Meet Australian expat whose job is to train laowai film actors

Nillah speaks with Troy for My China Story.

Meet Australian expat whose job is to train laowai film actors.

Chinese movies have always stood out due to the added elements of martial arts in their performances leaving many foreign fans in utter amazement on how the stunts are achieved.

Mega film stars like Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Donnie Yen have in recent times been the star attractions for many action packed films that have in many ways inspired some non-Chinese actors to train in martial arts.    

(Photo provided by Troy’s Team)

Being able to perfectly perform their own stunts is the driving force behind an influx of many upcoming foreign actors to China in their bid to practice Kungfu; a skill that they believe would catapult/ give them an upper hand when auditioning roles in China and elsewhere.

 (Troy Sanford on set with Actor Jackie Chan) Photo provided by Troy’s Team.

 Australian actor and director Troy Sanford is known to have made many film appearances due to his ability to perform martial arts. He has also been producing his own independent work.

A martial arts fanatic, he moved here in 2011, in the hope of learning Chinese Martial arts. Fast forward 2017; he now is the front man and the guy behind, Troy’s team, whose members are trained to give extremely dynamic performances using martial arts. 

“Our team is about delivering legendary cinematic action to the world. We want to try and raise the level of martial arts and how it’s perceived in the world through the camera lens. ” says Troy

(A cross-section of Troy’s Team; Photo provided by Troy’s Team)

His team congregates people from a broad range of backgrounds. From action directors, choreographers, performers and film makers, they all are trained to work and collaborate with any scale of film or media related projects, from major blockbusters through to short films.

“We’re one of the only teams in China which produce six or seven different actual independent productions per year.” Troy continues

 (Photo taken by Yoan Boselli and Provided by Troy’s Team)

The demand for international casting within the Chinese film industry is growing leading up to an increased number of foreign actors looking up to the Middle Kingdom for roles.

Unfortunately, there are no official statistics regarding the number of foreign actors in China yet. However, watching locally produced movies and television programs, it’s clear that more and more Laowai acts are being cast.

If this is the trend in part due to the growing importance of the global market place or just China wanting to have a larger appeal to non-Chinese audiences, only time will tell.  

 (Photo provided by Troy’s Team)

In the meantime, Troy’s Team is at the helm of developing the genre of action to the industry by contributing it’s unique blend of western/Asian style of choreography with a finer production value.

(Photo provided by Troy’s Team)

To learn more about Troy’s Team visit their page:  www.troysteamaction.com