KANE ACTION TEAM - Key Persons
My name is Ben Garton, also known as Kick Master. I was born November 15, 1995 in Indianapolis, Indiana. I now live in Canton, Ohio. Growing up watching Ninja Turtles, Power Rangers, and admiring Martial heroes such as Jackie Chan, Bruce Lee, and Donnie Yen, I grew a love and passion for Martial Arts at a very young age. I started training at East Coast Martial Arts when I was 4 years old and I am now a Martial Arts Instructor. I'm currently a 3rd Dan Black Belt (tested under Grandmaster I.J. Kim) in our Martial Arts program (mix of Karate, Muay Thai, Jiujitsu, and MMA) and also a Blue Belt in our Kickboxing program. I also train myself in the art of Martial Arts Tricking and Extreme Taekwondo, and as my nickname suggests I put an emphasis on the aesthetics of kicking techniques more over the flipping and twisting. I'm now living the dream sharing my passion for Martial Arts through film making. My number 1 goal is to inspire people to do great things and to put their mind, body, and spirit into everything that they do. Keep kicking!!
Introducing Billy Freedson Jr. He has an extensive background in martial arts and fighting and has been kickboxing for 10 years. Billy is a badass to the highest degree! We are proud to welcome Billy Freedson to the Kane Action Team!
Bishal Tamang is 16 years old and has been enamored with martial arts his entire life. Since childhood Bishal has taken inspiration from martial arts icons Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. He has seen many of Jackie Chan's and Bruce Lee's films including Enter the Dragon, Legend of the Drunken Master and many more. Growing up Bishal was able to learn various martial arts techniques from his father, who has a black belt in karate. Bishal is a student at The Academy of Self Defense and currently has a purple belt. He aspired to learn martial arts to properly defend himself in times of trouble. In August 2018 Bishal joined the Kane Action Team. He will be making his acting debut in the upcoming Winter Soldier: Retrieval (2020) short film.
Daniel Giza has been a lifelong fan of martial arts and action films. He was born on January 5th, 1994 in Pittsburgh, PA. Daniel's journey into martial arts began in 2006 when he joined the Tang Soo Do Karate College in Robinson Township, PA . In 2009 he became certified as a first degree black belt. Daniel began his journey as an actor in 2018 when he officially joined the Kane Action Team. His first acting role was in Wu Xia 2: The Code (2019). In addition, Daniel has acted in Banana Express (2019) & Overkill (2020). In 2020 Daniel will be acting in Rumble TV, The Sofa, & Wu Lin Society. Daniel continues to expand his acting footprint across the Cleveland and Pittsburgh film industry.
Haden Rupnik, a Cleveland based actor, is a second degree black belt in Minna Jiu Jitsu! He has been pursuing a martial arts career for 10 years as well as wrestling for 5 years and has been acting since his younger years! Haden is a certified Firefighter and EMT. He is the official EMT for KAT Team with experience in working at a private ambulance company. Haden has been in multiple films including Casey Jones: Overtime and Wu Xia 2!
James Eckstein is a Cleveland-based actor and stuntman.
Jerrod Primm is from Cleveland, Ohio. He has trained in Muay Thai, boxing, wrestling, and including some MMA. He is both a full-time personal trainer and fitness instructor. Jerrod has also competed in both boxing and Muay Thai. He has acting experience in several independent projects including Wu Xia 2: The Code (2019) and Public Axis 3000 and various music videos. His most recent acting role was in the feature film White Boy Rick (2018). In March 2019 Jerrod became a member of the Kane Action Team.
Jerry Sur was born in SoCal and started his modeling/acting career in Cleveland, Ohio after serving in the U.S. military. His passion for hand-to-hand combat and acting eventually ushered him into a featured extra role in Jason Wang's feature film "Project E. 1337 Alpha." Shortly after, Jerry was cast as a supporting actor in MDI Film's martial arts action thriller "Wu Xia - A Martial Arts Tango," as well as 3 Digital Rock Studios' martial arts sci-fi action thriller "Project: Die Happy". Upcoming films include "Maximillian The Movie" and "Parker: Spider-verse" both due out in 2019. When not on set, Jerry enjoys spending time with his family, working out, media design and directing. His first directorial feature film "That Night" was released earlier this year on Amazon Video
I was born June 1, 1981, in Chester, PA and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. I graduated from Kent State University with a degree in Education. I have been in the martial arts all my life. From the age of 3, I was trained under my Sensei and Father, Keith Collins I, in the art of Kenpo. After receiving my black belt, I've studied other styles ranging from Krav Maga to Silat believing that all martial art styles have something to offer.
