Chuck Norris.
I started modifying my martial arts for how they did it in movies. Wider punches and kicks, reactions etc. By 15, I knew I wanted to be a stuntperson and do action in movies.
What advice would you give to the next generation of stunt performers and fight coordinators? Are there any rising talents you would like to mention?
My advice now would be diversified. Our industry is changing because the advent of AI action design has to push the boundaries of showing audiences why human action will always have more thought and be more exciting because of stunt performers’ physical skills and creative, safely designed risk-taking, and the sheer bravery of performers.
The Karate Kid was your first job in 1984. Do you remember any memorable moments from that set?
The Karate Kid was my first experience/ job in Hollywood. It was a bucket list adventure even though I was only 16. I went to school with John Avildsens son Anthony. He told me I had to be in his dad’s next picture. I met his father and had an impromptu audition where I threw a bunch of spining kicks and punches. He said yep, I’ll put you in the movie. They wound up calling me a month later and said,” Get out to California we have a part for you. This call was the afternoon before Christmas Eve. I got a flight first thing in the morning. And right after being in CA for Christmas and New Years, I was on set.
I was going to be the first character to fight Ralph Macchio at the end of the tournament. I lost part because I was only 16 and had no adult guardian. The 2nd AD, Randy Sabusawa, stood in as my adult guardian, and I was put back in to fight Cobra Kai.
I had to go see Pat Johnson, the fight choreographer/stunt coordinator. He was very gracious and serious, and after I told him who my instructors were, he allowed me to do fights in the film.
It was an amazing experience and I went at full throttle but was careful and knew it was choreography. Everyone was very kind, especially Pat Morite, who took a shine on me with my NY accent and would constantly joke with me on set. Really incredible experience.
What are your thoughts on the Cobra Kai series and the new Karate Kid: Legends film that brings together Ralph Macchio and Jackie Chan?
Cobra Kai is great. It really captures the feel of original movies while updating them for new audiences.
You worked during the peak of action cinema in the 1990s with actors like Olivier Gruner, Mark Dacascos, and Gary Daniels. Who stood out to you the most, and why?
There were a lot of great action guys in the 90s and late 80s. Obviously Stallone and Schwarzenegger.
Mark Dacascos was great and super talented (still is!!). I got to fight him in 1996’s Drive movie Doubling the villain. Great experience.
Gary Daniels was also great. He kicked me 8 ft across a room, sending me into a filing cabinet! Took me a minute to get up. Gary had great movement and explosive energy.
Of course, all the HK stars are Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao, Donnie Yen, Jet Li.
You worked on the TV series Martial Law starring Sammo Hung. How was that experience different from other productions?
I loved working on Martial Law. Sammo was one of my heroes and, in person, he didn’t disappoint. I got thrown in to a kind of audition to fight Sammo. There were 4 HK stuntpeople who were all pseudo choreographing. They changed 5 times. I was standing in front of Sammo and did the heart-pounding gesture with my hand. He laughed and we started fighting. I passed.
He liked me and I wound up fighting him 7 times and Louis Mandylor once. Great bucket list experience. Sammo was very kind and protective of his American stunt guy regulars, which included Clay Barbar, JJ Perry, Hiro Koda, Myself and 2 or 3 others.
I have heard that some fight scenes in The Debt Collectors ended up longer than originally scripted. Can you talk about that?
Debt Collectors was a great job. It was a crazy schedule, and we had a number of big mishaps in production. Two fights wound up being longer. One with shooting time and one with adding more and more phrases. Scott said to me, he wanted to do an homage to the fight in THEY LIVE. Roddy Piper and Keith David would turn into Scott Adkins and Louis Mandylor.
Scott wanted to choreo that one with me So we went into the gym for a week and choreod for 6 or 7 hours every day. We kept adding phrases. It would end up being slightly longer than the original THEY LIVE fight!!
Louis, being a phenomenal martial artist and boxer, brought the fire which shocked and delighted Scott, who had never done a fight scene with him. They went nuts and the rest is Debt Collectors’ history.
The other fight that was longer was the boxing fight with W Aaron Toney. I called Aaron to do the fight. At first, he was hesitant, and I pushed and pushed for him to do it. Production wanted a big looking hispanic boxer, but I fought tooth and nail for Aaron. He did a brilliant job fighting Louis then Scott. We took extra time shooting the fight because it was going so well. Great fun experience.
In 2024, you worked with Jean-Claude Van Damme on Darkness of Man. What was it like collaborating with such an iconic action star?
Darkness of Man is another bucket list experience. I got a call requesting me for a meeting with Director James Cullen Bressack, who had seen the stuff I had done with Scott Adkins. James hired me and I proceeded to drive him nuts by showing up to the production office all the time unannounced to talk about fights.
I’d been spoiled by working closely with Director Jesse V Johnson for over two decades and Jesse always gave me an insane amount of leeway to talk about ideas and go in several different directions creatively until we found what we wanted for the final action. It was a bad comedy because James and I were brand new to each other. But we wound up jelling when I stood by James’s side and tried to help consistently.
