Cinematic Enlightenment By Scott Shaw

By Scott Shaw

When I discuss filmmaking, and particularly Zen Filmmaking, I often reference the term, Cinematic Enlightenment. From this, I often receive the question, “What is Cinematic Enlightenment?” I believe for the true filmmaker they already know the answer to that question. But, for the novice or the non-filmmaker, they wonder what I am speaking about. To explain…

As a filmmaker, you are constantly attempting to capture that perfect image. The ideal representation of what you are seeing with your eyes. You want to bring what you are physically viewing, via the pathway of your mind, and capture it in a filming format that then perfectly presents that image to the viewer. This is a process of body, mind, and camera continuum. Much of the time these elements do not come to together to find a perfect harmony. Yes, as a filmmaker, you may adequately capture the image. But, it is only in those moments of interwoven camera, body, and mind perfection that the image is captured perfectly.

For many, in fact most, they do not understand that filmmaking is based in philosophy. They see it simply as a means of entertainment. Thus, a movie is just something that they like or they do not like. Some may even understand that filmmaking is an art form. Most, however, do not comprehend that true, actualized filmmaking is based in the unique philosophy of the individual filmmaker. As each true filmmaker possesses (or at least should possess) their own unique philosophy, this means that they interpret the filmmaking process by their own set of standards and guidelines. Thus, they seek a particular outcome for each scene that they hope to capture with a camera.

Just as in Zen Buddhism we learn that Satori (instantaneous enlightenment) happens in the mind of the individual in a moment of perfect realization, this is the same with Cinematic Enlightenment. It is the perfect combination of combining what the eyes see, with what the mind visualized the scene to be, and then perfectly capturing that scene and ultimately projecting it onto the screen. Thus, Cinematic Enlightenment is the filmmaker finding instantaneous perfection, realized in their own mind, via the medium of eye, camera, and mind coordination.

To conclude, just as it is understood in Zen Buddhism, there is no absolute pathway to achieving Nirvana and there is no one Enlightenment.  Enlightenment is realized by the individual in their own unique manner. Thus, there is no school for Cinematic Enlightenment and there are no techniques one has to practice to realize it. It is a natural process that the true filmmaker is allowed to recognize when they let go of their physical aspirations, they remove desire from the filmmaking equation, and they allow their body, mind, eyes, and the camera to form a cohesive unit that establishes a perfect reality that is allowed to harness an image, if only for a moment, and then project that image onto a screen. From this, perfect realization of the outside world blended in coordination with the internal world of the mind’s eye is realized and Cinematic Enlightenment is experienced.

Copyright © 2018

Cinematic Enlightenment @ Scott Shaw.com

Scott Shaw Zen Filmmaking 

Robert Z’Dar: End of an Era By Scott Shaw

 

Here is an article that I wrote about the passing of Robert Z’Dar back in 2015 that you may find interesting. This article can also be found in my book, Zen Filmmaking 2: Further Writings on the Cinematic Arts.

By Scott Shaw

Sadly, my Zen Filmmaking brother, the Jaw of Cinema, Robert Z’Dar passed away at the age of sixty-four.

I first met Z-Man, (as we came to call him), on the set of Samurai Cop. It was a strange meeting in that I knew him from A-films like Tango and Cash but was surprised to find him on this No-Budget set.

Samurai Cop was a film created by Amir Shervan. Shervan operated out of a junky, cluttered house on Beverly Blvd. in East Hollywood. He had called me in on the film, when I was first getting into the industry, because he didn’t like the swordplay in his film and wanted me to make the samurai work look more realistic. He also offered me a roll in the film, as well. The cast was all very nice.

The cinematographer on the film was a man named, Peter Palian. Previously, Palian had been the personal cameraman for the Shah of Iran. But, as history tells us, the Shah was deposed. Peter was one of those interesting people in that he always wore a leather sport coat, a dress shirt with an ascot tie perfectly tucked into his shirt. He had a perfectly trimmed goatee and smoked a pipe. I would periodically bump into him around Hollywood. Nice guy.

On the first day I was on the set, instead of filming we went and had lunch at a burger joint. There is where Z-Man and I sat down and talked. Immediately, I understood he was a great guy!

The problem was, at least in terms of the film, we ate instead of filmed. It was getting late. By the time we got up to steal the hilltop location in Silver Lake, we were losing the light. As the movie was shot on 16mm film, this was problematic. Though I tired to guide Z’Dar in proper samurai sword usage, there wasn’t time. Post that, I realized the film was just too clusterfuck for me to be a part of and I didn’t return.

Soon after that, Z-Man and I worked together on the film, Divine Enforcer. We were the bad guys. We had a big fight scene with a bunch of opponents. It was fun.

After that Z-Man and I would sometimes hang out at places like The Rainbow on the Strip in the late hours of the evening, throwing back a few. He would always ask, “You got any nose candy, Scotty.” The man did like his intoxicants.

Our paths, both as friends and as actors, continued to cross, whether it was on auditions on in films. He, of course, was the lead in Frogtown II. There were a lot of problems with that film. Not the least of which was the director, my Zen Filmmaking buddy, Donald G. Jackson. Sometimes he would get in a mood and treat the actors and crew very badly. This, when the fault was actually always with him. At one point Z-Man took his Texas Rocket Ranger helmet and threw it at Don.

