Interview with Kiwami Filmmaker and Actor Jon Alagoa

Jon Alagoa is an actor, filmmaker, stunt actor, performer and co-ordinator. He wrote, directed, produced and co-ordinated the stunts for The Kiwami series. Kiwami was screened at Fighting Spirit Film Festival in 2018 and Kiwami: The Finale was screened in 2019.

Describe yourself in three films.

John Wick, Enter the Dragon, Return of the King

How did you get started in martial arts?

Images courtesy of Jon Alagoa

My parents took my brother and I to Paul Whitrod's Kung-Fu class when I was around seven years old. We were really into Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles at the time so they thought it would be good to do some martial arts. We were bigger than other kids and those in the junior class were a bit unruly so we took part in the adult sessions instead, which were more focussed. I did that for a couple of years, but didn't start training properly again until 2003, my second year of university where I took up Wu Shu Kwan Chinese Kickboxing with one of my friends. It's worth mentioning that me, my brother and our friends were into pro-wrestling a lot from the Hulk Hogan/Ultimate Warrior period to the Attitude era, so we tried out all the moves on each other. Anyway, with the kickboxing, I really got into it, learning traditional forms and enjoying the sparring, which came naturally from fighting with my older brother when we were younger. I continued it after graduating and when I was going to go for my black belt in that, one of my training buddies told me about a free Taekwon-do class in Chinatown. I went there in 2007 to improve my kicks, but I continued in that too, and I have been running the Chinatown class since 2013 and I am aiming for my 4th dan black belt this year.

Are there any martial artists that inspire you?

On-screen, Bruce Lee remains the pinnacle. There is plenty said about him already but he was one of my father's heroes and he became one of mine as well. His philosophy and how he was able to implement that into his performance were amazing, and I have also studied his written work about developing yourself as a martial artist. Jackie Chan's stunt work is legendary and Donnie Yen's flow and choreography is awesome as well. In terms of feats, I think Tony Jaa in Ong-Bak and Warrior King are some of the most impressive displays of ability you will ever see.

In terms of actual fighting, Mike Tyson's punching power, technique and aggression are awesome and Muhammad Ali's pure ability remains inspiring. I liked George St. Pierre's fighting style and modesty, and Cung Le's ability to incorporate high-octane kicks and spectacular sanda takedowns was a joy to behold. I have trained with some talented people in the Far East so I must mention tricking champion, Yoo In-Gun aka Kick Gun from South Korea. His moves are crazy. I have also trained with stuntman and prolific motion capture performer, Sugiguchi Hideki in Japan, one of the cleanest movers I have ever seen.

What do you think makes a great martial arts film?

The stakes. There needs to be some danger for the hero/es or we're just watching them have a work out. Usually, we know they are going to triumph, but if they never get hit and their success is never in doubt, then it's hard to keep the audience engaged. If you look at Jackie Chan's expressions when he is fighting, you can always see the peril he is in and he takes a great deal of hits, so when he does actually triumph in the end, it is a hard fought victory that's satisfying for those watching. 

The Raid is another great example, and for me resembles Aliens' in the heavily-armed but completely underwhelmed forces getting decimated. So again, when Iko Uwais' character emerges at the end, it is a relief to unrelenting tension. This also relates to the plot. Like any film, the stronger the narrative the better, but there needs to be something for people to engage with in order to relate to the protagonist/s. And then of course, you have the action and choreography. A unique fighting style. Performers at the top of their game. A director that knows how to capture what happens. An editor that knows how to let the fight flow. A production schedule that allows for enough time to rehearse and shoot. There are a lot of pieces of the puzzle that need to fall into place.

How did you get started as a stunt performer/actor?

I got a BA in Film Studies & Drama, then went to acting school a few years later. I got an agent after graduating and also continued studying stage combat. I got various parts on commercials, short films and theatre but none with much action, until I reunited with director, Carlos Garcia Buenaventura, who I worked with years before and collaborated on a series of short films that I starred and choreographed with my friend, Thomas Smart. We then set to work on another project where Thomas introduced me to Shinji Ishigaki. In 2016, I started doing jobs with Independent Drama with led to some more specific stunt jobs, including Accident Man & Avengement with Scott Adkins, who I have a lot of respect for. A few years ago, I also got involved with Jean-Paul Ly and Law Plancel's The Division, and have collaborated with them on multiple projects since, including Nightshooters.

