[foonlesse]

I am producing a new documentary for the history channel based on the American weekend warrior subculture. It will be covering such topics as reinactment groups, weapons based martial arts, SCA, online based fighting etc.

Is there anything you would like to see?

Thanks

[elossenen]

i mean this in the nicest way possible, but what in hell does "weapons-based martial arts" have to do with re-*Enactment groups, SCA, and online-based fighting?

Maybe I'm cynical since I see the former as something legit and the latter as synonymous with backyard ninjery.

maybe i'm reading more into this than I really should...

It seems i've known some people who participated in both kendo/iaido and SCA-type stuff... most of them have not lasted long in kendo... whether they actually use their kendo/iaido knowledge while they play SCA in the local parks, I honestly don't know [the people i've known i've never actually seen in SCA-action). based on what i've seen in person and on youtube, I just don't see much connection between legit sword arts and SCA/LARP/whatever that people do on weekends..

[Zarekylin75]

Had to go look up LARP, knew what SCA meant. Yeah I've got a problem with "American Weekend Warrior" and "weapons based martial arts" in the same room too. It is without dispute that lots of folks join kendo, iaido or jodo because they "want to be a samurai" but they don't stick with it long, it just isn't that kind of an experience. The SCA is much more than rattan and duct tape, it's costumes and feasts and a whole social group. While kendo is a social group, it's much more about whacking each other with sticks. A few beers afterward is certainly social, but so is a few beers after baseball. Groups like the SCA are much more encompassing, they're about the role playing rather than about the practice or the sport... I generalize but this seems to me to be the difference between the "weekend warrior" and the martial artist. One is about a social group and the other is about the practice itself so they tend to accumulate different folks wanting different things.

Kim.

[tpJKhY8Z]

One is about a social group and the other is about the practice itself so they tend to accumulate different folks wanting different things.

Kim.

That's a much nicer articulation than what I came up with.

[joe-salton]

i just a had a thought....

maybe this documentary is supposed to show the DIFFERENCE between real/legit weapons-based martial arts and the SCA/LARP crowd??

If that's true, it might be important to point out that kendo players (and iaido players and whatever other legit JSA groups/folks are out there) do not care who belongs to what "kingdom" and isn't interested in the "political intrigue" among the various "kingdoms"

[AndyScouchek]

... it might be important to point out that kendo players (and iaido players and whatever other legit JSA groups/folks are out there) do not care who belongs to what "kingdom" and isn't interested in the "political intrigue" among the various "kingdoms"

Wow... would that it was true, unfortunately I think that world is further into fantasy than the cosplay folks. ;-)

Kim.

[NickGrass]

I am producing a new documentary for the history channel based on the American weekend warrior subculture. It will be covering such topics as reinactment groups, weapons based martial arts, SCA, online based fighting etc.

Is there anything you would like to see?

Thanks

What sort of program will this be? A general documentery, or one in which a host engages in that particular art/sport for a weekend ala Dhani Tackles the Globe, Human Weapon etc?

Weapons based martial arts is a pretty large specturm, from western fencing, the ARMA, to phillipino martial arts (arnis/escrima/kali) as practiced by the dog brothers to some of the others listed above. There have already been at least one documentery on the Dog Brothers on National Geographic channel, but it would be interesting to include that sort of material since it is more or less MMA with sticks.

From an entertainment standpoint, the SCA does have large battles with up to hundreds of people on a side, which would be more entertaining for the average viewer. There have been several documentries covering SCA as well.

Aspects from japanese arts which might be more entertaining to the general public might include isshu-jiai: kendo players versus naginata, kusurigama, or a jukendo match. Likewise test cutting of some kind would be attractive.

[Casyimipist]

..............

[eskimosik]

Wow... would that it was true, unfortunately I think that world is further into fantasy than the cosplay folks. ;-)

Kim.

hahaha... i don't think i realized what i was typing.

some folks around here will find that really ironic. ...and funny...

[Proodustommor]

When I think of online-based fighting, what comes to mind are Call of Duty and World of Warcraft, etc.

[Nicihntm]

When I think of online-based fighting, what comes to mind are Call of Duty and World of Warcraft, etc.

That stuff has it's own Cable and Pay-per-view channels in Korea, there are even courses one can take in order to advance their gaming online. If the uninitiated masses honestly consider LARP and SCA to be weapons-based martial arts, it might not be long before certain games are roped-in as well.

After all, a great deal of recon and some combat is done via remote-control these days (the MRAP sometimes comes equipped with remote-controlled weapons which require qualification for proper deployment) and computerized simulations (games) are frequently used as training for these control systems.

