Martial arts films are a subgenre of action films that feature martial arts combat between characters. These combats are usually the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often are a method of storytelling and character expression and development. Martial arts are frequently featured in training scenes and other sequences in addition to fights. Martial arts films commonly include hand-to-hand combat along with other types of action, such as stuntwork, chases, and gunfights. Sub-genres of martial arts films include kung fu films, wuxia, karate films, and martial arts action comedy films, while related genres include gun fu, jidaigeki and samurai films.
Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preservation of a nation's intangible cultural heritage.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to martial arts:
Ernie Reyes Jr. is an American actor and martial artist, known for his acting work in films such as The Last Dragon, Red Sonja (1985), as Donatello's stuntman in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991), Surf Ninjas (1993) and The Rundown (2003). He has also done stunt work in films such as Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, as well as motion capture stunts in films such as Avatar and Alice in Wonderland. His TV work includes season 3 episode 4 of Highway to Heaven, dramas such as the short-lived Sidekicks, and NCIS: Los Angeles and reality TV series such as Final Fu.
Chopsocky is a colloquial term for martial arts films and kung fu films made primarily by Hong Kong action cinema between the late 1960s and early 1980s. The term was coined by the American motion picture trade magazine Variety following the explosion of films in the genre released in 1973 in the U.S. after the success of Five Fingers of Death. The word is a play on chop suey, combining "chop" and "sock".
Cynthia Ann Christine Rothrock is an American martial artist and actress best known for her martial arts films. Rothrock holds black belt rankings in seven styles of martial arts and was a high-level competitor in martial arts before becoming an actress. In 2014, she was inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame.
Bruceploitation is an exploitation film subgenre that emerged after the death of martial arts film star Bruce Lee in 1973, during which time filmmakers from Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea cast Bruce Lee look-alike actors ("Lee-alikes") to star in imitation martial arts films, in order to exploit Lee's sudden international popularity. Bruce Lee look-alike characters also commonly appear in other media, including anime, comic books, manga, and video games.
Black Belt is an American magazine covering martial arts and combat sports. The magazine is based in Valencia, California, and is one of the oldest titles dedicated to martial arts in the United States.
Kenji (拳児) is a manga series written by Ryuchi Matsuda and illustrated by Yoshihide Fujiwara. The series follows Kenji Goh, a practitioner of the Chinese martial art Bajiquan.
Stephen "The Fight Professor" Quadros is an American broadcaster, specializing in play-by-play and color commentary, as well as interviews for the combat sports genre on cable, pay-per-view and DVD. His resume encompasses over 100 international mixed martial arts events since 1997.
The origins of Asian martial arts are diverse and scattered, having roots in various regions of Asia. Various Asian martial arts reference the study of animal movements as inspiration for martial arts techniques.
Richard Meyers, is an American author, ghostwriter, screenwriter, consultant, actor, editor, and teacher, who may be best known for his contributions to the martial arts film industry.
Kathy Long is an American kickboxer, mixed martial artist, and actress. She has held various kickboxing championships, including two KICK World Kickboxing titles and the WKA and ISKA world titles.
Karyn Turner is an American martial arts expert who has been variously known as “The Queen of Kata”, “First Lady of Kung Fu”, and “The Mother of U.S. Kickboxing”. Named as the “most outstanding woman in the history of martial arts” by Black Belt Magazine in 1978, she was the first woman to take a double victory in both fighting (kumite) and form (kata) in the International Women’s Karate Championship, a feat she accomplished in 1976. She was the first woman to enter men's divisions at the World Championships in kata and weapons, and to become World Champion in the men's division in both. At the peak of her career in 1977, she entered twenty-three tournaments and swept three divisions, including men’s weapons kata. In 1990, Turner was the first woman in history to be nominated into the Black Belt Hall of Fame as “Competitor of the Year”, the same year she was selected by Black Belt Magazine as their “Woman of the Year”. In 2009, she was inducted into the Martial Arts History Museum “Hall of Fame”.
Karen Sheperd is an American actress, martial artist and keynote speaker with an extensive career in film, theatre and television.
Seven Deadly Arts with Akshay Kumar is a seven-part television mini-series that aired on the National Geographic Channel in 2004. It was hosted by Akshay Kumar. Kumar donated his time and talents to the show.
Ron Marchini is an American karateka and actor who, according to many martial artists, is one of the top karate tournament fighters of all time.
Paulie Zink is an American martial arts champion, Daoyin teacher and well known practitioner of Monkey Kung Fu. He founded Yin yoga which is also known as Yin and Yang Yoga.
Barry Pang, 吴国树 is a martial arts instructor who was involved in the development and growth of kung fu in Australia. He is a noted Chinese Australian and Melbourne Australian Chinese entrepreneur. The Barry Pang school has been in operation since 1974 and was one of the earliest kung fu schools in Melbourne. Pang is involved in the Australian horse racing industry and was the first Chinese Australian owner of a Melbourne Cup Winner, Fiorente. His son is actor Chris Pang.
