The way of the Wooden Man

Years ago I made a training video - a how-to-beat-people-up video, and this is taken from it. The whole thing lasted an hour, and went through the wooden man form of Wing Chun kung fu in great detail, showing how each movement was used. Each lesson was in the form of a flash-back sequence when the hero (Master Paul O'Neal) taught his pupil (the man pictured on the front of the newspaper) who has now been murdered by baddies.

You see here the opening titles warm-up sequence (the producer insisted I put the cut-aways to the pictures with sub-titles explaining their significance, which I think spoils the rhythm of the editing a bit), and then the main fight sequence in which the villains are dealt with. Right at the end I've left in one or two of the slow-motion illustrations that followed it.

I remember thinking that I might have been the only person in the world who could have made this video. Required were an ability to write scripts, direct, light, operate cameras, do the stills photography, record and mix sound, edit very fast (I had a day and a half on the machine to cut the whole thing), and a familiarity with Newcastle, Wing Chun kung fu, and an ability to understand Geordie accents.

The main location you see here is the famous "Get Carter" car park in Gateshead, used in the film (the original, with Michael Caine) - a very ugly but also very cinematic building. We added one line from the film, but Paul (who did a fine acting job) took many takes to get it right.

The fight was shot in cold windy weather, in a few hours, using amateurs and no rehearsals, with a crew of one (me).

I ended up making not a penny from this video, as the producer who was to pay me disappeared to Switzerland.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• kung
• fu
• wing
• chun
• ving
• tsun
• fight
• get
• carter
• sequence
• video
• training
• wooden
• man
• shaolin
• form
• technique
• punch
• kick

[frizzb72]

i like to thank the person who put this up on you tube as i train under sifu o neil and hav 'nt had a chance to watch this due to the fact that it was on video(dvds only 4 me lol)

[lindybeige]

He's still teaching? I haven't seen him for years.

[1971GetCarter]

Top video, top location.

[lindybeige]

Thanks. Top moniker.

Still only has two stars, though :-(

[lindybeige]

Now three stars! The trend is upward!

[carlislewingchun]

excellent

[1970mjk]

when you look at other wing chun video` this should be 5 star.

[44SCB]

By wooden man do you mean Pinocchio as a grown up. lol

[PaulConway1973]

Pure tallent!

[72spen]

haha, I was in this and it was freezing at the top of that car park

[scottypaul266]

paul still teaching is he in the uk? i would like to learn more from him after a 20year break lol

[4444thesaint]

Those are real techniques dudes. I have used them quite a few times to save my bacon. The way of the wing chun gung is strong.....