Articles | "The Real Shaolin" film details

Alexander Lee: My mother is Korean, and for most Korean boys, studying Taekwondo is a rite of passage. I studied Taekwondo since I was 7 years old with Grandmaster Jun Chong and action star Phillip Rhee. After receiving my black belt at 18, I began to try different martial arts. Kung Fu remained a mystery to me, as it was the most ancient and complex of the martial arts. After graduating from the USC film school in 2002, I saw a TV documentary about the Shaolin monks and their amazing Kung Fu practice. The images of a serene temple on a mountaintop with hundreds of monks being taught deadly secrets by an old monk with a long white beard was too amazing to pass up. So I began researching about China and then packed and took off.

I trained in Kung Fu at Shaolin for 3 months. I used to train in a large hall with my school's performance team, who were mostly young boys who would perform Kung Fu shows for tourists. There was a 6 year old boy who was amazing, he had boundless energy, was incredibly flexible, fast, and very cute. What inspired me most was his iron spirit. The boy never complained even during grueling gymnastics exercises. He had more courage than most men. I began to wonder how these young boys ended up at Shaolin and what lay in their future.

I also met many foreigners with crazy stories about how they ended up at Shaolin. Quite a few come to China searching for enlightenment or the secrets of Shaolin Kung Fu. What most don't realize is there are no secrets. The true spirit of Kung Fu lies within one's heart. If you come to Shaolin expecting to leave enlightened you'll be disappointed, which happens to many foreigners.

I realized that these subjects would be great material for a documentary that would show the lives of Kung Fu students at the modern day Shaolin Temple. The documentaries that I viewed before coming to Shaolin were not realistic at all, and only perpetuate the myth that we see in the movies. So I wanted to deconstruct the myth of Shaolin by putting a human face to the stories of the young boys who train there.

AL: When I arrived at Shaolin, I first went to the temple looking for young monk disciples. I was introduced to a monk whose disciples were all orphans. The first day I met Yuan Peng ended up being the first scene in the movie. His face was pure innocence and his flexibility was incredible. I knew I found my young monk. I started visiting the larger schools to find some standout Kung Fu students. I found Zhu, one of the elite Sanda kickboxers at Tagou, the largest Kung Fu school in the world. I met a charismatic American, Orion, who dreamed of dedicating his life to the martial arts like Bruce Lee. And I met Eric, the Frenchman who dreamed of being the first non-Chinese monk at Shaolin. Of course, I followed the stories of other characters, including several female Kung Fu students. But in order to be included in the final cut the characters needed to have a clear goal and an arc in their story with drama.

AL: When I began filming, I didn't know that Yuan Peng was an orphan. I couldn't speak Chinese and my assistant did not translate many story details to me, so I had no idea what was the boy's background. I was just fascinated by his determination and his amazing Kung Fu. Only afterwards, once we started having more in-depth interviews with the boy, did I find out what hardships he went through before and during his stay at Shaolin.

AL: I began production at Shaolin in September 2003 and planned to stay for 6 months but ended up shooting for more than a year. I believe with documentaries production takes longer if you want to show the arc in your characters' stories. I also was juggling 3 different languages: English, Chinese and French, so there was a lot of story details that I didn't find out about until I read the transcripts during post-production. Most of the characters lived minutes from each other, although they didn't know each other. Except for Yuan Peng who was sent an hour away into the rural countryside.

LA: Any behind-the scenes war stories that you could share?

AL: The most challenging part of filming was finding Chinese subjects who were comfortable with my camera. The Jerry Springer Show would have a tough time in China as Chinese don't like to talk about their personal feelings on camera. The Chinese generally are more reserved and not as talkative as Americans. So finding subjects who were not self-conscious while I filmed them was pretty difficult. Many Kung Fu students thought I would just film some cool-looking forms and breaking bricks over the head, like the majority of Shaolin documentaries. Instead, I would interview these kids and ask them very personal questions, like why their parents sent them to Shaolin. Most kids at Shaolin don't want to admit that their parents are poor farmers who don't want their kids to follow in their footsteps. I was lucky to find my two Chinese subjects, Zhu and Yuan Peng who were so open and graceful while filming.

AL: We shot over 140 hours of footage but the final version of the film is only 89 minutes long. The scenes I wish I could have included were Yuan Peng just being a kid playing with his friend. The scenes were cute but did not fit with the theme of Yuan Peng undergoing hardship. When you edit, you have to make choices in theme and mood that affect the audience's heartstrings. Also, there were some hilarious scenes with Eric and Hussein talking about the real dirt of Shaolin that did not make the cut unfortunately.

AL: The film has not yet been shown in China, and I'm not sure what the monks' reaction will be. But I hope it will be positive as I try to show a fair and diverse perspective of the many aspects of the Shaolin Temple.

AL: China is an amazing country. It was a mystery before I arrived and remains a mystery to me after living there for several years. It's too complex of a place to categorize. It can be beautiful and magical, and also chaotic and crazy. During every festival Q&A, I'm always asked whether I had difficulties with the government while filming. I was very lucky that Shaolin is a popular place to film and has international TV crew constantly coming in and out. I stayed at Shaolin for over a year, longer than any foreign film crew, so the locals began to trust me more after a length of time passed.

AL: I wrote a script while at USC called "Paris Nights," a coming of age comedy about four exchange students in Paris who have a crazy night out on the town. I want to adapt the story to take place in Shanghai, as I love that city and feel that a part of my destiny lies in China. I'm looking for a talented writing partner to collaborate on the script, and a producer with experience working in the Chinese film industry. I have many other TV and film ideas for projects that take place in Europe or Asia, which is where my creative interests lie. I like to abide by a Buddhist saying a Shaolin monk told me, "Yuan Fen" (Follow Destiny).

AL: My Kung Fu sucks! I don't eat bitter anymore, as I'm just too busy and tired at the end of a long day's work. I hope to begin training in MMA again in the coming months.