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An Interview with Troy Sandford, Director of The Monk and the Samurai

by Mike Haberfelner

December 2022

Films directed by Troy Sandford on (re)Search my Trash

 

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Your new movie The Monk and the Samurai - in a few words, what is it about?

 

It is the battle within that all men must face sooner or later. There is no stopping the inevitable chaos that is life, but we can choose how to face it.

 

From what I know, The Monk and the Samurai is based on an actual martial arts legend - so what can you tell us about your source material, how did you happen upon it, and how close did you stick to the legend?

 

In truth it is an original legend. In many forms across many Asian cultures comes the old story of a warrior, generally in Asian culture whom approaches a wise old hermit or monk pleading with him to share his mastery over self control in order to reach a higher state of being as the physical martial way is limited realised only in our later lives as practitioners of the arts. This in itself was the seed to which our story was birthed. From there my main character the Samurai grew as each paragraph unfolded he became depressed, enraged, he fell in love, he won great victories and rose above the status of the emperor himself, he lost his best friends and built his own army, he defeated not one but many dragons, it seemed as though the words flowed there wasn’t enough that I could conjure as a writer to break his spirit - I tried, but even I, the writer, was unable to break the Samurai. He himself allowed the story to unfold and in that I can say it is rather original or so I felt as I wrote it/him.

 

Other sources of inspiration when writing The Monk and the Samurai?

 

My teacher, Keith Blackburn, who passed away and left me with the lesson that we are our own masters after all. My team, they don’t give up - the real ones, the tough bastards, they are all Samurai and few of them monks. There’s always a little Quentin Tarantino in anything I shoot or edit, even the way I display my titles or choose them. Every mountain I’ve climbed all over China, every traditional painting of any dragon, every teacher I’ve ever learned from, there’s a bit of all of it deep within this story. I told my wife long ago when I outlive her I will build a statue of her in our garden. I am a large fan of Jocko Willink’s writing style - his book Mikey and the Dragons was a major influence and helped push me to write my first book in the same way. The Monk and the Samurai was intended to be a volume of 6 short poems that can be read to children before bed or enjoyed by martial artists of any age containing life’s lessons told through simple narrative. My team told me they enjoyed The Monk and the Samurai too much and that it must be turned into a short film, so here we are.

 

Do talk about The Monk and the Samurai's very specific, stylized look for a bit!

 

The original intent was for it to be a book without moving images. I’m a huge fan of Diablo and we took the Diablo 3 cinematic trailers for their character introductions as well as the beginning of Kung Fu Panda 3. We felt by mixing them and shooting for that similar look would fit our Asian setting. I wanted something that looked like paper as it was intended to be a book at first and I felt if the viewer was seeing still images mixed in with ink that was coming to life at times, they would submit to the calm and soothing memories of what it was like to be a child and have a story read to them. Vladimir Ershov and Hristofor Yedigarov, two of our chief artists and editors, pushed it to be what it finally is, they took my vision and made it better because that's what we do, make each other better - also a thene which is deep within our story itself.

 

We are in an exciting time where visual and audible media reach more people than the written word ever can or ever has. I believe the delivery can be enhanced by engaging the individual psychologically and creating a moving picture book. This fantastically creative way allowed me to still ‘write my first book’ without completely loosing it to film yet still achieve a bridge between the two mediums.

 

What can you tell us about the action in your movie, and how was it achieved?

 

The action was simple, my guys dressed up punched, sliced and cut at each other. We filmed the bts live for our Instagram viewers for one of the shoots, so if you logged on at that moment you would have seen everything. Usually things were achieved in one or two takes. We didn’t put much care or effort into it, the visuals were shot usually In front of a green screen in our studio and we rushed at times because this was a 0 dollar budget product and we made it in our spare time between actual projects and studio responsibilities - thank god for our mighty studio executive and mentor John Dietz for trusting us that we are either learning, creating or using studio hours wisely. Largely it was achieved on his supportive good will and masterful leadership standards.

 

A few words about your overall directorial approach to your story at hand?

 

What’s important for me is that when I read the story out to my team they all stood quietly and were engaged from the beginning until the end, then I tried it on a few others. From there I knew it can impact someone somewhere if my trusted and brutally honest friends were entertained, this was before any moving images were considered or a final art style.

 

As I wrote the bedtime story there were some moments and images I simply could not do with out. Images of the Samurai dragging a demon by the next to his final moments. Facing armies, the image of his father holding him after not seeing him for some 20+ years. I let the emotion guide my visuals - regarding the physicality of the Samurai, that too was important. He has to be sure of himself, well balanced, his movements must be precise and they must act as a dichotomy to his undecided and shaken spirit.

 

Do talk about The Monk and the Samurai's key cast, and why exactly these people?

 

All of the moving figures in the film are all of my guys, and for me there is no one more important than the next. We all performed, we all shot, most of us edited, I allowed my guys to even take complete direction and control over visual FX. They are all my stars and key cast and since the beginning of our operations I have always instructed that being in front of the camera doesn’t make you central to any project, understanding as much of every department makes you key. However the voice-over artists behind the scenes in this volume is our very own bastard John Shang. He’s also the Samurai throughout various moments of the film as well as the demon Oni who strikes down the mother haha - so he truly is at the very center of this project in many ways.

 

What can you tell us about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere?

 

We’re martial artists, we laugh louder than anyone else - we swear more than sailors and we listen to rap music whilst we swing swords and shoot through sequences. We were stripping down in the middle of the studio and suiting up like demons and samurais. We were firing bows and arrows and dragging each other around by the neck. We are a bunch of foreigners in Beijing working in a China Hollywood studio whereby 90% of our staff are Chinese. They love the way we work, there’s always a huge support from that end and we don’t stop having fun with them. I feel guilty saying so but perhaps we are over-privileged and too free, perhaps we create that energy and therefore deserve it - who knows… That is our life and we are so fortunate for it all, huge thanks again to Mr. Dietz our mentor and fearless leader.

