Fenghuang & Zhangjiaje National Forest, China 2018The Undefeated
The Story
The Undefeated is personal photo project about kung-fu monk travelling through Chinese Empire. His family was killed, so he’s seeking death and challenges other fighters in hope someone will put him out of his misery. The shoot took place in China on two locations. First was pictoresque small historical town Fenghuang. Well-known for old wooden houses leaning above river vista, the town is very popular with chinese tourists, so our main challenge was to find places and times without any crowds. That meant we could only shoot before sunrise, so our days would usually involve location scouting and production work during the day, short sleep and waking up at 2am for early morning shoot. Our main hero is actually very well-known kung-fu teacher coming from famous Chinese family. He travelled with us from Prague and helped us find rest of our talents at local kung-fu school.
From Fenghuang we left for Zhanjiajie National Forest, location that’s well-known for inspiring James Cameron in his Avatar movie. Zhangjiajie turned out to be even more crowded than Fenghuang, so we were again forced to shoot long before sunrise to avoid millions of local tourists. Most of the mountain views are blocked by metal railings, so finding the right location wasn’t also easy. This project was my personal personal tribute to kung-fu heroes of my childhood days, when I spent hours watching Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and other great actors.
The Process
Fenghuang looks nothing like on the photos when you come at night. This is the exact view that really scared me when we first came.
Fenghuang just before sunrise, situation got much better and we were able to shoot after all.
We scouted talents in local kung-fu school. Costumes come partly from local theatre, partly are custom-mate. The location is yard of local 5* hotel we rented just for the shoot.
Empty streets of Fenghuang just after 4am.
Location scouting in amazing Zhangjiajie National Forest.
Splendid view on Zhangjiajie temple during sunset.
Behind The Scenes Video
The Undefeated
Dynasties change, emperors come and go. There is no one left to match my skill in the entire Chinese empire. This is the end. I have no more heights to reach. I have been roaming the world for many years. Mountain passes, bamboo groves, rice fields, villages and towns, they all blur together, covered by dust of roads. I challenge masters of old and nameless warriors alike. I seek a worthy opponent who can defeat me at long last. One who can end my pain and misery.
Those responsible for the deaths of my wife and daughter are long dead, they were first. The rage inside me however is still burning and the void lingers. I leave endless lines of adversaries behind, dead, mutilated and humiliated. I am going to the mountains. Undefeated. Knowing, that all I ever gave the world, was suffering. May the heavens show you more mercy than they showed me!