Things also went sideways on my film, The Rock n’ Roll Cops, where Don was the executive producer and the cinematographer. This event is discussed in an article written about the film that made it into my book, Zen Filmmaking. To tell the story, Don was in a mood. He apparently knew he was going to be an asshole and hired a professional bodyguard to go out with us. There we were on the roof of a parking structure in Burbank, stealing the location. We had a lot of people with us, most of us with loaded guns. So, this was no joke and the vibes, due to Don’s behavior, were very tense. He was yelling and screaming at the second cameraman, just treating him like shit. I asked the guy why he didn’t leave. But, he wanted to be the, “Better man,” as he put it. At one point Don starts screaming at Z-Man. “I wish we could get a decent fucking actor on this set.” Z’Dar, always the gentleman, simply replies, “I take exception with that, Donny.”

And, this is the thing, Z-Man was a great actor. I think some people never understood that, all they defined him by was his face. But, he was a really good actor!

He was also the consummate professional. He could have kicked Don’s ass and I would not have stepped in. I doubt that Don’s paid-for bodyguard would have helped either as he got freaked out by all that was going on and eventually bailed. But, Z-man worked with us until the early morning hours of dawn, when he finally got paid his $300.00 and went home.

You can see Don’s obsessional camera work and Z-Man doing and redoing this one scene over and over again in the Zen Documentary, Cinematografia Obsesion, if you want to. Even after all this he remained friends with Don. I remember Z-man calling Don when he was in the last days of his life at U.C.L.A. Medical Center. Don apologized to him. Z-man told him not to worry about it.

Z-Man certainly etched his name into the world of Cult Cinema. I believe had he walked a slightly different path he could have maintained a career in the high budget market. But, he went astray of SAG. I don’t know if he ever resolved that problem. The thing is, SAG, now SAG/Aftra, controls the mainstream industry. If you are not a part of it, you cannot work. As they are a union, they do not let their actors work in nonunion films. Yes, one can follow the path of Financial Core status, but that is only limited SAG membership and there are many detriments to that status. Z’Dar got caught working nonunion. SAG, if they find this out, expect you to pay all the money you earned on any film to them, plus a fine. The last I heard Z-man never paid that. But, he did have a wide spanning career.

Z-Man eventually moved back to his home in the Chicago area. He had inherited his mother’s house. While in L.A., he, as many actors do, spent much of his time near penniless and couch surfing. Surprisingly, it was once he returned to the Midwest that he began to get tons and tons of work. I remember Joe Estevez telling me one time, “He owns that town.”

I believe with the passing of Z’Dar it again signals the ending of an era. I wrote about this maybe a year or so ago when I discussed the fact that no new Scream Queen were moving to center stage to take over for the aging girls of the previous era. This too is the case with Z’Dar. It is a signal. And, I guess that’s life, times and trends move on.

I look to the filmmaking that is going on, and yes there are tons of movies being made. But, few are following the path of true Cult Cinema. Some are imitation of, some are just bad movies, but few illustrate the market that Z-Man was one of the Kings of.

There are so many stories I could tell about Z-Man. But, I will leave it at this. You will be missed, Bobby. You were one of the greatest actors I have ever met and had the pleasure of working with.

Copyright 2015—All Rights Reserved

Originally from the Scott Shaw Blog

Scott Shaw Zen Filmmaking 

I Make Weird Movies. What? By Scott Shaw

By Scott Shaw

I always find it interesting how in the Independent Film Industry people find easy targets for their criticism. This is especially the case in the No and the Low Budget Arena. This lack of understanding and appreciation goes hand-in-hand with something I have talking about literally forever whenever I speak with new filmmakers in my classes, seminars, or face-to-face. …You cannot become lost in attempting to imitate a film with a large budget when you have no budget. …You cannot expect your film to come out looking like a film with a million dollar budget when you have five dollars.

For the actual filmmaker, this concept is much more easily comprehended. For the viewer and the critic, not so much.

Most film viewers go into any film watching experience with preconceived expectation based upon what they have viewed in the past. Most of what they have viewed in the past is based upon a film with a substantial budget. Even most Independent Features are bankrolled with a fairly sizeable budget.  But, then there is the whole other area of the film industry, the area of the industry where people are making movies for the love of cinema. Though they may have no money at all, they make their movies anyway.

Now, at this level of the industry some people do attempt to mimic what they have seen in the High Budget Arena. Most fall very short of this. Of course, there have been a few films made with no or a very small budget that have broken though. The most obvious examples of this are perhaps the original Blair Witch Project and El Mariachi. But, it is essential to note, that the versions of these films that went to wide-release were not the original versions of these films. They had major dollars poured into them for reshoots, editing, and sound tracking before they found their way into the mainstream.

All this being said, the viewing of any cinematic project is about the viewing of that particular project itself and it should not be about comparisons. Yes, this is a philosophic concept that most people will never understand or put to practice. But, just because it is not understood does mean that it is not true.

From a personal standpoint, I’ve watched over the years as people have compared my features to other pieces of cinema. They have gaged my work in comparison to the works of other filmmakers. They have tried to make sense of my work by placing labels on it. But, by doing this, in and of itself, they have missed the point.  They have tried to place definitions and judgments on my work when they have not possessed the mindset to even understand it.

This does not bother me particularly. That’s just the name of the game in art. People gage things through their own level of realization. They want to find a reason to love or hate a project.

