Kaua‘i filmmakers dream big

The latest martial arts series from the local Kaua‘i-based team of Aaron Yamasato (writer/producer/ director) and Paul Booth (associate producer) hit Oceanic Time Warner Cable’s OC16 Thursday at 9 p.m.

Called “Ninja EX,” the five-episode mini series follows the adventures of Ninja EX as he protects the innocent and defends the weak. It’s like Spiderman on saimin, with a few vampires, “Kill Bill”-style scenes, and a pinch of Jackie Chan.

“Unlike the first TV series, there’s no drama in this one, just fun,” Booth said. “The movie doesn’t take itself too serious, and all four episodes can stand alone.”

All programs broadcast on OC 16 are produced in Hawaii, and must have local crews, talent, etc.

Those requirements are making way for a whole new crop of talented comedians, talk show hosts and independent filmmakers. EX – which stands for “extreme” – marks Booth’s first television series as an associate producer. Shot in Honolulu over the course of three months, the series was readily accepted by OC 16, with little or no oversight. In other words, Booth and Yamasato had free reign and creative license.

From Booth’s point of view, the opening was a success, but he admits it’s kind of tough to get a definite read on the situation because OC 16 doesn’t offer a great deal of viewer data – particularly right off the bat. Still, Booth and his partner aren’t sweating it.

“I got a few emails from people who said they really liked it,” Booth said. None of this is new to the duo who, in 2000, teamed up to create the local hit movie called “Blood of the Samurai.”

“Our first project together exceeded all expectations, so we’re very excited for this next project,” Booth said.

The film played film festivals in Los Angeles, New York, Vancouver, Hawaii, Argentina and Brazil, and won the 2001 Hawaii International Film Festival’s Aloha Airlines Hawaii Filmmaker Award. That first movie sold some 7,000 copies on DVD to date and struck a cord with local viewers, prompting OC 16 to pick it up in early 2004 for a series called “Blood of the Samurai: The Series.”

That first series included Ban Daisuke, the Japanese actor who played the role of Kikaida back in the ‘70’s. Daisuke is so revered by Hawai‘i audiences that his presence alone made the series an instant cult favorite. Now, Booth plans to market the first movie to Thailand and Indonesia. In other words, Booth and Yamasato are going international – not bad for two graduates of Oahu’s Moanalua High School.

Booth’s family owns two pizza restaurants here on Kaua‘i, and he splits his time between producing “Indy” films and flipping dough for the family business.

But lately, there’s been a bit of glamour in it for the 25-year-old from Kaua‘i. “I was in Los Angeles recently for a couple of weeks, working on a deal at the Universal lot in Hollywood,” he recalled.

Strolling the Universal lot, Booth saw a minor celebrity or two.

But it was the clocktower from “Back to the Future” that got his pulse racing. “Yeah, it was pretty cool,” he said. Getting films like these made 10 years ago would have been a near impossibility for someone like Booth, unless there were connections made, often as a result of personal networks developed in the hallowed halls of the American Film Institute or the University of Southern California’s film school. But technology gives folks like Booth and Yamasato an “in” on the film industry. A couple thousand bucks worth of computers, a home video camera, some editing software, and anyone with the will can start a cottage industry.

And who knows: perhaps Booth and Yamasato will find themselves one day walking the famed “red carpet” of Cannes or Sundance – or even Hollywood. “I’m a firm believer in just making movies. Trying, doing it again, trying again,” Booth said.

“We hope to show the film industry that Hawai‘i is making a change from being known to the mainland just for its pretty locations and cheap crew to being recognized for its pool of talented producers and directors.”

Ninja EX will run for four weeks each Thursday at 7 p.m. and will repeat with a second five-week run. See www.ninjaex.com.