Wednesday, September 6, 2017

Brahim Achabbakhe Interview!! Boyka: Undisputed 4 Chat! A Dan's Movie Report Exclusive



A few years back I had the opportunity to discuss at length with Brahim his filming projects, dreams, and goals. Fast forward to 2017, Brahim is constantly working, striving to better himself, and chats briefly about his work on the hot new Scott Adkins film, 'Boyka: Undisputed'. Take a verbal roundhouse kick to the back of the head with Brahim--- 3-2-1-Go!!!

http://dansmoviereport.blogspot.com/2014/08/actor-brahim-achabbakhe-interview.html

Boyka Review!  http://dansmoviereport.blogspot.com/2017/08/boyka-undisputed-4-2017-netflix-review.html




DMR: Really enjoyed Boyka, how did you get the Role of Igor, what was the casting process like, how long before you started filming after you were cast?


BA: There was no casting process really. Isaac, Tim and Scott knew me from 'Ninja: Shadow of a Tear'. I got cast 2 weeks before flying to Bulgaria to shoot the film. 

DMR: Chat about your character Igor, what motivates him?



BA: I think what motivates Igor is to stay undefeated. When Boyka shows up, it's the ultimate test for him to prove he is the undisputed champion.



DMR: How long did you train with Scott prior to the start of principle photography, did you work out some new moves?


BA: I trained 2 times with Scott prior to shooting our fight scene. I honestly did not need to think about any moves or trying to change anything because Tim Man the choreographer is amazing at his job, so I followed whatever ideas he came up with.


DMR: How many days were you on set, and what did you do in Bulgaria on your downtime?


BA: I was on set for an entire month. I had 15 shooting days and the rest was downtime, which I used to visit a bit Sofia (Bulgaria) and also hit the gym to stay in shape as much as possible.
Boyka: Undisputed 4






DMR: Have you heard talk of another Boyka or is that it?


BA: Not that I hear of. For now, it's more about supporting this one, and making sure it's making a profit.



DMR: I know you worked on several Jackie Chan projects. Chat a bit about your involvement in Bleeding Steel.


BA: I worked for Jackie Chan stunt team for 7 months on that project. It was shot between Australia, Taiwan and China. 






DMR: How do you keep your action training fresh, describe some of your techniques to keep your workout from being boring?


BA: What I do is I train 6 months in a gym doing weights and 6 months outside just doing body weight. It's a good way to shock your body by doing something different. Also when it comes to martial arts, I like to study different styles so I always try to find something new to learn.



DMR: Wrapping up, what are some of the new projects you have working for 2018?



BA: I just completed working in New Zealand on a project called 'The Legend of Monkey'. It's a Netflix TV show, that I choreographed all the fight scenes. I have a Few other projects I can't talk about yet, but you will see in a near future. Thank you Danny. for the interview


DMR: Thanks Brahim, for taking time out of your busy schedule.




Monday, September 4, 2017

Beyond Return (2017) Movie Review: A Dan's Movie Report Exclusive!!!

Above Photo: Montage shot from Official Facebook Page of Beyond Return

From the creative mind of Tanja Keller comes this 6 minute blast of insanity. Tanja is a top flight stunt woman, and worked with Ann Truong on Hard Target 2! Tanja has a sultry look, skills and the cool, Imma gonna kick your ass look on her face. Unlike some other ladies, who have the facial scowl she can def back it up with kicks and fists!

Basically things get out of hand in a bar, and Tanja made sure she used her hands and other implements to crush the bad guys!. It is nice to see a stunt person blast out not only with her face out in front of the camera, but her skill behind it. She tells me this is her first foray into film making and I must say, what a hard ride it is. Her character Ann, is trying to get out of the gang that her boyfriend Dave (Ron Smoorenburg) is in. Many thugs and many fists fly. Ron lends is expertise in action and acting and pushes this film up a notch in intensity.

Tanja basically did most all herself directing, editing producing etc... She has excellent action knowledge, and her ideas with camera and lighting are pretty cool. Sound is not quite as crisp, but works decently for what she was trying to accomplish, and will get better with practice on next project. The camera and lighting was done by Andrew Strobridge.

Overall this film is a solid 7.5 out of 10, an excellent first effort. I can say this, Tanja, no longer in the shadows! Step out in the limelight!

Watch the entire film in 4k! Boom! Tanja will kick your ass in Hi Def!

Check out the official Facebook Page @ https://www.facebook.com/beyondreturnfilm/
Tanja IMDB:  http://www.imdb.com/name/nm6854352/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1


Sunday, September 3, 2017

Director Roel Reiné Exclusive Interview! Marvel's Inhumans Chat! IMAX!



Greetings valued readers of Dan's Movie Report, Executive Producer and Inhuman's IMAX director Roel Reiné chats exclusively about the series! ABC Television will release the series beginning September 29th . The eight episode series will include all of the characters in the Inhuman's Universe. Roel directed the first two episodes, shot in Hawaii, exclusively on the new Alexa 65MM 4k IMAX cameras. As usual, my interviews and film reviews contain no plot spoilers, so feel free to enjoy at your leisure.