Also, this does not cause me to change. I mean, any artist who adapts their work simply because people criticize it is not an artist.

This being said, artists do evolve. I certainly have. My film work certainly has.

For example, I used to make abstract cinema attached to a verbally driven storyline. But, as I have long said, the stories have all been told. I don’t care about the stories. Leave that to the filmmakers with big bankrolls behind them. Though there may have been a subject matter in my films of the past, the story-driven dialogue was never the focus. And, this is where many critics got what I was doing all wrong. The words were just there as an abstract koan to take the viewer into the mind of Zen. The words never meant anything. They were nonrepresentational. They were just people taking about the nonsense that people normally speak of in life. I mean really, how much of what anyone says really matters?

But then, I left all that talking behind. I moved forward to focusing solely upon images.

The fact is, I have not made a dialogue-driven film since 2009. That’s almost ten years ago. Yet, most the people who talk about my Zen Films are not even aware enough to be aware of that fact. What does that say about them? Yes, I’ve made tons of movies since then, but they are all unspoken. They are simply non-figurative images moving across the screen. The reason? Again, to guide the viewer into the meditative mindset of Zen.

So, next time you see a film, especially an experimental film, try to move beyond what you already know—what you already think you know. Leave behind your judgment and maybe you can understand what the filmmaker was actually attempting to portray. Maybe you can encounter Zen.

Copyright © 2018—All Rights Reserved

Originally from the Scott Shaw Blog

Scott Shaw Zen Filmmaking

Avant-garde detachment on the rollers: the Zen film director Scott Shaw and Donald Jackson (Roller Blade Seven)

Here is an interestingly thoughtful article written about Zen Filmmaking, the Roller Blade Seven, Scott Shaw, and Donald G. Jackson. This article was written in Russian and is from a Russian website. The link is below. This is the Google Translation of the article. Nothing was changed or altered in any manner except the Roller Blade Seven photographs from the Russian website have been removed. 

https://katab.asia/2018/04/07/zen-filmmaking/

Editor's note: We decided to take part in the action # avengarda month , which was launched by Moore (wonderful), calling all not indifferent "to give people anew to revel in the pleasure of the uncompromising and violent avant-garde of the last century, whether Dadaists, experimental cinema, difficult and unusual poetry, daring philosophy , crazy architecture, beauty of painting, outlandish fiction, shocking actionism or avant-garde music. "

Details of this wonderful action can be read on the site of Moor, and our first Chapaevsky blow in this direction will be a note of Dali Lama XXIII about such a phenomenon as a zen cinematograph (those who are already acquainted can start to whistle softly - but this is optional).

In the world there were many avant-garde movements that proclaimed a variety of ideologies - mainly, of course, declaring their main goal to change human nature, renewal of art and other such epic and pretentious things. But there are also a few creators who openly admit that they are engaged in art for entertainment, making it a priority to get pleasure from the process. Not particularly well-known in wide circles, but having its own face, the school of "Zen-Film Directing" is the brainchild of precisely such people.

The story of what was later christened "Zen Filmmaking" began in 1991, when Donald Jackson, an American producer and director who directed the continuation of his low-budget production films Roller Blade and Roller Blade Warriors, invited Scott Shaw, an actor, musician and script writer, engaged in martial arts, - to participate in the creation of this sequel, called the Roller Blade Seven.

Perhaps because the film's design can be briefly described as an action story about samurai and ninjas on roller skates, during the stage of putting into effect the script written by Shaw and Jackson, most of the actors hired by the authors completely failed to fulfill their hopes (and the author of these lines in something can understand them): in their acting out half-naked novices of the Order of Light there was no soul and fire, and the models of samurai swords dissected the air without sufficient enthusiasm.

After several days of shooting, Shaw and Jackson made a fateful decision, which instead of another boring exploit freak they came out two parts of a very unusual film, which on profile sites continue to receive almost exclusively, either as low or as high as possible.

Shaw and Jackson decided to abandon the script, replacing it with improvisation: they invented story collisions on the move, explaining the remaining actors the general outline of what is happening and the approximate content of what they should say, and then relying on their improvisational abilities. Soon Shaw, who had been fond of oriental mysticism all his life, realized that this was truly a Zen approach - so this method was given the name of Zen filmmaking; and so Shaw found a new occupation for himself, to which he continues to devote most of his life.

The principles of Zen-filmmaking, formulated by Shaw after working on many films, are as follows. First of all, the absence of a script is important. Shaw gives two main reasons for this approach. Clearly scripted scenario, in his opinion, deprives the creative process of freedom, restricts the creators of the film to make changes, guided by spontaneous glimpses of inspiration. In addition, when faced with the embodiment of his clear plan by other people, the author will almost inevitably be disappointed that his ideal plan can not come to life exactly as he wants. In the case of Zen-filmmaking, "what happens is what happens."

In addition, Shaw formulated six rules of Zen filmmaking:

+ Use any unexpected situation.

+ If you can not waste time, money and energy to create large-scale scenery - do not waste it. Instead, find picturesque places and shoot there.

+ Just act! In ninety-nine cases out of a hundred everything will pass without problems.

+ Let your creative vision always be more important than the plot. For many directors, the starting point is a "good script", which they are trying to turn into a film, but everything written in the script can not be realized if the budget is not particularly large.

