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Christian Henry Tobler




Location: Oxford, CT
Joined: 25 Aug 2003

Posts: 704

PostPosted: Tue 22 Jun, 2010 9:35 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Hi Dustin,

We might do a poster. It probably would be on the smaller side, given the image resolution, but it's possible.

I'm just not sure how many folks would be interested though.

Cheers,

Christian

Christian Henry Tobler
Order of Selohaar

Freelance Academy Press: Books on Western Martial Arts and Historical Swordsmanship

Author, In Saint George's Name: An Anthology of Medieval German Fighting Arts
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Jason G. Smith




Location: Quebec
Joined: 24 Aug 2006
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Posts: 130

PostPosted: Tue 22 Jun, 2010 9:44 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Would that Christian Tobler figurine need to be anatomically correct? Wink
Les Maîtres d'Armes
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Chivalric Fighting Arts Association

... above all, you should feel in your conscience that your quarrel is good and just. - Le Jeu de la Hache
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Christopher Valli
Industry Professional



Location: Vernon, CT
Joined: 28 Sep 2007
Reading list: 3 books

Posts: 42

PostPosted: Tue 22 Jun, 2010 9:49 am    Post subject: Re: Hopes about Mr. Tobler's DVDs         Reply with quote

Greg Mele wrote:
let's draw attention to Chris Valli and Speaking Window Productions - he is the man behind the camera and in the editing room

I appreciate the acknowledgment, and while I can take a lot of the credit, I can't take it all Wink My old friend Anthony Woods has worked in the local independent film industry for years and was crucial in the early stages of production (a project of this scale was a first for me, and a bit daunting at times) as well as his fantastic camera work. Also another old friend, Aaron Roszczewski, for the artwork. I have known him since middle school and I was still impressed with the professional design he created.
And of course, the slave labor, erm, volunteers from the fechtschule. Everyone was more than willing to work in front of and behind the camera (even if the didn't know the boom guy is supposed to back up out of the shot...). Special attention has to be given to Janusz Saba, who was a jack of all trades in this project. He was really willing to bend over backwards to help with whatever we needed- including waking up at 430 to walk a few miles in the winter to take a bus to help me pack the car to drive to the Higgins to set up equipment etc etc (and that was just one day!). He's earned his stripes and will be acting as producer and 2nd editor on the next volumes.

Dustin Faulkner wrote:
I hope that Mr. Valli's possible contacts in the film world, and subsequent DVD volumes with Mr. Tobler, could somehow lead to a medieval movie that is groundbreaking in its realism

One can dream... Big Grin

Dustin Faulkner wrote:
By the way .... might a poster of the Polaxe DVD's cover be available? That's a cool picture of a Gothic Knight and I really like that Bed de Corbin he's holding.

Not sure about 'when' but there was discussion of some promotional materials like t-shirts and posters.
I put this together if anyone is interested
http://www.cafepress.com/speakingwindow[/url]

Asst Instructor, Selohaar Fechtschule

Director, Speaking Window Productions, LLC
www.speakingwindowproductions.com
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Christopher VaughnStrever




Location: San Antonio, TX
Joined: 13 Jun 2008
Reading list: 1 book

Posts: 382

PostPosted: Thu 24 Jun, 2010 2:03 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Will this DVD be released as a BLU RAY any time soon and/or later down the road?
Experience and learning from such defines maturity, not a number of age
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Christian Henry Tobler




Location: Oxford, CT
Joined: 25 Aug 2003

Posts: 704

PostPosted: Thu 24 Jun, 2010 2:37 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Hi Christopher,

We have no current plans for a BluRay disk - it's a lot more expensive to produce for the small numbers we're dealing with, and I don't think we'd have enough customers that would be the attendant price premium.

All the best,

Christian

Christian Henry Tobler
Order of Selohaar

Freelance Academy Press: Books on Western Martial Arts and Historical Swordsmanship

Author, In Saint George's Name: An Anthology of Medieval German Fighting Arts
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Christopher VaughnStrever




Location: San Antonio, TX
Joined: 13 Jun 2008
Reading list: 1 book

Posts: 382

PostPosted: Thu 24 Jun, 2010 10:39 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Ah, no problem; best to check before investing and then re-investing in the same item.
Experience and learning from such defines maturity, not a number of age
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Bill Grandy
myArmoury Team


myArmoury Team

Location: Northern VA,USA
Joined: 25 Aug 2003
Reading list: 43 books

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PostPosted: Tue 29 Jun, 2010 9:58 pm    Post subject: More praise for Freelance Academy Press's Poleaxe DVD         Reply with quote

There's been a lot of talk about Christian Tobler's new DVD "German Medieval Martial Arts: The Poleaxe", available at Freelance Academy Press. Now that I've finally gotten a chance to watch it in full, I see exactly why. This is a wonderful presentation of an often misunderstood medieval weapon. The production value is excellent, and it flows quite nicely with the feel of a documentary combined with a martial arts instruction video. A lot of praise needs to go to Chris Valli at Speaking Window Productions.

The DVD opens with a choreographed judicial duel (showcasing some *beautiful* armour), and moves into a very nice general overview of the weapon itself. There is some excellent commentary from Dr. Jeffrey Forgeng and Dr. Lee Jones about the historical and practical context as well as the etymology of the word.

The DVD then proceeds to go through a number of techniques from various 15th century Liechtenauer sources. If the viewer is a beginner, this gives a very nice overview of several important techniques, and gives plenty of good drills to help that beginner really gain a good grasp of the weapon. If the viewer is a more experienced practitioner, this is an excellent catalog of techniques that can easily be referenced. The drills that follow the techniques provide several easy yet vital training methods to help students of the art progress.

