Albert Pyun

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Albert Pyun (born 1954) is a Hawaiian film director best known for having made many low-budget B-movies and direct-to-video action films. He frequently blends kickboxing and hybrid martial arts with science fiction and dystopic or post-apocalyptic themes, which often includes cyborgs. His career has had a number of different phases. His early films were marked by imaginative, if uneven fantasy films such as The Sword and the Sorcerer, Radioactive Dreams and Vicious Lips. In the mid-80's, Radioactive Dreams marked a collaboration with John Stockwell (Blue Crush, Into the Blue, Turistas) who would go on the write and act in Dangerously Close (1986) for Pyun. Radioactive Dreams is also notable as the second collaboration with Oscar winning Special Make Up Effects guru Greg Cannon (Dracula, Van Helsing), with whom Pyun would work steadily into the 90's and as the first film editing for Oscar winners, David Brenner (Wall Street) and Joe Hutchings (Born on the Fourth of July).. Pyun's films took a slightly more mainstream turn with the acclaimed thriller "Dangerously Close" which he followed with a romantic adventure film "Down Twisted" starring Carey Lowell, Charles Rocket, and Courtney Cox.

The late 80's found Pyun making some of his most interesting if poorly received movies, such as supermodel Kathy Ireland's debut in "Alien From L.A.", a PG children's fairy tale, and "Cyborg" which starred the muscles from Brussels, Jean Claude Van Damme then at the start of his career. In this time, Pyun made his three day cult classic "Deceit" for $25,000 and it is still consider one of his best experimental efforts. In 1989 he began the ill-fated "Captain America" which was severely hampered when the financing fell out. The film limped to completion a mere shadow of the film it was intended to be. The 90's found Pyun moving from film to film with very little in the way of personal cinema. The exceptions were his groundbreaking and still admired film "Nemesis" (1992) with a young Thomas Jane; his offbeat love story "Brainsmasher...A Love Story" (1993) with Teri Hatcher and Andrew Dice Clay; and his most popular cult classic, "Mean Guns" (1997) with Christopher Lambert and Ice-T.

The late 90's through 2004 found Pyun involved in uninspired films and with a succession of new, but highly dubious producers. The quality of his work plummeted when he no longer worked with his longtime producer Tom Karnowski and cinematographer George Mooradian. In 2004 Pyun went to the US territory of Guam, and along with film producer John Laing, convinced the Guam goverment to put up a one million dollar loan guaranty to finance their film Max Havoc: Curse of the Dragon. In 2006 producer John Laing defaulted on the film loan, and Guam lost it's million dollar guaranty. The fiasco is currently in litigation. But beginning in 2005, Pyun seems to have regained his footing and his recent films reflect that his creative spirit is once more going strong. Receiving a Lifetime achievement award in Spain in 2005 may have been the impetus to reignite this crazy master of edgy cinema.

Having trained under the legendary Akira Kurosawa, he has been acknowledged for squeezing dramatic cinematography into otherwise low budget productions. Japanese superstar Toshiro MIfune and Kurosawa's cameraman Takao Saito were Pyun's mentors and its clear his eye was trained by his experience in Japan. His most successful works include The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982), Cyborg (1989), and Nemesis (1993). His low-profile 1985-movie Radioactive Dreams won The Golden Raven at the Brussels International Festival of Fantasy Film. A few of his films have gained large, worldwide cult followings.

Pyun founded the Filmwerks production company in 1994 which he left in 1999. Although long considered a direct to video King, a number of Pyun's films played in US big screen cinemas such as The Swords and the Sorcerer, Radioactive Dreams, Dangerously Close, Down Twisted, Alien From LA, Cyborg, Kickboxer 2, Nemesis and Adrenalin...Fear the Rush. He's worked with an odd mix of stars like Charlie Sheen, Rutger Hauer, Snoop Dogg, Ice T, Christopher Lambert, Teri Hatcher, Courtney Cox, Thomas Jane, Dennis Hopper, Tom Sizemore, Jean Claude Van Damme, Steven Seagal, Burt Reynolds, Rob Lowe, Mario Van Peebles, Nas, Natasha Henstridge, Big Pun, Fat Joe and Kris Kristofferson.