+ Zen filmmaking is a spontaneous process. Zen teaches that the attainment of enlightenment, satori, is possible only when the ordinary mind stops its activity: it is just as impossible to achieve Film Enlightenment by building its film according to scenarios and clear plans - there will always be a gap between the desired and the real.

+ Zen-filmmaking assumes rejection of expectations and desires - so any result becomes perfect.

Another important feature of Zen movies is editing: in the era of video clips, any footage suits, if you apply imagery to it. Shaw warns, however, that the spontaneity of the Zen film process does not mean ease, and compares it to sit-down zazen meditation: just as it is difficult for people to truly realize that they are already enlightened and possess the nature of the Buddha, it's not easy even when shooting a film, just letting it take place. In general, the ideology of Zen filmmaking can be characterized as the elimination of the maximum possible number of obstacles in the filming of the film - and the author's expectations are among the obstacles; The film process should become free and natural.

Guided by these principles, Shaw and Jackson constructed two parts of the film from the footage, the Roller Blade Seven (for which there is not a very distinct translation from the nineties with the appropriate nasal dubbing) and Return of the Roller Blade Seven, which the author of these lines believes, perhaps , their most outstanding achievement.

How does Zen look from the outside? Of course, to some extent both parts of the film resemble something like the movies of the studio Asylum, where the emphasis is on the savagery, to some extent - the actor's cabbage or the LARP session. But thanks to many factors, the story of the travel of the unruffled action-hero Hock, played by Scott Shaw himself, into the Roller Zone and about battles with weird villains looks like an excellent example of surreal cinema.

Roller Blade Seven and Return of the Roller Blade Seven from ordinary low-budget thrash movies are distinguished by easy and unconstrained "dreaminess" and unpredictability of what is happening, which is strengthened by the hypnotic soundtrack (the author of which is again Shaw) and a very unusual montage: for example, some action - scenes are shown many times from multiple angles at different speeds with small variations, which makes the banal fights turn into a fascinating spectacle reminiscent of duels of wizards, where everything is not what it seems.

Roller Zone with its inhabitants, moving almost exclusively on rollers and skateboards, is perceived as a psychedelic limb, the land of the dead, who have not yet realized that they are dead - the old rocker who played himself asks a gentleman in a cylinder in the middle of the desert where he can find Buddy Holly. Here are representatives of the forces of Light and the forces of Darkness, starting negotiations with a polite exchange of courtesies, several minutes send each other three letters, sitting at the table. Here against the background of the American flag raves about the skateboard villain Pharaoh, chained to a wheelchair.

In addition to Jackson and Shaw, obviously enjoying filming in their own film, other actors, some of whom are very famous - like Frank Stallone, Sylvester Stallone's younger brother, or Karen Black, portraying a fortune teller who shares a mushroom trip with Hock and his mentor, "Father Donaldo." Return of the Roller Blade Seven is compositionally more meditative and more saturated with fan service: oh yeah, sometimes boobs are shown here, like in the co-operative cinema of the nineties, so that the viewer does not relax.

Try to believe the author of these lines, who watched a lot of bad and boring low-budget films: both parts of the Roller Blade Seven only formally belong to the "next thrash of the nineties", and (unlike some Samurai Cop, just made fantastically bad) thanks to the creators' love they blossom real art - and their example is able to inspire and teach something new. However, no, never believe anything on what is written "Zen", check everything yourself!

I focused on two of the most outstanding, in my opinion, Zen works of Shaw and Jackson. However, Shaw has shot many more films, both alone and in collaboration with the now deceased Jackson; many movies are not so easy to get, but you can order through his site. Also, this site is full of notes on many aspects of Zen philosophy - and as the Real Zen Master, Shaw appears as a figure that is difficult to say if he is serious when he is shooting films such as "Beverly Hills Vampires-Bikers" or "Guns El Chupacabras ", or maybe all this is a grandiose rally or trolling ... If you are interested in this figure, you can undertake further research yourself .

In the future, perhaps, the author of these lines will finish the Russian subtitles to both parts of the film; but due to the general dream of what is happening, the translation here is perhaps no more important than in films like Jarmusch's "Limits of Control". Due to the underground nature of both parts of the Roller Blade Seven, the existing rips in the network, unfortunately, do not have a high image quality; However, when was the situation different with Enlightenment?

Dali Lama XXIII

 

Scott Shaw Zen Filmmaking 

The Press Kit By Scott Shaw

This is a Press Kit information page that I passed out to a class I was teaching at U.C.L.A. a number of years ago. Though it is a bit dated in its approach, as the world has gone largely digital since that time, you may find it helpful to guide you in obtaining publicity for your film.

The Press Kit

U.C.L.A. - X 479.94 - The Art of Digital Filmmaking - Scott Shaw

      It is essential that you devise an exacting Game Plan to market yourself as a filmmaker and to alert the world that you have a film or video project. To reach the media, you will need a Press Kit. A Press Kit makes it easier for an investor, distributor, newspaper, or television show to know about you and what your project is about. Additionally, it is an essential tool in providing a writer with a start-point in writing an article about you or your film or video project.

      A Press Kit provides information about you and your project in a language media people understand. Even though you may find the format and tone of the material in the Press Kit to be overly commercial and self-congratulatory, it focuses the emphasis on your project and presents the facts so anyone who reads it can concentrate on getting the additional details they desire during a phone or in person conversation.

