Okinawan Shorin Ryu Karate Expert - William Christopher Ford.

William Christoher Ford is a 5th degree blackbelt in Okinawan Shorin Ryu Karate and was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012 by the Masters Hall of Fame. He's been featured in over a dozen films and is often cast in theatric work. He also played a supporting role in Karate Kid III.

How did failing your first black belt test affect you? Do you believe having the possibility of failure on your promotion test is a good thing? Why?

First of all, "Failing" is simply not getting the result you wanted or expected at the time. "Failing" was one of my best teachers. I learned that I was not prepared… my stances were weak, my stamina insufficient, my visual and mental focus all over the place. ..so I took the lessons of that experience and trained harder and worked on my shortcomings. I started running and doing rope work, practiced my kata more seriously, and prepared myself mentally. When I took the test again, several months later, I was better prepared and I passed. I learned the value of working hard for and earning what I wanted, goal setting, persistence, humility, and the dangers of being overconfident. These are invaluable lessons that I might not have learned had I not "failed".

Can you tell us about your most memorable moment in your martial arts career.

My most memorable moment in my martial arts career was opening Kaizen Dojo. It is joyful beyond measure to be able to share my experiences with my students and to be able to positively impact their lives empowering  them with self-protection skills, helping them to build their confidence and self-esteem, teaching them self-control and how to respect others and themselves. I love what I do and it is an honor and privilege for me to be able to do it as my primary career.

Name 3 characteristics that help someone become successful in martial arts.

Persistance, Desire, An open mind. And here is a 4th: Be a beginner every day.

What makes Kobayashi Ryu unique from the other 3 major schools of Shorin Ryu Karate?

The styles are similar, in my opinion, but the kata curriculum varies with each style and school. Sometimes the kata used are the same with slight differences and sometimes altogether different kata are used across the styles and dojos. 

Now, the way that I was taught Kobayashi Ryu is different than many other dojos, in that both Sensei Richard Rabago and Master Tadashi Yamashita emphasized lower stances, in order to strengthen the legs and hips, though not as low as say, Japanese Shotokan. But definitely lower than what you'll typically find in most Okinawan Karate. Probably closer to Shito Ryu. Also we do not use a deep back stance (kokutsu dachi). We use cat stance (neko ashi dachi), front stance (both lower and higher), horse stance, and sumo stance (shiko dachi) in our kata. 

In regards to what I teach at Kaizen Dojo… I teach traditional Shorin Ryu as a base but with a more modern approach. I am very open-minded and believe all styles have many great things to offer. I really like Western Boxing, Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, and Filipino Arnis too. Concepts from these arts are brought into our curriculum. Wrestling, Pencak Silat, Kung Foo San Soo, Wing Chun, Hung Gar, Aikido, Judo, all have great value in their own way. 

I believe kata is a template and the techniques can be applied in a myriad of different ways. But kata must have a combative application and these applications must be practiced in a variety of situations with an ever increasing level of resistance from your training partners… that is critical. Without that, you have a pretty , little dance. There must always be a combative attitude and application. But more important than any "style",  is situational awareness, verbal de-escalation, diffusing the situation if possible, and Run Foo ("RUN, FOO!") if you can escape.

What are the clues that a student should look for that reveal the fact that a martial arts school is genuinely interested in sharing their martial arts knowledge for the love of it or just interested in the money?

Watch the instructor teach. Does his teaching style resonate with you? Look at the quality of the students. Ask a ton of questions.  See if he pressures you to commit right away. Talk to the other parents. Check the school out on YELP. Remember high tuition does not necessarily mean that the school is only about the money. If they are offering a high quality program with tremendous value, than it might be worth the investment, however, I would be wary of long-term contracts that you can't cancel easily, hidden fees, price gouging on testing fees and equipment and if all the students are testing every month regardless of skill and you see 7 year old black belts running around the school, run the other way!

Critics state Karate styles have no defense techniques against ground fighting. Is this true? If so, how do you offset this with your school’s training?

I have no emotional attachment to any one style. One must use whatever is effective and appropriate to the situation. BJJ is taught at our school by Jocelyn Chang, a black belt who has studied BJJ for 19 years. Guro Marc Lawrence teaches Filipino Arnis at Kaizen Dojo. They are both very complementary to karate (old style Okinawan karate or modern sport karate). But there is no one style that is the be all and end all. A martial artist should be open-minded, well rounded, and adaptable. That's why I admire and respect fighters like Lyota Machida, Georges St. Pierre, and Jon Jones. They have been able to utilize their karate, muay thai, and boxing skills effectively against their opponents as well as their grappling skills.

