Iko Uwais
TB: How long have you been studying Silat? Have you done any other types of martial arts?
IY: I started learning Silat in 1993. I was first a PPSI (Persatuan Pencak Silat Indonesia) student, then I studied at Tiga Berantai Silat School and graduated with honors. I have not studied other martial arts, except Silat, but I am interested in all types of martial arts.
TB: Can you explain to those who are not familiar with this style the main differences from the more popular kung fu, karate, aikido, etc.?
IY: The main difference is the display of movements. Throughout the demonstration, Silat fighters throw punches and kicks to the accompaniment of traditional music, and the style itself is closely related to the teachings of Islam, as it is based on character education, especially in the school of my teacher (H. Ahmad Bunawar - Silat Tiga Berantai). Kung Fu and Silat have quite a lot in common in their movements, but the way music is used gives it a unique quality. Basically, all martial arts have quite a lot in common, but they also have their own special characteristics, which is why they differ from each other. Silat is also divided into many varieties depending on the region. There are 33 regions in Indonesia and, in addition, 10 different traditional schools.
TB: Were you involved in acting or stunt work up to this point? How do you feel about the process of transferring combat skills from real life to the screen? Is it difficult to be an actor?
IY: The most difficult thing was filming the action scenes. I participated as a fighter in many competitions, and in the film I had to perform movements planned in advance. It was also necessary to control his punches so as not to hurt those on the team who did not have similar martial arts experience, while at the same time making sure that they looked as realistic as possible in each take. It is especially difficult to control kicks, because they are based on inertia and sweeping movements, so I had to learn to kick as in real life, but to hit safe places on the body. At competitions everything is different, I move as comfortably as I want and as I want. In addition, I am not afraid of hurting my opponent because he also knows Silat. And speaking of acting, I was very happy and excited to act, I had never done anything like this in my life.
TB: What was the most difficult thing about Gareth's requests? What was the funniest thing?
IY: Thanks to filming, every day I learned something new: filming, acting and staged fights. I'm happy that I learned all this during the making of the film. Gareth also wanted to film some extreme sequences, especially the container fight, where I had to hit stuntmen and throw them down, and the final fight, which we shot 10 hours a day for 14 days. It was a real challenge and he encouraged me as best he could. Gareth is a good director, he understands martial arts and makes smart decisions, and the best part was that I had fun working with him.
Author: Todd Brown
Source: twitch
Translation: EvilDollaR
Home » Articles » Merantau. Interview with the creators »
Tags: Merantau Warrior, Gareth Evans, Iko Uwais, Yayan Ruhian
Tags: Merantau Warrior, Gareth Evans, Iko Uwais, Yayan Ruhian
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