Meeting and working with JCVD was a bucket list experience. We wound up getting along extremely well and understood each other. It was very easy working with him and he trusted me. I love JC to death. He’s a great icon and nice guy!!! Getting to choreograph fights for him was a dream come true.
You know Jesse V. Johnson for over 20 years. How did you first meet, and which project together stands out the most?
Working with and being close friends with Jesse Johnson for over 25 years is something I cherish. It’s rare to have a truly close friend that you can work with every day. We have a great and unique working relationship. Jesse affords me an insane amount of leeway to create fights and action sequences. None of it is easy, but it’s always an absolute pleasure going to work every day.
I respect Jesse’s knowledge and creativity beyond measure. We’ve been on adventures around the world worthy of being compared to Sean Connery and Michael Cain in John Huston’s film THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING. Luckily, we are both still in one piece to do a few more.
Jesse was the one who suggested a direct action feature he would produce. He went to Ehud Bleighberg, who graciously said yes. And the result is MEXICALI.
Where does your vision for action sequences come from? Do you draw inspiration from specific references, or do you keep a notebook of ideas?
I get ideas for choreography from different parts of my mind. I’ve even spent an evening pushing ideas and flooding my mind and dreaming action scenarios in my sleep. I do research if necessary for the minute details to be right. I make it a point to never copy choreography.
My ideas have to be my own. I think action and fights should always tell a story the audience can follow. I want to just slap moves together. Even if they’re cool, they have to have a reason.
I will sometimes do storyboards or take notes on what I want the overall story and stylistic look to be. I love choreographing. It’s a challenge, and you always have to be open to throwing away your 4 first ideas.
Today, stunt coordinators are often stepping into directing roles. Teams like 87Eleven directed John Wick, Sam Hargrave directed Extraction, and J.J. Perry directed Day Shift and The Killer’s Game. What do you think has changed in the industry?
I think the industry has changed in that producers finally had to recognize that stunt coordinators live and breathe action and have expanded their knowledge 10-fold with understanding of crafting an entire movie w style and action that’s told as an important thruline, not something that’s added to 4 or 5 scenes.
Chad, JJ, Sam, David have all proved that their cumulative knowledge makes them perfect directors of a whole action film because they’ve lived their jobs.
You have worked on more than 120 projects. Which one stands out the most in your career?
Ohh, that’s a hard question. I guess I’d have to split it between three.
Savage Dog because it was my first film with Scott, and I was determined to make him happy with the final result. I’m proud of that one because I stuck to my guns on certain story points in the fights, which the audience got and appreciated. I loved working with Scott.
Avengement was a special movie where everything just came together and had a flow. Dan Styles was a gracious coordinator, letting me come in and choreograph and move around and play. I had a lot of fun with Scott on that film and I loved being in London. Jesse and I had a lot of fun. It was a great time.
I have to say Mexicali! It was a great fever-pitched working environment. I loved my cast. They were amazing. Getting to work with Bren Foster and direct him was an absolute pleasure. It made us closer as friends, and he put on an absolutely brilliant, nuanced performance. He and Tania Raymonde were magic together and made the movie what it is.
Plutarco Haza was amazing and a true honor to work with. Kris Van Damme did an amazing job playing a brooding reactionary character who was the only guy who figured out how everything would end. Sorry, I couldn’t just limit it to one experience.
Was it challenging to direct and choreograph the fight scenes for Mexicali at the same time?
Directing and choreographing wasn’t difficult for me. I had an amazing stunt team who worked tirelessly. When you have Bren Foster, it’s easier because he can do anything. He directs, he choreographs, so I promised I’d have everything ready with full fights for him to look at on arrival. Bren went through them and made a lot of smart changes and improvements.
Coming up with real techniques from different disciplines to counter the different fighters. It was Soo much fun working with Bren every day. It all culminated in getting as much action as we did jam into the movie.
What can audiences expect from Mexicali?
I joke, but I’m serious. The audience can expect a solid love story like the Notebook w kicks punches and gunbattles thrown in. Bren and Tania are amazing together, creating a believable love story in the middle of the dramatic chaos and action that ensues. The audience will get an old-school roller coaster ride from beginning to end that I hope they truly enjoy.
What are your three favorite martial arts films of all time?
My three favorite martial arts films:
- Drunken master II. Jackie Chan and Ken Lo’s end fight is epic.
- Samurai: the story of Miyamoto Musashi. Toshiro Mifune gives a masterful performance.
- Richard Lester’s The Three Musketeers. Ahead of its time in depicting European swordsmanship. The rapier fights are serious and brutal.
What are your two favorite fight scenes in film history?
Not an easy one. I’ll say the fight in The Quiet Man between John Wayne and Victor McLaughlin and Drunken Master II the end fight Between Jackie Chan and Ken Lo.
Which three recent action movies would you recommend watching?
Guillermo Del Toro’s Frankenstein, Caught Stealing, Sisu 2.