Devising a Press Kit

1) Cover Letter. This should be brief, usually no more than one page. The first paragraph is enticing and draws the reader in. The next paragraph tells the essential details about you, your film, or video project.  The final paragraph of a Cover Letter is a good point to include possible story ideas or hype-lines for your project.

2) Press Release. Immediately cover the five W's of news writing in your Press Release,  “Who, What, When, Where and Why.” Do this by beginning with an enticing one or two-sentence introduction followed by brief, to-the-point, background about you and your project. Be sure to include your contact information, including a Website where they can view your project or find out further details about you and your film or video.

3) Bio Sheet. This is your resume in prose format. Sometimes an editor or a T.V. News Magazine producer will decide to do a story about your film or video based on your personal history.  So, it helps if you play up something about your life that is unusual or follows a trend.

4) Press Clipping and Magazine Articles. Journalists like to follow someone else’s lead.  They may not cover a story unless somebody else has done it first.  If you have copies of previous press clipping or interviews include them with your Press Kit.

      Keep in mind, contrary to popular belief, it is not difficult to get press.  Newspapers and magazine are always looking for new subjects to cover -- all you have to do is ask and keep asking until somebody decides to do an article on you.

5) Glossy Black-and-White Photo. Though a newspaper may send a photographer to take a picture to accompany a story about you or your film or video, some of the smaller papers don't have the budget or the time and they may print whatever you send them.  A 5 x 7 or 8 x 10 of you involved in your production or a very depictive Production Still is a good form of initial presentation.

      Put your Press Kit in a folder. So, your presentation will not be easily lost.

      Remember, Press is free, you are doing the newspaper, magazine, or T.V. show a favor by giving them something to report on.

 

Copyright 1998 All Rights Reserved

 

The Press Kit @ Scott Shaw.com

Scott Shaw Zen Filmmaking

Scott Shaw Zen Filmmaking: The Interview

 Read the Interview at:  Zen Filmmaking: The Interview. 

Scott Shaw Zen Filmmaking

Zen Filmmaking: Beyond The Roller Blade Seven By Scott Shaw

 By Scott Shaw

As I frequently discuss, hardly a week goes by that someone does not contact me about The Roller Blade Seven and wants to discuss some aspect of that Zen Film. Which is great! That’s fine! I get it… It’s a bizarre film. And, that is exactly what we had in mind when we created it. Though, in all honesty, that was never the vision I had for my film career when I first entered the industry. But, I’ve said all this before…

The thing about Roller Blade Seven and all the turmoil that surrounded its creation is, so many people see that film and believe that is where Zen Filmmaking ended. They think that somehow RB7 is the end-all culmination of Zen Filmmaking. It is not. In fact, due to all of the craziness during the Production, the Post Production, and the initial Distribution of RB7, one can conclude that RB7 is anything but true Zen Filmmaking. Yes, it is crazy. Yes, it is weird. Yes, we had a lot of fun making it. Yes, it has etched a place for itself in Cult Film History but did Zen Filmmaking begin and end with that film? No.

As each production possesses its own set of criteria and definitions, RB7 had its own, as well. And, that is what defines that film. But again, was what took place and what was presented on the screen in that film the end-all of Zen Filmmaking? No, not at all. That film just was what that film was. Nothing more, nothing less.

As I always tell everybody, Zen Filmmaking is never about the story. …The stories have all been told… Zen Filmmaking is about a visual cinematic experience. It is about invoking emotions and thoughts in the mind of the viewer. As each person brings their own set of standards and ideologies to every/any film that they watch, anyone who ever sees a Zen Film will come away with something different. …As they should…

FYI: I haven't made a narrative-driven Zen Film since 2009 so what most people who discuss Zen Filmmaking are talking about is actually ancient history.

The fact is, Zen Filmmaking is more about philosophy that about actual cinema. And, this is where so many critics and movie watchers get it wrong. It is about embracing a philosophic vision on the screen. As such, even if you project one never-ending single image on the screen, that can be Zen Filmmaking, if Zen Filmmaking is what you hope to invoke with that single image.

I know there are a couple of film schools that teach courses on Zen Filmmaking. Of course, none of them, (at least not yet), have invited me to come and give a seminar or be the actual instructor… But, that’s okay. I get it. They want to control the message—even though I am the one invented the message. Yeah sure, I own the Trademark. Yeah sure, I instigated and formalized the understanding. But, like I always say, “Make it your own…” You don’t have to do what I do to make a Zen Film. You simply have to do what you do.

Zen Filmmaking is about the freedom of naturalness. It is not about following any film formula that I may have used in the past. From this very definition it gives rise to the understanding that there are no definitions. …Not even the definition of no definition. …As isn’t that the ultimate understanding of Zen?

So, for all you people out there writing and talking about RB7, remember that was the beginning of Zen Filmmaking, it was not the end. It keeps changing. It keeps evolving. So please, don’t hold myself, my filmmaking, or other Zen Filmmakers locked into that place in time. That was there. That was then. Now, I am here. Where are you?