What advice would you give a 15 year old on how to pursue his goal to act in a martial arts movie?

Study the martial arts and action films you like. Why do you like them? What makes them work in regards to story, acting, action, soundtrack, editing. Listen to the filmmakers' commentaries on how the film was made. Analyze the fights. Look at the angles and how they were shot.

Get a camera and start putting your own fights together. Learn the difference between a real fight or sparring and a fight meant for a film and yet again, a fight meant for a stage production. All are different. Often times moves that work in a real fight can't be read by the camera which means your audience isn't getting it or they are seeing all the "misses" in the fights because they are shot poorly.

Learn to edit.

Take a few acting classes. You eventually want to get into a class that teaches acting for film and television meaning they use a camera to record your performance in  class so you can get feedback. This can be a very painful process but you will learn very quickly the difference between what works for the stage and what works for film and television. If you should ever come to Los Angeles, I have a few great teachers that I could recommend. Hone your craft and keep honing it.

Get involved with student films and indie films to gain experience and to network. This can be invaluable. Most of these don't have the budget to pay their actors but you will learn a LOT! And usually, you get CCM (copy, credit, meal). Ask to get a copy of the completed project but also of your scenes. You won't always be successful in getting a copy but it's always worth asking for. Now, many of these folks own their own equipment or have access to people who do and they are often looking to shoot something while they are in between projects. These are the people you want to become friends with. They might be interested in shooting an action short (or a feature!)

Build your network and keep building it.  You can find out about various projects that are being cast through actor submission websites like Nowcasting.com ( great for student films and indies), Castingnetworks.com and Actorsaccess.com.

Nurture your  relationships with stunt people, martial artists, actors, filmmakers, casting, cinematographers, sound people, editors. Network.

You may want to eventually consider self -producing at some point. Not easy but worth considering.

You eventually may find yourself a big fish in a little pond. Don't be afraid to become eventually a smaller fish in a bigger pond if

you want to move up.

Stay humble. Stay balanced.

Have a plan, a plan B, and a plan C.

Never give up.

Have fun!

For more details about William Christopher Ford, visit his professional webite and his dojo's website.

Jayson Patino Interview - BJJ Expert

Jayson Patino is a black Belt in BJJ and Taekwondo. He has participated in extreme fighting championships and has a history of winning in high level BJJ matches. 

Tell us about yourself and your school.

My name is Jayson Patino and I am the Owner and Head Instructor of American Top Team East Orlando. I started training Taekwondo when I was five years old then wrestled in high school and college. I was a 2x NCWA All American in wrestling at UCF and a member of the US Grappling World Team. I fought MMA professionally and received my black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu from Ricardo Liborio. I teach and train at my academy everyday and compete as much as I can. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is my passion. I love practicing different ways to submit people, its fun! Teaching has given me a way to pass on all the great benefits of training BJJ to my students. It is very rewarding seeing people achieve their goals and improving because of something you showed them. 

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What has been your biggest accomplishment to date? Why did it mean so much to you?

My biggest accomplishment is probably winning the 2009 ADCC North American Trials and competing with the best grapplers in the world at ADCC in Barcelona. This meant a lot to me because after training so hard for so long, I finally got some recognition. I had won several local and regional tournaments but this was my first big tournament win. 

You have won titles in Gi and No Gi brackets. Do you feel it's important to train one more than the other to be expert in both?

I believe training in both gi and no-gi will make you the most effective grappler. My first three years of training were all no-gi. Once I put the gi on it was much harder to submit people who knew how to slow me down using the gi grips. Learning the intricate details of gi will help make you more technical. Then training no-gi will help improve your ground game without relying on the grips of the gi. This mix of both has really helped me through the years. 

We have heard to points of view. One being, "BJJ is the greatest martial art in the world for self defense." and the other, "Being on the ground in a real fight is the worse place to be in." What is your philosophy about these statements?

In terms of self defense, BJJ is definitely one of the most effective martial arts. There are so many variables in self defense situations though, that a mix of multiple martial arts like Muay Thai and BJJ would be the MOST effective way to defend yourself. 

In response to people who say being on the ground during a real fight is the worst place to be in: If there are multiple people attacking you,  then yes, I agree. Your objective should be to defend and escape. In a one on one fight situation though, BJJ is a very effective way to defend yourself and subdue an attacker. In addition to teaching techniques that focus on angles and leverage over strength, BJJ also focuses on staying calm and relaxed. The ability to remain focused and not allow emotions or adrenaline to overwhelm you during a stressful situation can be very useful. 

