An Interview with Albert Pyun
People have strong feelings about Albert Pyun. Some absolutely love his work. Others not so much. But I think the true testament to the man that is Albert Pyun is the fact that so many people were happy to work with him time and time again, movie after movie.
Most recently Albert Pyun has shown the world what kind of man he is as he has faced his diagnosis with early onset dementia. The crippling disease did not stop Albert from completing his latest genre film, Interstellar Civil War.
In this interview, I talk to Albert about his latest film, the long awaited Road to Hell and some of the actors he worked with over the years…
CTB: Your latest movie Interstellar Civil War reunited you with Brad Thornton, who you worked with years earlier on Kickboxer 4: The Aggressor. How did this reunion come about?
AP: Facebook reconnected us. I always felt Brad had a deeper well of talent that went further than just a martial artist. I knew he was intelligent and creative and I knew those were the critical qualities I wanted for the film. I also knew from Kickboxer 4 that he had high standards and character. Taken together I thought he would come off, organically, as a naturally charismatic leader and epic hero. More so than many of the screen action icons I have worked with.
CTB: Speaking of Facebook, I know from your Facebook updates that you spent a lot of time working on the final cut of Interstellar Civil War. As a director how difficult is it to make those cuts and edit scenes and put together what will ultimately be the film?
AP: Well it is easier with the internet and digital filmmaking tools. Because I am ill with Dementia, it was difficult learning new programs and plug-ins. Plus I cannot use my right hand, so no use of a mouse or touchpad, that was challenging. I would learn a plug in and start editing, but I would wake up the next day with no memory of what I had done or how to use the programs. I’d have to start all over again. That was very frustrating. Because I can no longer sit in a chair, I’d work in bed. I would get seizures when I got tired. First my eyesight would go, then I’d pass out. My wife, Cynthia, would find me slumped over in bed unconscious with my Macbook lying askew. Worst was the several times I actually deleted an entire project and have to rebuild it in the morning. So editing (which I was determined to do myself) was as harrowing as it was challenging.
I was lucky though. I had started my career as an assistant editor (I was the world’s worst) when I has 18. So I had a lot of experience in that. Second, I had my loving wife to watch me closely for signs of seizures, and third, I had a great friend and partner in Michael Su (who shot my last three films including ICW). Michael has experience in all phases of digital. He became the film’s post supervisor and co-editor. It’s a tribute to him that it all got done. Fourth, my longtime music composer and sound designer, Tony Riparetti, would send me the music cues as I needed them. We would discuss a cue. The next day, it would arrive and I would have no idea what scene it was for. Or he and I would discuss the score in depth, then the next day, I wouldn’t remember and send him notes that were totally different. He composed like 2 and half hours of score for the film.
CTB: You had the opportunity to direct both Michael Dudikoff (Radioactive Dreams) and Jean-Claude Van Damme (Cyborg) early on in their careers. Did you know back then that they would go on to have the success they did?
AP: Yeah, I did. Michael was a serious actor and he was very charismatic. He called me recently and I keep meaning to call him back. With Jean-Claude, I figured he would take off because he was following Arnold’s path to stardom.
CTB: You and Sasha Mitchell were instrumental in keeping the Kickboxer franchise going after Jean-Claude Van Damme opted out on the sequel. Any fun Sasha Mitchell stories you can share?
AP: Sasha stories? Well, he gave me a lesson in bonsai tree growing. Lol. Seriously, He did. I really love working with Sasha. He’s got a wonderfully warm and caring spirit.
CTB: Dangerously Close was one of your movies I slept on for years, but once I discovered it it became one of my favorite movies you directed. Any behind the scenes stories you can share about Dangerously Close?
AP: Well, it was my first film for Cannon. I went to Menahem’s office and he handed me a script and said to go make it. I read it and then told him (or my agent did), I would do it but I had to have freedom and wanted to throw out the script he handed me and start again with my own writers. So I met him again and he said go make the movie and that Cannon prided itself on being a Director’s company. Menahem took the old script and threw it in his wastepaper basket with flourish and said, okay. go hire some writers and do the movie… on a budget. So I was able to hire John Stockwell (who I had directed in Radioactive Dreams) and Scott Fields (who was our office PA).
CTB: Earlier this year, Road to Hell was released. This project was a long time coming and is actually a continuation of the characters from Walter Hill’s cult classic Streets of Fire. What can you tell us about Road to Hell?
AP: Well, it was a film I’d dreamed of making since I saw Streets of Fire in 1984. I had known Michael Pare’ for years. We had discussed working together. I had worked with Deborah Van Valkenberg in several films (Brainsmasher and Mean Guns). Here’s an odd story, I had cast Christopher Lambert in Adrenalin and needed him to approve or try on wardrobe. He told me to meet him at his home in Beverly Hills. So I went, but he was late. But his ex-wife was living there, Diane Lane. So I met her briefly. Strange how it all came back around in 2008, when we started Road to Hell. The latest and greatest camera we were using from Panasonic (my first high end HD shoot), had a problem deep in its menu, and so all the footage we shot was ruined. The ENTIRE movie. It took until 2011 for software to evolve to being able to fix the problem. I talked to Jim Steinman about licensing the Streets of Fire songs. He gave me his blessing. Now if only software could evolve to cure dementia!!
CTB: Another actor you had the chance to work with was Keith Cooke. In fact your film Heatseeker was Cooke’s only starring role. Why do you think Cooke did not have the success or longevity in the movie industry that so many other martial artist turned actors did?
AP: I think Keith was like Mark Dacascos. Same type. There were only a few roles for the type, and usually Mark would get the parts. I know Mark and have met with him. We tried to get together on several films. Here is a bit of trivia, I discovered Chad Stahelski (John Wick) and hired him to be a stunt man in Knights. Got him his SAG card. He was in Heatseeker and was the Nebula in Nemesis 2. So I launched Chad I guess.
CTB: So you are at least partially responsible for the amazing John Wick franchise! You mentioned Nemesis 2, the second chapter in your longest running series of films. Are the rumors true? Are we getting more Nemesis in the future?
AP: I think so. A filmmaker named Justin Ferguson, based in Nebraska, is mounting a sequel to Nemesis Four. I put him in touch with Sue Price and I think he wants to start shooting in September. He’s directing and producing. I’m just providing any guidance I can.
CTB: One of the actors you’ve worked with on a number of projects, including Spitfire, Hong Kong 97 and Nemesis, is Tim Thomerson. I’m a big Thomerson fan and obviously you are too. What is it about Tim that made you want to work with him as often as you did?
AP: Tim is very professional and totally dependable to bring a certain quirkiness into a character. He’s also very funny and a steadying influence on the set. He fit with my crazy style of film making.
CTB: Finally, anything you want to say to your fans and supporters reading this interview?
AP: Just that battling the progression of Dementia went to creating some interesting colors on Interstellar Civil War. I also lost my dad during the long production and that colored the film. It’s pure zenith Pyun. Some will love it (you know who you are!), many will hate it, but its a true expression of how I see the world. And it might be my last film as I feel myself slipping away, costumed by Dementia’s relentless march of destruction of my brain. More than anything, INTERSTELLAR CIVIL WAR will show the haters who always wanted to know what was Pyun thinking, my dying brain. It might be my last film if Dementia corrupts my brain cells any quicker. It’s weird when you are in the hospital and you are told the mass of your brain has shrunk X amount since last test! Yikes. It took 2 years to create INTERSTELLAR CIVIL WAR, I hope it reaches an audience soon, while I can still be at screening and hold lucid Q & A’s.
CTB: Thank you Albert for taking the time to chat with me today. As a fan of your work I truly appreciate it.