Copyright © 2018—All Rights Reserved

Originally from the Scott Shaw Blog

The Roller Blade Seven @ Scott Shaw.com

Scott Shaw Zen Filmmaking

The Good, The Bad and the Art of Zen Filmmaking By Scott Shaw

Here is an article I was asked to write in about 1997 for an indie film publication called Thunder Magazine. I am presenting here exactly as it appeared in the magazine for your reading pleasure and to maybe/hopefully provide you with some new insight and inspiration in the world of filmmaking.

Thunder Magazine

In a simpler time, I used to sit down with friends, pop in a bad movie and drink some beer. It was a sick pass time, but one that provided an endless amount of cheap entertainment. Because of this experience, titles like Curse of the Queer Wolf and Roller Blade will forever remain as grade A entertainment for me. Little did I know that Rollerblade would not only spawn sequels, but spin-off sequels? And if you’ve never heard of these films, then you’re probably sane and not much into watching bottom-of-the-barrel budget flicks that will occasionally offer more excitement than Hollywood’s by-the-numbers bullshit. That said, you’ve probably never heard of Scott Shaw, Donald G. Jackson or the bevy of direct-to-video quickies they’ve amassed over the past few years. So for those of us interested in the art of filmmaking, or zen filmmaking as you are about to learn, here’s a real eye opener for independent film buffs interested in breaking into the action/adventure film biz.  

--Xander Octavius

                        The Good, The Bad and the Art of Zen Filmmaking

By Scott Shaw, Ph.D.

            Whereas most people aspire to come to Hollywood, walk down the boulevard of the stars and hope to rub elbows with the rich and the famous, I was just the opposite. Born in L.A., I grew up in Hollywood and attended Hollywood High School—where more than a few of my classmates were already ex-movie or TV stars struggling to adapt to life in the mainstream. Others were the children of famous actors or directors who knew that any day they would become stars.  It all seemed like bullshit to me: the egos, the insecurity, the drugs to provide courage and the never enough money to pay the bills for the high lifestyles they all lead. Though these adolescent relationships got me onto the sets of some marginally memorable films, I swore I would never get into the industry.  Or, should I put that in quotation marks, “The Industry.” So, I spent most of the next decade or so in various geographic locations of Asia, refining my lifelong involvement with the martial arts and Zen Buddhism.

Back in the States, I was continually receiving offers to be in martial art films.  I finally accepted.  That was my big mistake.  I got bitten by the bug.

I spent my early film career doing starring or co-starring roles in the then very lucrative independent action/adventure market, performing small roles in A-films, guest starring roles on TV and shooting documentaries in Asia.  One day I got a call.  The voice on the other end of the phone line said, “My name is Don Jackson; I make movies. Can you really use the samurai sword as good as everyone says you can?” From this phone call our initial meeting took place at the Gower Gulch in Hollywood. The rest is Zen Filmmaking history...

PARTNER IN CRIME

            Don Jackson, or more properly Donald G. Jackson, had spent his early adult life in Ann Arbor, Michigan working in an auto factory for fifteen years and struggling against the odds to become a filmmaker. He finally made the feature, Demon Lover and the wrestling film, I Like to Hurt People—which was purchased by New World Pictures.  This financed his move to L.A. Once here, he made a film called Roller Blade—a futuristic piece referring to samurai sword wielding girls on skates.  It was shot on his credit card for $5,000.00—New World purchased it and the film made over a million dollars.  From the video market success of these two films, they asked him what he wanted to do next.  An actor named Sam Mann and him had been toying with an idea which eventually lead to his next film, Hell Comes to Frogtown.

Upon meeting, Don and I, both influenced by the films of Akira Kurosawa and Sergio Leone, set about on the path which became Zen Filmmaking—though it took a few swings at bat before we hit a homerun...

THE FOUNDATIONS OF ZEN FILMMAKING

            When I first met Don he had financing in place for an action adventure film in which he asked me to perform the lead. We started the film in December of 1990.  Due to the fact that the screenwriter was backstabbing Don to the Executive Producer, midway through the production, the financing was pulled. The screenwriter wanted me to finish the film with him as the Director. Fuck that, if you don’t have loyalty to your friends in this cut-throat industry, you have nothing.  Thus, the film went to never-never-land and Don and I moved on. 

Don directed another film and I acted in several. Perhaps most ironic of my performances during this interim came when Robert Altman called me up and asked me to do a Cameo in his film, The Player. As if to hail the coming future, when we were shooting one of my scenes, I really did like what the script had my character say, “Can I change this?”  “Sure, just say whatever you want,” answered Altman...

THE FIRST ZEN FILM

            In November of 1991 Don and I regrouped and made the first Zen Film, The Roller Blade Seven.  For this film we continued Don’s Roller Blade concept, combined that with two books I authored which were made up of spiritual aphorisms (to use as a basis for dialogue), added some samurai swords, some semi-naked girls and we were off...

Though relatively obscure, this film has been credited with influencing everything from Oliver Stone’s U-Turn, to the TV series Homicide, onto Six-String Samurai, (though now that the Six-String boys are on top, they probably wouldn’t admit it).  Even today, RB7 has a big cult following in the U.K., (the only place where the Director’s Cut was released).  I get E-mails all the time from people who form groups to discuss the true meaning of the feature.

Though we played equal philosophic roles in the creation of Zen Filmmaking, during the filming of RB7 Don really showed me the ropes of how to make a low budget art film. So, there is no doubt that he holds the title of, Godfather of Zen Filmmaking. 