How do you prepare for a film as a stunt performer?

I train in Taekwon-do and Sanshou 3-4 times a week to keep my skills in shape. When people are free, I get together with other actors and stunt guys and work on new moves or choreography so I am more or less always ready to go. For any project, it's always important to get as much rehearsal in as possible to ensure filming goes as smoothly and efficiently as possible. I will watch any footage of rehearsals in order to practice and look out for any ideas that might help. Having a pre-visualisation is advantageous for the performers, director and camera operator so everyone knows how the shots can be achieved on the day.

What’s the most challenging aspect of being a stunt performer?

Warming up for a scene and then not performing for hours. Waiting is a quintessential part of being an actor, but with physical work, it can be difficult after you get ready for a scene then having it delayed for whatever reason. As with acting, it can be very laborious shooting for coverage so it's much better when the director has a clear idea of the edit and the scene is shot with that in mind.

I know that you were inspired by the Yakuza series, what aspects inspired the film?

One of the staples of the series is the HEAT actions. These are contextual special moves that have a cinematic aesthetic and are usually incredibly brutal. When I played the original and smashed someone face first into a brick wall, I knew it was something different. It was different than something like Mortal Kombat, which has more cartoonish and at times, sadistic levels of violence. The HEAT actions and the cutscenes in the series ranged from visceral beatdowns to intricate choreograph that still evoked the feeling of a real street fight. I like those moments in action films that shock you and make you recoil because you can feel how painful that would be, and the Yakuza series was perfect at providing those kind of moments. In the choreography for Kiwami, I wanted to make use of the environment and melee weapons as much as I could, while the one on one clashes were meant to replicate the boss battles from the game.

The costume was something I wanted to lift from the series as well. In every scene, my character Leon was wearing the same clothes as the Yakuza protagonist, Kiryu Kazuma. Although, mine was an original take drawing inspiration from the game, the grey suit and burgundy scene is synonymous with Kiryu and instantly recognisable by the fans. I had several costumes during the films that were worn by Kiryu as well, and the fans noticed the references, even the obscure ones. As for the rest of the cast, their outfits weren't based on any particular characters but they helped production a lot by bringing smart and stylish suits that made them suit the criminal underworld setting.

What was your writing process for the Kiwami series?

The first Kiwami was initially released online in three separate parts, so it varied each time. Working on The Division, I met a lot of talented stunt performers, so I wanted to do a small project to keep the momentum rolling. I had been playing Yakuza Kiwami at the time, (a remake of the 2005 original) and wanted to film some of the HEAT action I was seeing. Rather than just film a fight with no plot, I wrote a really short scene to set it up, taking a few cues from the tropes present in the game's narrative. However, the scene where Leon and Sarah get ambushed originally had a different cast.

Shinji Ishigaki, who joined later, was meant to play my role, I was supposed to play the part taken by Pamela Donald as the accomplice, and she was supposed to be right hand woman to Thomas Smart's character, Leung. Unfortunately, before our shoot date I saw it was going to be raining so we had to rearrange the cast two days before filming. There wasn't any time to edit the script so it was what it was, but it got a really good response from fans so I decided to continue it.

With the second part of what was to be chapter one, it obviously had to continue the fight as we had four characters launching at each other but stuck in mid-air. I wrote and sent out backstories for everyone to help them have a motivation for what they were doing. For example, Sarah and Katrina fought before with Sarah losing so they had a pre-existing rivalry. This was something that continued with every chapter, and coupled with more readings and rehearsals, you can see the performances improve for each chapter. Sarah's death was a moment lifted from Yakuza as Kiryu's subordinate died in a similar way. I tried to add as many of these moments as I could to make the plot feel familiar to a degree to those familiar with the series.

The plot twists, dialogue and the way characters interact each other emulate the style of the source material, but at the same time, I wanted it to feel like a genuine London crime story. To be honest, the scene at the marina was to fill in gaps either side of the fighting, but with chapter two, there was more time to plan. I wanted to show that Leon was more unhinged after being double-crossed and losing a friend. He doesn't listen to his friend and rushes in getting into a worst situation than last time, and things turn out badly again. For the final chapter, I spent a lot more time in pre-production and took on-board what I had learnt from the previous chapters, and I cast actors James Miller and Alastair Watson in two key, non-fighting roles and wrote characters with those two in mind. I wanted to work with performers that could help elevate the plot and make it believable. I wanted Leon's story, despite being short, to come to a logical and satisfying conclusion. He makes sure that he goes in prepared with Shinji, and by working together they are able to succeed. The two antagonists, Michael Lagin as Hubert Noir and Danny Darwin are friends and excellent martial artists. I wanted to flesh out everyone's stories more but with limited screen time, it wasn't possible. However, everyone did really well and brought the project to life.