It adds to the reasons why the drop-out rate for Kendo and other legitimate 'traditional' dojos seems to be so high.

[exeftWabreava]

Have you guys watched whats on the history channel lately? Half of their lineup seems to be psuedo science and realitytv, though apparently their head of programming just moved to the Lifetime channel after drawing in a lot of new viewers with non-historical programming. The likelihood of a serious JSA documentry is fairly low, I would expect some sensationalism to attract viewers.

[indianstory]

If you have guts, you may want to show the difference between McDojo and traditional dojo. What are the difference. What people has to watch out.... While I am writing this, I get bored.... dang....

I am producing a new documentary for the history channel based on the American weekend warrior subculture. It will be covering such topics as reinactment groups, weapons based martial arts, SCA, online based fighting etc.

Is there anything you would like to see?

Thanks

[jokilewqs]

Is there anything you would like to see?

To try to paraphrase some of the other comments, I guess a lot of us would like to see a line drawn between reenactment groups, SCA, etc; online fighting; and martial arts.

I think it's obvious why these things would all be shown together in one TV show. J Random American doesn't differentiate between them, so why shouldn't a documentary intended for the layperson not include all of them? The value is to show the common public the range of options and the general differences between them. Why is it so surprising?

One thing I would very much like to see, but I don't really expect it to have much room in a show such as this, is some serious discussion of America's love affair with violence. I mean, as others have said, our martial arts practice is about the art and not really so much about fighting, and the people who join expecting to learn how to slice and dice leave disappointed. I think it says something that in our culture people automatically expect Japanese Sword Arts to be more Kill Bill than meditative kyudo. And upon learning that it is not Kill Bill, we get ridiculous discussions like the kendo vs kenjutsu and the jodo treatise threads which criticize the practice as being illegitimate because they are (seemingly?) not battlefield effective. In a similar way, there are plenty of people who are attracted to the SCA for the fighting, and not the reenactment. The SCA could be an entirely interesting community with no fighting, and yet fighting is a fundamental part of the culture. Then we have things like the Dog Brothers, who are only about fighting.

[Attarderb]

The more suggestions you provide the more material we will have so keep it coming.

[SimSlim]

bottom line.... i think if your goal is a documentary on the "american weekend warrior subculture" then you ought to just concentrate on groups that fit into that category, and... i dunno how to articulate just what i want to say, but... i think that pretty much rules out serious kendo/iaido/JSA people.... even if they practice "only on the weekend", what i think you're getting at is the difference between people who train seriously in weapons-based martial arts and people who do *something* involving weapons "just for fun" (i.e., SCA, LARP, etc.)

you might consider interviewing the "just for fun" crowd to see if any of them do "serious training" in weapons-based martial arts (i.e., kendo, iaido, JSA, etc.) and then ask them how/to what extent their serious training carries over, if at all, to the "just for fun" stuff they do on the weekends. ....or ask them what kind of training they specifically do (i.e., if not "serious training") in order to carry out their "just for fun" activities.

in the greater scheme of things, it seems as if this thread is directed towards the wrong group of people...

[ananciguinter]

Well said, Tango. I see a distinction between people who are trying to escape reality through play acting, and those who are trying to get to the essence of reality through the self discipline of serious endeavor.

[RagonaCon]

I do have respect for the people who do historical reenactment (I'm thinking of people who do those Civil War things). Its a culture and hobby that I know little about, but still think is interesting and isn't something I'm willing to disparage. From what they do, it seems like it requires a great deal of discipline, research, money and commitment.

However, although there are many similarities between those kinds of historical reenactors and kendoists, I wouldn't consider myself a weekend warrior or a roleplayer at all. At most I'd consider myself a hobbyist sportsman or a Japanese fencer. There are many analogies I could make. For example, although one could make a link between grecoroman wrestling and ancient greek culture, I doubt that participants in the modern day sport think of themselves as greek hoplites, or asking if modern day amateur golfers actually think they're learning scottish culture or shepherding.

[BrainTop]

Good luck with the documentary. Kendo, iado, and other legitimate martial arts have very little in common with SCA, LARPing, and backyard ninja activities.

[Prealiitellg]

I do have respect for the people who do historical reenactment (I'm thinking of people who do those Civil War things). Its a culture and hobby that I know little about, but still think is interesting and isn't something I'm willing to disparage. From what they do, it seems like it requires a great deal of discipline, research, money and commitment.

I agree. I don't get why people here look down on it as being 'not legit'. How is kendo/etc worth more than that, if we people enjoy it and aren't hurting anyone by doing it?.