Master's Seminar

Topics:
Fook Sao, Theory, Misc

Technical:
DVD-R; NTSC Format (North American); Region Free; Approx 55 Mins

Description:
This hour long DVD shows Alan Gibson's segment at the renowned Masters Seminar. The theme of the seminar was Cross Training and it gave some of the UK's best artists the chance to give their take on the benefits of training in different styles.

Wing Chun is often described as functional and simple, yet to the uninitiated it may seem impenetrable. This seminar was designed with this in mind - employing a key idea that can help anyone improve their art. Using the Fook Sao principle and simple footwork, this DVD demonstrates just how direct and practical this art can be, against a variety of different attacks.

Alan Gibson's Wing Chun background would lead many people to believe he is a martial arts purist. He shows in this DVD that this is not the case, as he reveals his background in other styles and how they have influenced both his own training and that of the great Bruce Lee.

EWC Review:
April 14, 2006

This is really a little gem of a DVD. We didn't think it was going to be any good when we put it in, but ended up liking it a lot. In some ways, it is one of the best DVDs on the Wong Shun Leung lineage out there. Gibson spends most of the time teaching one technique and its fighting applications - Fook Sao. It made us want to practice Fook a lot!

We were unsure about the DVD when we heard him start talking about Fook Sao, but around the time he started correcting the people practicing the techniques we realized what a good DVD it was going to be and we really started to enjoy it. As he says, Fook is a very misunderstood hand. He tries to convey the idea behind it using it as many ways as possible. The best time to learn is when he corrects the students, especially when he corrects the non-Wing Chun people who are duplicating the motions, but are misunderstanding the purposes. It makes the technique look much better, and makes you want to use it.

In the end, we felt that you will learn: 1) good technique that could be used against straight punches, hooks or any combination thereof, 2) good follow-ups for the same, 3) a better understanding of the WSL system and methods.

Despite all the Gary Lam/Clive Potter/WSL DVDs we have seen, no real techniques were shown. This is what we liked most about this DVD. I would recommend it to anyone interested in Fook Sao fighting techniques and the WSL method for sure.