DOJO, 15min., USA
Directed by Armin Alic
Shane Lucas, an ex-Yakuza member and 4th degree black belt in Judo, is hunted down at his local dojo in Los Angeles 1985 by his long-time rival, Elias Da Rosa and his crew members from the same crime family. Shane is threatened to come back to the Yakuza or would suffer the consequence of not.
jon – jonpaul1090@gmail.com
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Get to know the filmmaker:
1. What motivated you to make this film? To create an original film with an original idea and to bring a sense of uniqueness using our strengths and tools that we all had in our team to be able to deliver to the audience. I also wanted to bring back that feeling of surrealness in our film through martial arts and through the process of self-discovery in the character to bring along the audience for a ride in the film!
2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film? It took about a year and half to complete everything from the idea of the story towards the end of post-production.
3. How would you describe your film in two words!? Spiritual and truth.
4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film? Getting the whole cast and crew members together, perfecting our roles and choreography, and overcoming Covid during that time.
5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video? It was great to hear their reactions and it brought joy that I was able to deliver what the audience would enjoy and wanted in a film like ours.
6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films? When I wanted to make “Dojo” and I wanted the vision in my head to come out for the audience to see and enjoy.
7. What film have you seen the most in your life? The Matrix.
8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career? Doing more interviews, articles, and networking with film distributors, directors, and producers on this film and on future upcoming films that we are working on.
9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site? It’s been great so far, the submission process is smooth and our film is getting more and more publicity as we continue on winning festival awards. Which as of now we have over 60 festival awards at the moment.
10. What is your favorite meal? Eggs and a good steak.
11. What is next for you? A new film? Yes! We are working on the feature film for “Dojo”, which is called “The Way” and it will cover the full story of “Dojo” and introduce all of the characters.
Matthew Toffolo's Summary 