Sifu John Allen Demonstrates from the Video "Fundamentals of the Baton"

Ebay has become the worldwide, and cyberspace Mecca for buying and selling Martial Arts Instructional videos and DVD's. On any given day, you will find listing from literally all styles, and from all levels of quality, from the very poor to the very best, and including rare and vintage titles but unfortunately also very bad quality content, and poor reproductions.

Video titles by Green Dragon Studios are some of the most sought after videos in the Martial Arts Instructional video category. Green Dragon Studios produced their series of videos during the late 1980's and early 1990's. The series consists of somewhere around 100 different instructional volumes. But what makes these videos so special?

Green Dragon Studios videos focus on teaching Kung Fu styles otherwise refered to as Chinese Martial Arts (CMA). But, unlike other schools and organizations, they did not teach a single style or system or even a couple of complimentary styles. Green Dragon adopted a curriculum that covers over 30 different styles and systems of CMA's covering Northern and Southern styles, long range and close quarters fighting and including a broad assortment of traditional weapons and exercise regimens. Even today, over 15 years since they crashed into the martial arts world, their approach has not been duplicated. In many ways, Green Dragons curriculum or model was and is considered heretical by the CMA community. Not only did they not focus on a given style, they then released videos to the public covering many of the various styles that made up their curriculum. More heresy! Then the straw that broke the camels back, Green Dragon Studios released videos on the highly secretive Iron Vest, Iron Palm and Stone Warrior internal strength building methods. These remain some of the most popular videos made by Green Dragon Studios.

Today, Green Dragon videos are still available in VHS format. Due to their age, they vary in condition from excellent to poor but they are considered near -collectible and are relatively difficult to obtain. There are many CMA Masters and practitioners that frown on Green Dragon videos, questioning the authenticity of the material and even criticizing the quality of the performance of the material. So there are varying opinions. However, one thing that cannot be questioned is the quality of detail that is included in these videos and the excellent process used to present the material in the videos, making them some of the best for actually learning from video. Sifu John Allen, the head instructor at Green Dragon Studios did not shy away from the camera and was never afraid to state and re-state his opinions and his viewpoints regarding the CMA. Most of the videos are packed full of information in the form of commentary, explanation, demonstration and his "Question and Answer" and "Fundamentals of " are some of the most coveted, even though they contain long oratories by Sifu Allen.

So, Green Dragon Videos continue to make an impact on the Martial Arts community and are very much worth considering as an addition to your collection or as instructional material for your personal practice. When bidding, be cautious and pay close attention to the details and description of the condition of the video so you don't end up with a worn out dud or a bad reproduction. Remember these are videos recorded on magnetic tape and some are 20 years old, so be linient on your expectations of picture and sound quality but do not settle for junk either. Good quality Green Dragon videos are available and at a reasonable (maybe not the lowest) price.

You can find a good selection of Green Dragon Studios videos on auction by shenmartialarts. Shen Martial Arts buys, sells and trades Green Dragon videos. Shen Martial Arts always includes a picture on the listings and a description of the condition of the video.

Listings for Green Dragon Studios