INSTANTANEOUS CREATIVITY

            But back to the point… Just what the hell is a Zen Film? First of all, and perhaps most importantly, scripts are out the window. I like to say, “Scripts are for sissies.” This doesn’t mean that you let the actors improv. For the most part you wouldn’t want to see novice actors improv-ing. The problem with scripts is that performances become so contrived when people have their lines memorized for days or weeks—it’s just boring.

To create a film what we do is Don or I comes up with a concept, we cast some people who fit the roles we have in mind, we go out to a location, get inspired and then guide them through what they should say and do. As Don says, “Zen Filmmaking is like painting: you get a canvas, you get some paint, but you never know what the painting is going to look like until you apply the paint to the canvas.” 

For example, we took our cast out to the El Mirage Dry Lake Bed for our film, Toad Warrior. When we got there, someone was flying an ultra-line aircraft. Don asked them if we could use it.  They agreed.  My character Max Hell got in, took off, and it became the opening sequence for the film. You just can’t plan or anticipate those occurrences.  You just have to live them.  If you base a film on a script, all instantaneous creativity is lost.

Instantaneousness doesn’t mean that it doesn’t take a lot of planning. Mostly, you have know what the hell you’re doing, but beyond that, you have to be prepared: have all the technical equipment ready, the film stocks to be used, make sure that the cast has their costuming, and be ready to adapt to any situation.  Sometimes the first planned location doesn’t workout, so we move onto the second, and the third, if necessary.

In Zen Filmmaking the big crew thing doesn’t work either. A small crew not only keeps the budget down but it also allows much more spontaneous creativity.  If you have too many crew people, they all want silly things like story boards, shot lists, and stuff.

A funny experience I like to relate is when Don and I were doing a film with Frank Stallone. Frank met us, we put him in Don’s car, and we drove over to this location we like to use.  En route Frank asked, if the crew was set up and waiting for him at the location?  Well, actually he was riding with the crew.  Don was operating the camera; I was doing the sound and performing the lead. I would get the tape recorder up and running, go in, slap the slate, walk out, and then walk back into the shot and act with Frank.  Needless to say, he wasn’t the kind of actor to get into Zen Filmmaking.

But then there are people like Conrad Brooks, one of the last remaining Ed Wood confidants. He is a great guy and a true Hollywood icon. One night we were shooting with him at our Hollywood studio—there was some down time so he went out and had a few drinks.  When he came back, he was a little light headed and couldn’t remember any of the lines we would give him.  So, we fed him his dialogue one word at a time. Editing that was interesting to say the least.

That’s one of the great things about Zen Filmmaking; editing is where it all comes together. I look at all the footage and then let my feelings guide me as to where each scene should go. 

There are no mistakes in Zen Filmmaking. It’s like enlightenment, it all happens in its own perfection.

Just as editing takes care of itself, so does the budget. In Zen Filmmaking you really can’t draw up a formal budget. There is just no way to budget inspiration.  The people who fund these films understand that we are creating art and we must possess C.C.C. (Completely Creative Control).

NO RULES

            The main thing to understand about Zen Filmmaking is that there are no rules. You cannot compare a Zen Film with a traditional screenplay based movie.  A Zen Film is an entity onto itself.  If the story isn’t all that constant—who cares, all the stories have already been told.  A Zen Film is more like a rock video in that it moves with a visual essence which is absent from traditional filmmaking.

GET ON THE BUS

            Zen Filmmaking is so simple and so filled with art that many people question its results. But we have proven it works in numerous films. It’s generally the wannabe actors who have gone to way too many acting classes and freak when they hear about it.  They always question, “Will I get dialogue?” Or state, “I need tape on myself.” Our answer is to pull out a roll of camera tape, rip off a piece, and stick it on them. There you go, you have tape on yourself...  In reality, the people who get on the bus and stay with us for awhile get the biggest roles. If they doubt the process, it is better not to take them along, for their negativity can bring the whole thing down.

Real actors, people like Golden Globe winner and two-time Academy Award nominee Karen Black or Clint Eastwood co-stars Don Stroud or William Smith love the process. These are the really creative people; they have nothing to prove, their acting is completely natural and they truly appreciate the art of Zen Filmmaking.

A funny story… One night last year we were shooting my film Rock n’ Roll Cops. We decided to rent a room at the posh downtown L.A. hotel, the Boneventure, and bring William Smith in for some scenes.  Not only did we have the bell hops bring up massive quantities of lights and film equipment to our suite, (why they didn’t ask questions, I don’t know), but by the time Don and I arrived, there were like twenty actors and actresses in the room hoping to be in the film.  Don, (the Producer), in rare form, kicked most of the people out, including William Smith’s girlfriend. I tried to diplomatically hold Bill back but he is an intense guy and went in and put a chokehold on Don.  Had he not remembered they had been friends for more than a decade, I’m sure the whole incident would not have turned out to be the memorable joke it is remembered as.      

PAYING YOUR DUES

            In the past we have paid neophyte actors hoping it would assure that they would show up, have a good attitude, and so on. It doesn’t work!  Everyone in Hollywood thinks that they are going to be the next big star.  You cannot imagine how many times I’ve heard, “No, no, I’m the one that’s going to make it!”  I wish them all the best but paying a person whose name means nothing to the projects serves no purpose.  I’m much more hard-core about this than Don. And besides, there are many ways of compensation that do not involve money. We are giving people the opportunity to be in a film which will receive international distribution. In essence, we are paying for their demo reels.