What do you feel is the most under-utilized technique in BJJ? Taekwondo? Muay Thai?

The most under-utilized technique in BJJ is probably takedowns. Most higher level jui jitsu players want to pull guard and try to sweep or submit instead of working for a takedown. This is actually a very smart strategy but it leaves many jiu-jitsu players with bad takedowns. 

The most under-utilized technique in Taekwondo is protecting your chin. Students are taught to throw punches and bring your fist back to your waist instead of back to your chin. Sparring with experienced fighters really exposes this hole. 

The most under-utilized technique in Muay Thai is probably elbows. Elbows are great close range weapons that can cause serious damage. 

How can someone tell if their local BJJ school is any good?

You can tell if a local BJJ school is good by looking at the instructor's credentials, students' accomplishments and by trying classes there. Ideally, a good academy will have an instructor with decent achievements as well as having produced technical students. Sometimes there are great competitors out there that are not as good at teaching. Trying classes at an academy will let you see the instructor's teaching style, their class structure and let you get a feel for the atmosphere. Training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is a lifestyle and long term commitment. You want to make sure you are comfortable with the people you will be training with over the next few years.

What are your thoughts on instructional videos being available for free online?

Instructional videos being available online is a great resource for students worldwide to improve their game. I have watched several instructionals online and post my own instructional videos on YouTube as well. 

If you never win matches at your home gym, do you feel it is still important to attend tournaments? Why?

If you are never winning matches in your academy it is probably not a good idea to compete in a tournament  (unless you are a beginner and have all advanced training partners). Confidence plays an important role in your performance. If your confidence is already low from constantly losing during training, it could get worse if you lose in competition in front of an audience. This could turn someone off from wanting to train BJJ and ultimately cause them to miss out on all the benefits training has to offer. Practicing more and improving your weaknesses before entering in a competition would be a better idea. 

Visit Jayson and American Top Team for more information.

Mike Moh Interview - Martial Artist

Mike Moh is a 4th degree black belt in Taekwondo. He has played  in multiple TV series and is also known for his stunt work. You can see Mike in the upcoming film Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist as Ryu.

What did you enjoy most about your Taekwondo competitions when you were younger?

I really enjoyed the opportunity to showcase the skills I had been working hard to improve on in my training. It was also a very friendly environment and still am friends with many of the kids I competed with!

Are the flips and twist normally taught in Taekwondo? If not, how did you learn them?

No flips and twists are normally taught in traditional taekwondo. However, the high flying/spinning kicks that taekwondo is known for make transitioning into "tricks" much easier than other martial arts styles. I learned how to do tricks by teaching myself with the help of online videos and going to open gym sessions at gymnastics facilities.

When you were filming with Jackie Chan. Did you ever hear him say something in person that has stuck with you after all this time?

It was more of what he did than what he said. Even though he's one of the world's biggest movie stars, on the set he was sweeping the floor, running around like crazy working very hard to help out the production. He ate meals alongside everyone else and even shared his chicken with me! He's a hard worker and very very down to earth.

Has your degree in Marketing helped you develop your acting career? If yes, how so?

My college experience helped me as an actor as it taught me about life and how to live on my own and be responsible. For me, acting is all about drawing from personal experiences and translating those experiences into your character. 

Many martial artists start off with stunt work. Do you feel this is a good way to get started?

Everyone has their own path. For me, my background in martial arts helped me get acting agents immediately so I was fortunate to book work in TV and commercials right away since my main goal was to be an actor not just martial artist. Others prefer to stick to stunts or use stunts to transition into acting.

What do you feel was the number one difference between making it as an actor and never being signed after your first role?

Staying positive was my key to success. No matter how talented you are, actors will hear NO many many many times. The actors that can stay positive and continue working hard will end up landing roles that will lead to a prolonged career.

You recently had a spot on Castle, one of our favorite shows. How did you get that spot? What was it like being on the show?

Since I no longer live in Los Angeles, my agent had me video tape an audition. Thankfully, they really liked my audition and after a few days I flew to LA and filmed the show! Working on the show with actors like Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic was pretty intimidating and I was nervous! However, they were very kind and easy to work with and I had a blast working with the Castle crew!

Is there anything we can hope to see you in, in the future?

Besides Street Fighter:Assassin's Fist coming out next month on Machinima, I also have a really cool short film called "The Man from Death" coming out later this year. I play a diabolical villain!

Is there anything else you would like to tell our readers?

Stay positive, train hard, and eat your vegetables.

Mike, thank you for taking time out to answer our questions. We look forward to seeing your upcoming TV appearance. 

Be sure to visit Mike's website to learn more about his career.