The advent of YouTube and social media has enabled an entire generation of action filmmakers to launch their pet projects in a way that wouldn’t have been possible just a decade ago. One such indie filmmaker is Bao Tran, a protege of the legendary Corey Yuen, who dropped his hard-hitting short film “The Challenger”, on YouTube in 2015. Fast-forward three years, and the project for which “The Challenger” served as the foundation, “The Paper Tigers”, is set to roll hopefully soon, they recently launched a Kickstarter campaign showing they’re serious, now all they need is a little cash!
The official synopsis of “The Paper Tigers” positions the film as something audiences would see from the likes of Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung in their primes, as you can see below:
“A dead-beat dad, a fat insurance scammer and an MMA coach find themselves in the middle of a gang war when they must avenge their kung fu master’s death but first…they need to call in sick at their 9-to-5’s. A Kung Fu indie feature film about three guys who are one kick away from pulling their hamstrings. This one’s for the underdogs.”
“The Paper Tigers” previously debuted preliminary footage to investors at Cannes Film Festival, and is keenly seeking additional funds to complete the film. Some of the early footage can be seen in the official teaser for “The Paper Tigers”, which features such familiar faces to martial arts fans as Roger Yuan of “Shanghai Noon” and Ken Quitugua of “Unlucky Stars” (returning from “The Challenger” proof-of-concept). Check out the following video for a glimpse of what “The Paper Tigers” has in store!
“The Paper Tigers” aims to start shooting in 2019. Stay tuned for more info on the project as it arrives, and be sure to pay a visit to the film’s Kickstarter page! Intrigued and excited to see what “The Paper Tigers” has in store; what are a couple of memorable indie martial arts movies for you? Let us know in the comments below; Like, share and join in the conversation on Facebook and follow us on Twitter & Instagram. (Whatever your favourite animal combat style is, Tiger, Crane, Monkey…click on through…find YOUR FUsion!)