JUST GOT ON THE BUS

            A couple of new friends on the Zen Filmmaking bus are Penthouse Pet and B-Movie Queen Julie Strain and her husband, Kevin Eastman, co-creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and publisher of Heavy Metal Magazine. We plugged them into our film, Guns of El Chupacabra, and four films after that (Armageddon Boulevard, Lingerie Kickboxer, etc.). Julie, who has been in many script-orientated films, immediately took to the process. She poetically stated after smoking a joint, “Zen Filmmaking unfolds in front of your eyes when you give someone the freedom to expand their mind and let the creativity flow like a waterfall. It’s like Niagara Falls running through my veins. Zen Filmmaking boundaries are limitless. To me it is like a drug.  I admit it, I’m a junky.”  She calls… us up all the time and says, “Let’s make a movie.”  With Zen Filmmaking, we can do that—forget about all of the unnecessary preparation and just go and make art. In fact, one day we shot an entire feature film at the Turtle Mansion (as we have named their Bel Aire home) called Vampire Child. It generally takes a lot longer to make a movie, but when the magic hits, it’s there.

The question is always asked, “How do you get established actors to be in your films?”  Well, as the independent film has taken over Hollywood, the unions have begun to fade from the picture, allowing established actors to become what is called SAG Financial Core and do non-union films. As an actor, I find that sad, but as a filmmaker, the unions can really constrict what takes place on a set and throw a monkey wrench into the gears of absolute creativity. Zen Films really need to exist outside the realms of meaningless control.

NICKEL & DIME ACTION

            Due to my extensive martial arts background and, of course, the mystical powers of the samurai sword, I generally integrate this heritage into all of my movies. The fight scenes are staged as the movie is created—they are never rehearsed.  I never attempt to choreograph more than one or two moves at a time. What I do is stage a punch, kick, block, or sword techniques, film it, and then have the cameraman move to a new location that will sell the next technique. This way it keeps all the movements fresh and the reactions natural.

All of the stunts in my films are created right on the spot. Inspiration strikes and I lead people through the techniques. So, it’s always good to have trained martial artists, wrestlers, and gymnasts in the cast.  It’s rare, however, to have an advanced Muay Thai Kickboxer like Kevin Eastman on the set.  Most martial artists believe that due to their long years of physical training that they will be the next Bruce Lee—so their own egos really hold them back from getting into films.

Then there are people like Traci Lords. She was scheduled to do a film with us and everyday she would come by and take private sword lessons from me—just so she would look good on film.  But, that is a rare thing. 

LET’S TALK GREEN STUFF

            I’ve acted in several but I have never personally produced or directed a film that I would call a martial art movie—though there has been martial arts in virtually every film I’ve created.  The sad truth is that the market has just been flooded with bad, low budget, rip-off martial arts movies—films that are just mimicking what has been done much better on a substantially larger scale.

This style of filmmaking is what has really poisoned the international market. As the quality dropped, so did the prices. There was a time when the U.K. would give you $50,000.00, Germany $100,000.00, Japan $500,000.00 for one film. Now, Taiwan wants to pay $1,500.00, Malaysia $750.00 and Korea $500.00. And, it doesn’t matter what NAME actor you have in it. If it isn’t someone the caliber of Nicholas Cage or Bruce Willis, nobody cares.

There is the occasional breakthrough film, but the whole dynamics of filmmaking has really changed. No longer can you count on quadrupling your budget in sales. Now, you’ve got to make your money from your investor or you may never get paid. Don says it best, “The real art of filmmaking is in raising the money to make the movie.” That’s why it’s great when I’m just hired as an actor to be in somebody else’s film—it’s all so easy...

GETTING IT OUT THERE

            In terms of independent film distribution there’s a lot of distribution companies out there, but the days of up-front advances are long gone. Now, they may take your film but they will charge back all publicity and marketing costs.  That way they can justify not paying you any money. And more than that, they may decide to reedit and ruin your film. I know that happened to Steve Wang with his film’s Kung Fu Rascals and Drive and to us with RB7—the Executive Producer took the film and its sequel, Return of the Roller Blade Seven, reedited them into one movie, and changed the title. She did this, even though it broke all of our contracts.

The sad thing about Executive Producers and distributors is that they know it is going to cost you more money to sue them then you could ever win in a lawsuit.  Justice and honor means nothing in modern Hollywood.

To remedy some of these problems Don set up a distribution company so we would have more control over our releases. But, this is very expensive. From this, our films generally do fairly well, particularly in Asia where I am an established actor and they appreciate our style of comic book action adventure. In fact, my film Samurai Vampire Bikers from Hell won me Best Director honors at the Tokyo Experimental Film Festival in 1993. 

In reality, getting a film out there is a complicated game. You have to do it for the love of the art and realize if your film doesn’t have a several million-dollar budget, even though it may be released, there will only be a few thousand video or DVD copies of it made. Once those are gone, it will be forgotten. That’s what’s great about Zen Filmmaking—all that matters is the perfection of the moment: it’s here, you live it and then you let it go and move on. 

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The Good, The Bad, and the Art of Zen Filmmaking @ Scott Shaw.com

Scott Shaw Zen Filmmaking