His latest project, the 2005 film Infection used unconventional camera work and cinematography: 68 minutes in length, it is one single uninterrupted sequence shot from a surveillance camera position mounted inside a police car. It was shot in high-definition digital video and captured directly to a hard disk drive. The film won Best Picture and Best Director at Spain's 2005 Estepona International Film Festival and was acquired by Lions Gate Films for release in the fall of 2007. It also screened at the Brussels International Film Festival of Fantasy to great acclaim. The film was invited to participate in more than 20 film festivals around the world.

Beginning in 2005 Pyun has really increased his directing activity having directed "Cool Air" and "Bulletface" in 2006 (winner of Best Experimental at the 2006 Northwest Projections Film Festival) and "Left For Dead" and "From Beyond" so far in 2007. The resurgence might be due to the intense interest his films has had recently due to the internet. His profile worldwide increased dramatically since 2004 with Pyun being the center of discussion on many websites and in the media. It's clear this has raised awareness of Pyun and his lengthy body of work. In 2006 alone 8 of his films were re-released including his one romantic comedy, "Brainsmasher...A Love Story" starring Teri Hatcher. Projects in his future with such notable producers as Mario Kassar (Sweating Bullets) indicate a willingness to move up to studio budgets for the first time in his career.

Long considered a renegade and maverick and a recluse, Pyun now seems to be evolving into more personal and distinctive filmmaker that can work in the mainstream. The resurgence of interest in Pyun and his vast body of work has resulted in many retrospectives and study articles the past three years of his own twisted brand of cinema.

[edit] Selected filmography

Left For Dead 2 (2008) (theatrical) (announced) [Director]
The Princess (2008) (theatrical) (in development) [Director]
La Matanza (2007) (theatrical) (in pre-prep for March) [Director]
Sweating Bullets (2007) (theatrical) (in pre-production) [Director]
From Beyond (2007) (theatrical) (shooting) (Director)
Left For Dead(2007)(theatrical) (in post production) [Director]
Bulletface (2007)(theatrical) (in post production) [Director]
Cool Air (2006) (theatrical) [Director]
Infection (2005) [Director]
Max Havoc: Curse of the Dragon (2004) [Director]
Final Examination (2003) (V) [Producer]
More Mercy (2003) (V) [Director] (uncredited) [Producer]
Ticker (2001) [Director] [Producer]
Corrupt (1999) [Director]
Urban Menace (1999) [Director]
The Wrecking Crew (1999) [Director]
Postmortem (1998/I) [Director]
Crazy Six (1998) [Director]
Mean Guns (1997) [Director]
Omega Doom (1997) [Director] [Writer]
Blast (1997) [Director]
Adrenalin: Fear the Rush (1996) [Director] [Writer]
Raven Hawk (1996) (TV) [Director]
Nemesis 4: Death Angel (1995) (V) [Director] [Writer]
Nemesis III: Prey Harder (1995) (V) [Director] [Writer]
Nemesis 2: Nebula (1995) (V) [Director] [Writer]
Heatseeker (1995) [Director] [Writer] (screenplay)
Hong Kong 97 (1994) [Director]
Kickboxer 4: The Aggressor (1994) [Director] [Writer]
Spitfire (1994) [Director] [Writer]
Brain Smasher... A Love Story (1993) (V) [Director] [Writer]
Knights (1993) [Director] [Writer] (written by)
Arcade (1993) (V) [Director]
Nemesis (1993) [Director]
Dollman (1991) [Director]
Kickboxer 2: The Road Back (1991) [Director]
Captain America (1991) [Director]
Bloodmatch (1991) [Director]
Cyborg (1989) [Director]
Deceit (1989) [Director]
Journey to the Center of the Earth (1989) [Director]
Alien from L.A. (1988) [Director] [Writer]
Down Twisted (1987) [Director]
Vicious Lips (1987) [Director] [Writer]
Dangerously Close (1986) [Director]
Radioactive Dreams (1985) [Director] [Writer]
The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982) [Director] [Writer]

[edit] References

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