 

The $64-question of course, where can The Monk and the Samurai be seen?

 

For now, it’s in film festival submission. We will withhold it for sometime until it wins a few awards - if we don’t sell it to an online platform we’ll simply upload it to our YouTube channel Troys Team! Stay tuned!

 

Anything you can tell us about audience and critical reception of The Monk and the Samurai?

 

So far so good, the reviews are just starting to come in. For the most part the language was targeted for ageing children, teens as well as martial art fans or even grown men and women facing their own struggles.

 

I am always on the lookout for good hard honest feedback, we will repost any such review good or bad on our platforms, all feedback is good feedback! I’m anxious and excited to see how our short does against competitors around the globe.

 

Any future projects you'd like to share?

 

We’re always working on new things. This is volume one with five more short martial art stories on the way set in different universes. We shall be launching our online training courses for all things martial arts this coming year.

 

As I have read, you have come into filmmaking via martial arts - so do talk about your path for a bit!

 

I was certainly a young actor in Sydney, Australia before becoming a full time martial artist. I did however shoot my first feature length skateboard film before leaving high school. This gave birth to my interest in capturing live action. Story telling was also something deep within my interests. When I began training martial arts shortly after leaving high school, I felt combining everything was the sweet spot for me. I submitted to a famous film school in Australia and was turned down - I decided to use my body whilst I was young and travel Asia mastering my martial art. Based in Beijing, China I have been in close proximity to local martial art epic films, and my filmmaking path led me to Mr. Dietz, our studio CEO. During this time I developed my action team. We now work for him side by side as well as develop our own projects simply out of the love for storytelling. We maintain the martial arts as our key identity and way of life. We are so very fortunate and grateful.

 

What can you tell us about your filmwork prior to The Monk and the Samurai?

 

My resume can be found on IMDb. I did some low key commercials in Australia, left for China. Focused mostly on my training and hopped onto set here and there. I surgically aimed for the bigger title projects to ensure I could keep my training focused. I’ve produced and directed car commercials, won some film awards here and there in other people's projects as well as our own. I’ve built many performers in China and assisted them in developing their careers as well as running China's only standing foreign action team. We’ve worked on titles such as Kung Fury 2, Ip Man 4 as well as various Jackie Chan projects etc. - some of my guys have starred in or taken part in/performed action in some of China’s highest grossing films of all time. For me, I’m not as established in front of the camera as my guys are - I just take the simple pleasure in being a part of their stories and I try my best to work hard for them and bring new projects or opportunities to the table so as to enrich our lives. I try to work hard to give my boss back more than he gives or has ever given me - I still fail daily as he has given us so much, but I never give up and I never will.

 

You of course also have to talk about your company, Troy's Team, and the philosophy behind it!

 

All credit to god, no glory to us. The martial arts is our journey with no end. Come get some.

 

How would you describe yourself as a director?

 

A jack of all trades, master of nothing.

 

Filmmakers who inspire you?

 

Tarantino, my boss John Dietz, my right hand man Vladamir Ershov, James Cameron, George Lucas, Yuen Woo-Ping, Ryan Reynolds, Ridley Scott, Chad Staheleski, Robert Rodriguez, Chris Nolan, Spielberg, Kubrick, Walt Disney is a HUGE influence, Bruce Lee, Jet Li.

 

Your favourite movies?

 

Gosh, it’s so difficult. Gladiator, Saving Private Ryan, The Matrix, Beauty and the Beast, My Sweet November, Django Unchained, Kill Bill, Aliens, Star Wars (ALL OF THEM, although I have my own critique, I still know when to bend the knee and they all deserve respect), Predator, Enter the Dragon, Lord of the Rings, Kiss of the Dragon, La Professional, the list goes on. I like character films, movies that are about people.

 

... and of course, films you really deplore?

 

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USA  amazon.com

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Senseless, grotesque, overly sexualised and vulgar films with little to no meaning which supply immediate gratification and null the senses, films which fail to expand the human condition or lift it up.

 

Your/your movie's website, social media, whatever else?

 

Find us on YouTube TroysTeam or Instagram @troysteam

 

Anything else you're dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask?

 

Not at all sir, I hope you don’t mind my extensive answers.

 

Thanks for the interview!

 

© by Mike Haberfelner


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Thanks for watching !!!



 

 

In times of uncertainty of a possible zombie outbreak, a woman has to decide between two men - only one of them's one of the undead.

 

There's No Such Thing as Zombies
starring
Luana Ribeira, Rudy Barrow and Rami Hilmi
special appearances by
Debra Lamb and Lynn Lowry

 

directed by
Eddie Bammeke

written by
Michael Haberfelner

produced by
Michael Haberfelner, Luana Ribeira and Eddie Bammeke

 

now streaming at

Amazon

Amazon UK

Vimeo

 

 

 

Robots and rats,
demons and potholes,
cuddly toys and
shopping mall Santas,
love and death and everything in between,
Tales to Chill
Your Bones to

is all of that.

 

Tales to Chill
Your Bones to
-
a collection of short stories and mini-plays
ranging from the horrific to the darkly humourous,
from the post-apocalyptic
to the weirdly romantic,
tales that will give you a chill and maybe a chuckle, all thought up by
the twisted mind of
screenwriter and film reviewer
Michael Haberfelner.

 

Tales to Chill
Your Bones to

the new anthology by
Michael Haberfelner

 

Out now from
Amazon!!!