Did you deal with any pressure of making sure each sequel would deliver as good as the first?

Not really. As I said, with each shoot, my team were better prepared so the quality improved as we went on. With the final chapter, there were the most script readings and rehearsals, and pre-production started much earlier.

Walk me through how you prepare stunt coordination in the Kiwami series?

As this started as a fan film and was drawing influence from the games, the aim was to make the action authentic to what fans were used to. I looked at the HEAT actions and cutscenes from the modern titles to remind myself of what moves really grab my attention. I took my favourites as key moves and arranged the fight around them. I would write out the sequences in detail and then get practicing with either the cast or other fighters, often performing all the parts from both sides. While I usually had finished choreography by the time we got to rehearsal, I also devised new sections with my cast members, particularly Danny, Michael, Shinji and Thomas on the main fights to make sure things work for them. I also made sure to film a pre-vis so that the  camera operator and editor, Soner Metin, knew how the fight should flow and where we would be cutting. That saved a lot of time, which was limited to say the least.

How was your experience directing the Kiwami series?

It was hard work to be honest. Due to schedule conflicts, I wasn't able to have a fight coordinator or assistant director for the majority of the project. It was fine when I wasn't performing myself, but you really need someone that knows the choreography and how it works to be watching the scene and or the playback. The other cast members helped out with that a lot though so that was helpful, and I had two guests assistant director come in for two separate scenes, which I also really appreciate. It's no fun trying to check people's arrival time, organise lunch, liaise with location staff etc. when you are about to fight with six tough guys! I do really appreciate the work everyone put in. I cast people I knew well and wrote parts specifically for them and for chapter 2 and 3, I met with the main cast members to discuss the plot and their characters, working on the script with them and explaining about my vision for the project.

What did you enjoy most about playing Leon?

Probably the journey he goes on. As I mentioned, I wasn't originally going to be the protagonist but things happened. While the costume I wore in each chapter was a reference to Kiryu from the Yakuza series, as was my fighting style, the reference I wanted to make the most was the on-going gag that despite the title in the West (it's called 'Like A Dragon' in Asia), Kiryu doesn't actually commit crimes in the traditional sense. Apart from sending lots of gangsters to the ICU. In the first game, he is sent to prison for someone else’s crime and is then relentlessly betrayed. While he has loyalty to his clan, his actions always come from a sense of honour as opposed to say Grand Theft Auto, where the protagonist/s will be a criminal. Canonically, he also has the Batman complex of not killing people. It's that sense of honour and duty I wanted to imbue in Leon, so through his brief journey, you can observe transition from loyal soldier to disillusionment with his path. I also tried to make it clear that Leon is against murder and becomes frustrated by his own naivety. In terms of acting, I really like the bar scene with the detective, played by Alastair Watson. It is a bit exposition heavy due to the short film format, but their relationship and his advice tell you a lot about who Leon really is. That scene probably has the most concentrated amount of Easter Eggs for fans as well.

Would you ever reprise the role of Leon?

A lot of social media comments have asked the same question. While I did really enjoy making the films and enjoyed the fans responses, I don't want to just make fan films. I had to get rid of the famous shirt as well. I told them if all the videos combined get a million views, I will make one more featuring the apex predator of the Yakuza series.

How has your experience been with the Fighting Spirit Film Festival?

It's been good. It's really simple to submit a film and I am thankful to be selected twice so that my cast and I can see our work on the big screen. The Stratford Picturehouse is a nice clean venue that's easy for people to get to, so it has been great to meet fellow filmmakers and performers there, as well as people I know. Soo and Weng work really hard and keep everyone up to date.

Images courtesy of Jon Alagoa

Speed Round. Pick one film for each category.

What's your favourite childhood film?

Beetlejuice

What film describes your life?

Groundhog Day

What’s your favourite 80s film?

Aliens

What’s your favourite film by your favourite filmmaker?

Parasite, Bong Joon-Ho

Which film do you watch on a rainy day?

The Matrix

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Make sure to keep up to date with Jon Alagoa on Twitter and his YouTube Channel