DMR: I saw you were one of the Executive Producers and directed the first two IMAX episodes, how involved were you with the casting of the series including the selection of Black Bolt?

RR; What happens is you throw some names on a piece of paper as a director, and then you present them to Marvel and to ABC. Then Marvel and ABC does the same thing. They pick out names. We bring the two lists together, and start seeing if they are available, if they desire to do the project. It is a collaboration, but in the end it is actually Marvel and ABC that makes the decision about the lead actors. I was really happy with that. I think the guys we got, all of them are fantastic actors. I was really happy with all the choices. With some castings I am in the room, some castings are just done with Marvel and ABC.

Above: IMDB poster for Inhumans!


DMR: Chat about the series, premiere date and number of episodes.

RR: Yes the premiere is Friday September 1st in IMAX, but only the two episodes a two week window. (Ed Note- the first two episodes air in the IMAX like a movie) The Inhumans premieres on ABC Friday September 29th and the first season is eight episodes.

DMR: Chat about Serinda Swan and her casting, what was the process of selecting her for the killer role of Medusa?

RR: No we really liked her, we all (ABC & Marvel) really wanted her. We had to figure out her schedule because she is very busy. Once we worked out the schedule we had her on board, it was a smooth process.

DMR: Not wanting to spoil the plot but want your view on Serinda's character Medusa, do you see her as a crazy character or seething underneath character?

RR: Both actually, I think all characters in Inhumans are powerful, intriguing, and they all have to discover who they really are themselves and what their place is in the Inhuman's World. They all have to figure out the problems they have with Maximus. All the characters are strong in discovering themselves during their journey.

DMR: hat about the story is it one of those series that if you miss an episode then watch the next one, does it matter?

RR: Well the story in Inhumans is a progression, it plays out like one big story, so it is best to view all the episodes in order to completely follow the story. The Inhumans is a really intense emotional drama, for the whole eight episodes. (Ed Note-yes the first two on IMAX have much dialogue to set up the characterizations.) In my view it is different from a regular super hero show where there is like a problem, they try to find a solution, then they kick some ass. Inhumans is different, the series has more structure, more art and emotion, then any other comic book to TV series I have seen.

DMR: I am glad you said that, if the audience knows going in they know what to look for. Chat about if you like and or watch any other Marvel show in Netflix or in the cinemas.

I am really looking forward to The Defenders (Ed Note, I held the interview, in order to wait for the IMAX premiere of Inhumans.) The trailer looks really amazing, and all those characters together. In the cinemas I am a big fan of Iron Man. Especially the way he was portrayed by Robert Downey JR. I am a big fan of Guardians of the Galaxy, really fun film. For this year I really enjoyed Logan. The reason for that is it was very emotional. Really good characters, good story, and went full on. I also liked the fact that the CG was not that heavy. This allowed me to just enjoy the characters.

DMR: Chat about what advice you would have given your younger self when starting out in the business, and your learning process.

RR: I took a path I am really proud of, sometimes it has hurt my career. I made this really cool movie from Holland where I am from, and it won me a lot of awards, and Lionsgate picked it up. Then I went to America. I asked my agents to push, Because I believe in the 10,000 hour rule, if you want to become proficient at something you must work at it for 10,000 hours. A lot of European directors fall into that trap to wait for this one movie, that will make their career, that will be big and important. I did not want to do that, I have seen colleagues of mine wait 6 yrs, make that one movie and if it is not a commercial success be in what I term as director's jail, cannot make another film. I told my agents I want to work, to do anything that comes in front of me. I want to do pre-quels sequels, straight to video, I just want to shoot and learn think that made me, at least what I think a good director, because I did 18 American films. Shooting those 18 American films, that made me good enough to do this movie in Holland called Admiral. That movie turned it all around, because I took everything I learned and put it all in practice. That film, eventually got me into Black Sails and eventually now into Inhumans.

DMR: Wrapping up the interview please give advice for young directors.

RR: My advice for young directors now is they need to be directing. When I was young there were no Iphones, or small inexpensive devices to shoot movies, now it is easy. I had to shoot on film, I did not have the ease and technique to do what younger people can do now. You can get a very cheap camera, have nice editing software on your laptop, then you can make movies, nobody is stopping you from making them. I see a lot of young directors trying to raise money for a fucking feature and they are doing it for years. Other people are just getting out of their home and just start filming, and they are the ones who are now doing Star Wars (Ed Note, yes look at director credits on new Star Wars film). I think young directors should get off their ass and start making films, with no budget, cool concept, cool script, start shooting for the 10,000 hours so they can become good.

Thanks Roel, for another incredible interview. Very informative and offering your unique perspective on directing. Watch for Inhumans on ABC Friday, September 29th! As always, do not share news from other sites, make your own! Go hard and exclusive with Dan's Movie Report! 

Check out my 2nd exclusive interview with Roel for Hard Target 2 on The Action Elite!  http://theactionelite.com/2017/08/roel-reine-hard-target-2-interview/