I think that my favorite thing about this DVD is how accessible it is to anyone. I can recommend this to my advanced students, of course (many of whom already own it and love it), but I also teach a number of youth students (ages 9 and up) who will love it as well. In fact, I think a number of the younger guys will have parents who will eat it up for both the educational factor as well as the way it will get them even more interested in learning. I also think this DVD will be very interesting to medieval arms and armour enthusiasts who are not necessarily martial artists but are still interested in understanding how this prominent weapon was used.

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-Inspired by History, Crafted by Hand


"For practice is better than artfulness. Your exercise can do well without artfulness, but artfulness is not much good without the exercise.” -anonymous 15th century fencing master, MS 3227a
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Moses Jones




Location: Oregon
Joined: 28 Feb 2010
Likes: 1 page

Posts: 45

PostPosted: Tue 29 Jun, 2010 11:29 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I just got my copy and was very happy with the DVD. I'm really hoping Christian and company are able and willing to produce more videos. For someone unable to train with other WMA practitioners due to time and location it is a fantastic tool. I really enjoy the "complete package" approach, and so did my 6 year old. I gave him some PVC pipe foam and he walked through the motions side by side with the video, although he added sound effects.

I'm really looking forward to more productions. To any of the creators who read this message thank you!


Last edited by Moses Jones on Wed 30 Jun, 2010 9:00 am; edited 1 time in total
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Christian Henry Tobler




Location: Oxford, CT
Joined: 25 Aug 2003

Posts: 704

PostPosted: Wed 30 Jun, 2010 6:17 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Hello Bill,

Thanks for the review - we're really glad you like it and feel it will be of help to your students!

@Moses - Thanks for the kudos! We are indeed planning on more such projects, and the books will continue to come out as well (working on the next one this week in fact). Thanks for your support!

Yours,

Christian

Christian Henry Tobler
Order of Selohaar

Freelance Academy Press: Books on Western Martial Arts and Historical Swordsmanship

Author, In Saint George's Name: An Anthology of Medieval German Fighting Arts
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Craig Shackleton




Location: Ottawa, Canada
Joined: 20 Apr 2004
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Posts: 307

PostPosted: Wed 30 Jun, 2010 10:05 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I got my DVD yesterday and stayed up foolishly late to watch it. I really enjoyed the entire video even just as entertainment, but I can see how it will be incredibly useful for training purposes. The tidy but smooth distinction between the history/theory, practical application and drill/training sections is really well done, And it's so nice to be able to quickly jump between these aspects. I am very impressed.
Ottawa Swordplay
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Jean Thibodeau




Location: Montreal,Quebec,Canada
Joined: 15 Mar 2004
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PostPosted: Wed 30 Jun, 2010 12:53 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Craig Shackleton wrote:
I got my DVD yesterday and stayed up foolishly late to watch it. I really enjoyed the entire video even just as entertainment, but I can see how it will be incredibly useful for training purposes. The tidy but smooth distinction between the history/theory, practical application and drill/training sections is really well done, And it's so nice to be able to quickly jump between these aspects. I am very impressed.


I expect mine will arrive in a few days but I think that from I have read here I will really enjoy watching the DVD and I also think that it should be of interest for those with only a " theoretical " scholarly interest and not just for those practising or intending to practice the art. Wink Big Grin Cool

Before I started any HEMA training 4 years ago I found books or DVDs very much work while even if only to satisfy my curiosity about real historical fighting techniques but only practice gives true understanding: Some of the books or DVDs can be sort of dry and hard to understand before one has learned the technical " Jargon " but it would seem that this DVD makes an effort to be generally educational and not just a series of training drills

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Greg Mele
Industry Professional



Location: Chicago, IL USA
Joined: 20 Mar 2006

Posts: 356

PostPosted: Wed 30 Jun, 2010 1:26 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Hey folks,

Really glad that you are all enjoying the DVD, and that is is arriving in a timely fashion (Jean, so sorry about the vagueries of American-Canadian postal interactions!). Christian, Chris and I will all be together next weekend and you can be that we will be brainstorming on what to add, tweak, etc on the next set of DVDs. Personally, my hope is to keep Speaking Window Productions so busy with projects that Chris needs a clone! Wink

Best,

Greg

Greg Mele
Chicago Swordplay Guild
www.chicagoswordplayguild.com

www.freelanceacademypress.com
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Jean Thibodeau




Location: Montreal,Quebec,Canada
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Spotlight topics: 5
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PostPosted: Wed 30 Jun, 2010 1:46 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Greg Mele wrote:
Hey folks,

Really glad that you are all enjoying the DVD, and that is is arriving in a timely fashion (Jean, so sorry about the vagueries of American-Canadian postal interactions!). Christian, Chris and I will all be together next weekend and you can be that we will be brainstorming on what to add, tweak, etc on the next set of DVDs. Personally, my hope is to keep Speaking Window Productions so busy with projects that Chris needs a clone! Wink

Best,

Greg


Keep making them and I will buy. Wink Happy Cool

( Oh, the DVD and books are on the way but I should only get them next week as it usually take a week to ten days for most shipments to go through Canada custom and the postal system ).

Any, priorities as to what to make next as a DVD ? I would think Longsword, 1:33 and or other shield based combat, staff & spear, dagger and wrestling ? Oh, longsword both German and Italian styles maybe in separate DVDs and/or a comparison DVD showing commonalities and where they diverge in technique, tactics or style.

Just as an aside: I would imagine that in period a German style trained fighter might have to fight against an Italian style trained fighter and some questions or speculation on how this might look like might be interesting ? I would assume that each would train to be able to fight the other or at least study the strengths and weaknesses of each style.

Hmmmmm: Maybe this last could be a new Topic in itself so as to not derail this one. Wink Big Grin

You can easily give up your freedom. You have to fight hard to get it back!
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