Blood Ties

Okay... maybe a bit ambitious...

In November 2003, two actor\film makers set across the world to revolutionize desktop film making.

One with extensive acting training and deep roots into the Atlanta film and acting communities, and the other with a lifetime of martial arts and nearly 2 decades in front of and behind the cameras in the world of low budget action films and martial art movies. Acting as Executive Producer with an initial investment meant to cover the bulk of the production, Robert Pralgo would further act as a Producer, Casting Director, and Lead Actor. Kely McClung would appear as the other lead actor, and serve as the creative force behind the film, serving as Producer, Director, Editor, Fight Choreographer, Composer, and oversee Digital Film Design on the digital enhancement of the film.

The film was lensed primarily on location in Bangkok, Thailand, and Atlanta, Georgia. Additional scenes were filmed in the jungles of central Thailand, in the town of Aranyaprathet on the Cambodian border; and then in the United States in Washington DC; Roanoke, Virginia; Miami, Florida; and in communities throughout Georgia.

The Concept

As simple as possible, Jim, (Robert Pralgo) would be kidnapped, and Jack, (Kely McClung) would save him; in essence, Rob would get his ass kicked everywhere he went, and everywhere Kely would go, he'd kick everybody's ass.

From this most basic of concepts, Kely began writing a complex film script dealing with government double dealing and past treacheries, wrapped within the emotional framework of two brothers, Jim and Jack Davis, willing to put everything on the line for each other, and the still unsolved murder of Jack's wife.

Though several ideas were originally written into the movie script dealing with a secret, covert arm acting under the blanket of the Home Land Security Act, the producers felt that if they could pack in enough martial arts action, it would make up for any discrepancies of story and production. Having once worked under Menahem Golan, Kely remembered Menahem's advice of striving for action every six minutes. Determined to outdo these radical numbers, and yet still make a credible action film, Kely polished his ideas and then had the task of convincing his friend and partner that the easiest way to make the film was to head overseas.

We're gonna do what? "We have no money. We have no crew. We have no connections. We don't know anybody there." All logical arguments, except that Kely had once spent an extended time in Thailand teaching his own concepts of martial arts, and felt that it was definitely the place to get the most bang for the buck. Sometimes literally - the buck. Having convinced Rob that we could do a huge car chase through the chaos of Bangkok streets for 100 dollars, Rob was in. Now to find a cameraman. More....	Initial Reactions - We screen ten minutes Reaction was pretty much universal from both friends and family, some in the business and some who had just put up with us for many years: You guys are insane. You are nuts to try to make a film, (a very difficult task with everything on your side), but wow, it sounds really cool! Within just a few weeks of being home, with the sad shake of the heads, and the silent "I told you so's" with our explanations of how we did not finish it, nearly 10 minutes were assembled, including one of the big fights, and the kidnapping in the middle on Chinatown streets. More...
Second Screening - 43 minutes - mixed feelings Most of another year had gone by. More filming had been done, rewrites to accommodate the realities of budget, and the seemingly endless editing. Time to let people know this was going somewhere. More coming soon...	The joys of desktop post - 2 and 1/2 years and counting The end in sight after 2 and 1/2 years. I had heard from friends over the years and it always seemed their films took about 2 years. I never said anything, but like most people, I couldn't figure out what the heck they were doing to take so long. More coming soon...
The American Film Market - We're on to something With 80 minutes of completed film, Kely cut their first movie trailer. At 3 and 1/2 minutes, seemingly packed with action and no audio other than temp music, the film makers finally had something to show that looked like a movie. Kely made a last trip to Thailand, recording as much ADR and wild sound as possible. A meeting with Thailand's most successful production studio brought looks of genuine amazement. More coming soon...	Lessons learned (or yet to be learned) Wow! Certainly too many to write. Many already in the books and some we could write ourselves. Sound, location recording, good mics, and taking out extra insurance on shipped luggage. Finding a way to back up the huge amounts of information (6 terabytes and counting) that Digital Film Design's visual fx and processing created. Creating the most stable editing and processing environment possible and a way to log the thousands of files and changes. More coming soon...

BLOOD TIES Home

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The Players

Okay... maybe a bit ambitious...

The Concept