Sons of Obi Wan Charity Short Film

Did you know that every one of your actions, say running to class or posting that precious selfie, is controlled by electrical impulses? From your brain cells and along your nerve cells, these impulses give you the spark for your everyday activities. But what if the impulses misfire?
These misfires cause sudden electrical bursts of activity in the brain. This, in turn, causes seizures.
10% of Australia’s population are at risk of experiencing a seizure, and approximately 2% go on to be diagnosed with epilepsy: a brain disorder that causes recurring convulsive or non-convulsive seizures.
Although there is medication that makes most people with epilepsy seizure free, it is hugely valuable for these people to be surrounded by those that understand the disorder. By having that support network, people with epilepsy have improved chances of reaching seizure control.
And what better way to help better people’s understanding and raise awareness of epilepsy than using one of the greatest pop culture fandoms?
Australia’s best saber school, The Sons of Obiwan, have been working hard to create a video that will both promote the incredible work they do and show support for Greg Grunberg’s charity, Talk About It For Epilepsy.
Greg Grunberg’s (Heroes, Heroes Reborn, Star Wars: The Force Awakens) passion for the charity comes from his personal experience with epilepsy through his son, Jake. It was while at a Brisbane Supernova that Luke, a Sons of Obiwan master, met Greg.
I was lucky enough to interview Luke and find out just how this project started.

I’ve been a big fan of Greg Grunberg for years (I have a Heroes tattoo on my arm) and I wanted to show my appreciation for his body of work by giving him a saber. We chatted about the charity work we both do and he told us about talkaboutit.org, a charity he helped create. It is dedicated to helping change the lives of those with Epilepsy.

He contacted us later to invite us to put together a video with a fight and to show what we can do to raise awareness for his charity.

Being the fools that we are, we took this idea and ran with it. The Sons are lucky to have some amazingly talented people walk through our door. We banded together as a team to create the best possible production that would attract the maximum attention to Greg’s worthy cause.

We are making a short film with a small piece at the end about us, what we do, and showing our support of talkaboutit.org.

The Star Wars universe covers a huge expanse. Could you tell us what planet your short film will be set?

Let’s just say it is WAY closer than you think!

Closer to home? You gotta tell me more?

I can only say it is unlike any film from this fandom that has gone before.

We might not know the planet the story is set on, but we do know who has the female lead role. Was there a long process before choosing Sheridyn Fisher as the female lead?

Sheridyn has known our director, Kerryn Williams, since they were in High School together. Yet another of those amazingly talented people who has walked through our doors. She is the most deliciously nerdy person I know, with a passion for the fandoms we all know and love!

Throughout training, has Sheridyn picked up her own style? How much training is there?

Our Choreographer and one of our Stars, Chad Bennett, has done an amazing job of putting together a fight that is fresh but also includes elements of the fights and moves we show our students at the (Sons of Obiwan) Temple. He wanted to show our students what their lessons look like on the Big Screen and show the calibre of work the Sons do in theatre combat!

How many more roles are there left to fill? Are there more surprise announcements to come?

Primary filming is done, our full cast is: John Jarratt, Charlie Jarratt, Sheridyn Fisher, Chad Bennett and Justin Banks. Then the cast of lovely people who donated their time and skill to help us make this. We have gone from concept to primary filming completed in 5 weeks on a shoe string budget, funded by donations and cash out of our own pockets!

The Sons of Obi Wan have certainly kept busy, not only by working on this project but also by producing new sabers for their fans to purchase.

Expanding from the traditional silver hilts and colours, the Sons have created hilts with varying metals and leather grips. And these hilts are gorgeous, with no short cuts taken in their Australian made goodness. The range is incredible, and will add that professional touch to anyone’s cosplay, or even delight the padawan inside.

It was the spitfire in weathered copper that caught my eye. But what was your favourite new design?

I’m loving the new Warthog. It’s in prototype stage at the moment. It is the best tricking saber we have made, with the weight sitting in the palm of your hand. I like keeping my work sabers natural aluminium. If I was going to plate it, I’d do it flat gunmetal with a camouflage leather wrap, (it) would look deadly! The wood saber range is the lightest saber I have ever held and is a dream to use for combat!

You can check out their extensive range on the Sons of Obi Wan Facebook page and find what stars are already talking about Grunberg’s charity here: http://talkaboutit.org/

Be sure to keep May 6^th, 2017 open for the Sons’ project premiere, and support them as they start the conversation to Talk About It For Epilepsy.