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Old 01-19-2015, 01:12 PM   #1
Albert Simonson
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The Man in the High Castle

Just saw the pilot of the Amazon TV adaptation of Philip K Dicks "The Man in the High Castle".It seems as if aikido may be a prominent plot point. Anyone know anything about what style was used in the show? Stunt persons,fight coordinator,etc? What did you think?
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Old 01-19-2015, 05:51 PM   #2
Malicat
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

Quote:
Albert Simonson wrote: View Post
Just saw the pilot of the Amazon TV adaptation of Philip K Dicks "The Man in the High Castle".It seems as if aikido may be a prominent plot point. Anyone know anything about what style was used in the show? Stunt persons,fight coordinator,etc? What did you think?
I just saw it and I love it as well! I couldn't actually find any specific information, but that's probably because they'll release that sort of thing if the pilot gets picked up. The style doesn't look familiar to me, but the way they were both holding their arms seemed very deliberately and stylistic.

--Ashley
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Old 01-20-2015, 02:56 AM   #3
robin_jet_alt
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

I would say it is definitely "Hollywood Style"
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Old 01-20-2015, 08:04 AM   #4
Cliff Judge
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

If you like the pilot make sure to review it on Amazon.

I liked the pilot for what it was in general, there were a lot of nice little details. The cars and scenery were quite appropriate for what was supposed to have happened in the story.

The character in the book was actually a Judo person, so it is a nice twist that they changed that to Aikido. The way they pronounced "Aikido" shows that somebody on the production staff knows what it is.
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Old 01-20-2015, 08:55 AM   #5
Albert Simonson
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

Ahh,but what would Aikido look like if Japan had been a victor? More like "pre war"Aikido?
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Old 01-20-2015, 09:01 AM   #6
PeterR
 
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

Quote:
Albert Simonson wrote: View Post
Ahh,but what would Aikido look like if Japan had been a victor? More like "pre war"Aikido?
I am convinced the look and feel was personality driven by the senior instructors and the age of the founder rather than its philosophical underpinnings. I don't think technically there would be much of a direction change.

Maybe the content of the little red book might have been different.

Peter Rehse Shodokan Aikido
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Old 01-20-2015, 12:43 PM   #7
George S. Ledyard
 
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

Quote:
Albert Simonson wrote: View Post
Just saw the pilot of the Amazon TV adaptation of Philip K Dicks "The Man in the High Castle".It seems as if aikido may be a prominent plot point. Anyone know anything about what style was used in the show? Stunt persons,fight coordinator,etc? What did you think?
I was the person who provided private lessons for Alex Davanos. Didn't end up with a credit though. The guy listed as the stunt coordinator was the fellow that hired me. He was a great guy as well but didn't have any Aikido background. She had all of 7 1/2 hours of instruction when she had to do the scene. I was able to teach her four basic techniques which we strung together so they could be done as a flow. The editing made it appear she did more throws than she did. That short dojo scene took almost a whole day to do. It was fascinating to watch and then see the end product. Alexa was an awesome student and the nicest person one could ask for. We have continued to stay in contact and have become friends.

George S. Ledyard
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Old 01-20-2015, 12:48 PM   #8
George S. Ledyard
 
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

Quote:
Robin Boyd wrote: View Post
I would say it is definitely "Hollywood Style"
It wasn't so much Hollywood style as kyu rank basics. Alexa didn't have any Aikido before. She shot the scene with only a few hours of training so it was all katate tori with a set of footwork that allowed her to not have to remember any fancy changes. Each throw could be done off of the place where she ended the last. She was actually an awesome student and loved Aikido. She was so concerened that she not embarrass the art... I had to reassure her that no matter what she did, she still only had 7 1/2 hours of training so the rest had to be done in the editing room. But I would be quite happy to have more students like her. Totally a pleasure to work with.

Last edited by George S. Ledyard : 01-20-2015 at 12:51 PM.

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Old 01-20-2015, 03:51 PM   #9
Erick Mead
 
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

I've watched the first episode. Very interesting and fairly well-done.

Quote:
Albert Simonson wrote: View Post
Ahh,but what would Aikido look like if Japan had been a victor? More like "pre war"Aikido?
THAT is an interesting question -- and very much in keeping with the story itself.

Some look at his close association with the ultra-nationalists and might anticipate a more brutalistic style of aikido emerging in the wake of a premised Japanese victory and conquest. I am not so sure.

First, two key mystical revelations in the midst of the war drove Morihei Ueshiba toward the pattern of post-war aikido -- and quite early in the course of the war itself, in 1940 and 1942. The latter is notable in the context of his recently returning from training soldiers in Manchuria -- in which Japan had thoroughly won its conquest, and had complete control, including its puppet emperor, and satellite government, until the Russians declared war in late 1945. So, in the last of these visions Ueshiba was responding -- at least in part -- to a Japan triumphant in war and in complete control over a subject population.

I have my own (highly speculative) suspicions that he may have had authoritative accounts of the atrocities committed in Manchuria, whether by Unit 731, or others. This or similar evils committed by the Japanese forces in Manchuria very likely came to his attention in his training tour to Manchuria in 1941. That may have severely tempered his theretofore life-long assumption of the "purity" of yamato-damashi and the spirit of budo in Japanese soldiery, which could not be possibly reconciled with the horrors being being done to innocents in that program.

Post-war accounts document that Unit 731's biological warfare and chemical warfare testing victims were provided as prisoners detained by the Kempeitai -- to the tune of about 600 per year, and presumably a substantial contingents supplied also by Imperial Army intelligence as well. Ueshiba had long standing relationships and contacts within both of these organizations. He had personally trained a number of their officers, at the Kempei Gakko, the Nakano intelligence school, as well as the Army war college and Toyama Military Academy. It is likely that if any of these officers took exception to such horrific Japanese conduct in Manchuria, they would likely have felt confident in entrusting Ueshiba with it, perhaps merely seeking counsel of an unquestioned budo master about whether such things were true budo, or proper yamato damashii. It is not hard to imagine such an encounter in that context.

Did it happen? Who knows? We have only these suggestions and the sudden and strange retreat to Iwama in 1942 upon returning to Japan from his Manchurian training tour during 1941. To so suddenly withdraw from a notably public and even celebrated life of budo, closely engaged in military culture in the middle of a heretofore successful patriotic war would have required some serious and likely severe triggering event. Unit 731 was certainly more than adequate, for anyone of Ueshiba's sensibilities.

In short, I actually find the appearance of an aikido that is (our) post-war in spirit, but in a Pacific Coast America conquered by Japan very plausible.

Cordially,

Erick Mead
一隻狗可久里馬房但他也不是馬的.
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Old 01-20-2015, 03:55 PM   #10
Janet Rosen
 
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

Quote:
George S. Ledyard wrote: View Post
I was the person who provided private lessons for Alex Davanos. Didn't end up with a credit though. The guy listed as the stunt coordinator was the fellow that hired me. He was a great guy as well but didn't have any Aikido background. She had all of 7 1/2 hours of instruction when she had to do the scene. I was able to teach her four basic techniques which we strung together so they could be done as a flow. The editing made it appear she did more throws than she did. That short dojo scene took almost a whole day to do. It was fascinating to watch and then see the end product. Alexa was an awesome student and the nicest person one could ask for. We have continued to stay in contact and have become friends.
So cool!

Janet Rosen
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"peace will enter when hate is gone"--percy mayfield
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Old 01-20-2015, 05:22 PM   #11
Dave Gallagher
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

I don't know if a link to the pilot was hidden in previous posts but here is one to the youtube version.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?featur...&v=XWXTEuTr7sY

It is the duty of the strong to protect the weak.
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Old 01-20-2015, 08:12 PM   #12
robin_jet_alt
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

Quote:
George S. Ledyard wrote: View Post
It wasn't so much Hollywood style as kyu rank basics. Alexa didn't have any Aikido before. She shot the scene with only a few hours of training so it was all katate tori with a set of footwork that allowed her to not have to remember any fancy changes. Each throw could be done off of the place where she ended the last. She was actually an awesome student and loved Aikido. She was so concerened that she not embarrass the art... I had to reassure her that no matter what she did, she still only had 7 1/2 hours of training so the rest had to be done in the editing room. But I would be quite happy to have more students like her. Totally a pleasure to work with.
Thanks for the background info.

When I said Hollywood Style, I meant a combination of trying to look good for the camera and a relatively untrained actor. It wasn't meant as a criticism so much as recognition of the circumstances.

Given the very limited amount of training, she looked very good. Congratulations to both her and her instructor!
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Old 01-21-2015, 12:21 PM   #13
George S. Ledyard
 
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

Quote:
Robin Boyd wrote: View Post
Thanks for the background info.

When I said Hollywood Style, I meant a combination of trying to look good for the camera and a relatively untrained actor. It wasn't meant as a criticism so much as recognition of the circumstances.

Given the very limited amount of training, she looked very good. Congratulations to both her and her instructor!
Just from the standpoint of how movies are made, it was fascinating. The director filmed each throw from several angles over and over. Then, they disconnected the camera from the dolly and hand held it right on the ground level facing up at the two actors. Then they filmed Yoshi, the stunt man taking his break fall over and over, then they filmed a close up of his face when he hit over and over. They did the same thing with close ups of the faces of the actors. They created an entire library of clips that would be assembled later in the editing room. Having watched how they shot it and what they shot, it was quite an experience seeing how it was all put together at the end. You can really see why actors have absolutely no idea how the end product will look. I didn't take your comment as a criticism... just wanted folks to know what an excellent student Alexa was. I had to retool her natural body habits in a very short order. She has a dance background and at first she had that tendency to stretch up and look "light" as opposed to settle down and look grounded. She did a fantastic job of developing some real grounding in short order. Her acting training stood her in good stead. The kind of concentration it takes to learn lines in short order, make spontaneous adjustments at the request of the director reflected well when she had to project some intensity on camera. She really does have a very intensive concentration and that comes out of her gaze very well. So the director had a lot of good clips to work from. The other thing that impressed me was just how genuinely nice she was with every single person on the shoot. She treated everyone with respect and concern. None of that prima dona behavior in the least. Anyway, I got paid to have a ball and I made a new friend. Can't beat that.

George S. Ledyard
Aikido Eastside
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Old 01-21-2015, 01:02 PM   #14
kewms
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Re: The Man in the High Castle

IMDB page for the pilot is here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1740299/

Katherine
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