As a filmmaker, stunt coordinator and fight choreographer, I have many filmmaking achievements including, The Indie Gathering International film festival's Best Micro Action Film 2012, 2013 & 2015. Best Action Short at Urban Action Showcase 2015 and multiple Film Festival official selections. My award winning Film, Lions & Wolves, premiered on the national channel, El Rey Network. My fight choreography is featured in Contracts: Redemption, T.R.A.C.E a Doctor Who Fan film, Wu Xia: A Martial Arts Tango, Project E.1337 and Innerself. Currently I'm in post-production for my first feature film, "Maximillian", a martial arts/live action anime film, VIP Screening on May 24, at Atlas Cinemas Lakeshore 7!
Krista Dotson started MMA 2 years ago and is a Red Tip 2 strip belt in un-traditional SHOTOKAN Karate. She plans on testing for her black belt in August of 2019. She enjoys BBJ, Kickboxing and stunt choreography.
Her first stunt performance was in the feature film Wu Xia 2: The Code and has done background and extra work in various projects including Mafia Ties on Amazon Prime. Krista continues to educate herself by attending various workshops and attending the Cleveland Academy of Film Acting. She is also involved in the nonprofit organization Women in Film and Television Ohio Chapter. In 2018 she was picked up by Pro Model and Talent Management. In March 2019 Krista joined the Kane Action Team.
Krista has also started her own YouTube Channel in hopes to inspire others that suffer from daily obstacles. She is truly excited to see where this new chapter in her life will take her.
Matt is the founder and owner of the Kane Action Team. He is a Cleveland-based actor, stuntman, and fight choreographer. Matt has been studying martial arts his whole life and has carried those skills over to the world of stunts and action. He started his acting journey at the age of 9 when he joined his elementary school's drama club. With a diverse background including Jeet Kune Do, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Kickboxing, Krav Maga, Aikido, Tai Chi, Kenjutsu, Karate, Capoeira, Parkour, and Professional Wrestling, he is well versed in many different martial arts and movement disciplines. He has a Bachelor's Degree in exercise science and a Master's Degree in sport and recreation management. He works as a martial arts instructor at Kent State University and is the owner of Paragon Martial Arts & Fitness.
Matt saw a void in the area for a stunt and action design team, therefore he founded the Kane Action Team in 2014 to provide action design services for filmmakers and train aspiring stunt professionals.
Sean Chase, born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pa, began his martial arts journey at 11 years old after his love for action movies sparked his interest to train and compete. Fortunate enough to train under 2x World Champion Grandmaster (9th Dan) Young Bo Kong, the hobby quickly turned into a passion toward working in the film industry. With 10+ years of Taekwondo and 2+ years of Parkour/Martial Arts Tricking, he began turning that dream into a reality.
The work he's done to date as a stunt performer/fight choreographer with local production companies, Maddie G TV (Amazon Prime series, "Venture"-2018), FilmShockers ("Grassman" and "Hookah Bar"-2019) and Dark Math Films ("096"-2019) is only the beginning. His upcoming projects include an action/comedy short called "The Sofa", and "Son or Daughter", a darker action/thriller film. His intentions are to inspire others, through his stunt/film work, to live out their own dreams.
Vernard (Vern) Adams is a native of Cleveland, Ohio. He's an actor, writer, director and producer. His love for movies and television brought him into the world of acting. Over the last ten years he has been a part of both the Cleveland 48 Hour Film Project and The Cleveland 48 Hour Horror Film Project. He has performed for fans at Quicken Loans Arena as a member of The NBA Cleveland Cavaliers Beefcakes on the Lake dance team.
Vernard (Vern) Adams is a native of Cleveland, Ohio. He's an actor, writer, director and producer. His love for movies and television brought him into the world of acting. Over the last ten years he has been a part of both the Cleveland 48 Hour Film Project and The Cleveland 48 Hour Horror Film Project. He has performed for fans at Quicken Loans Arena as a member of The NBA Cleveland Cavaliers Beefcakes on the Lake dance team.
Vernard has been involved with several film projects from his movie review show The Big Review (2012), In Guns We Trust (2017), Lux in Tenebris (2017), Estella's Revenge (TBA) and Maxillian (2019). There are also several web shows such as Horror Hotel (2016), Rivals (2017) and acting in award winning shorts Grassman (2017) and I Think My Roommate is a Serial Killer (2017).
He has recently written, directed, produce his very first short Human Resources (2018) with TKF Films. Human Resources took 1 st place for script writing and horror comedy short at The Indie Gathering. His recent film credits include Real Itty Bits (2019), Wu Xia 2: The Code (2019) and Winter Solider: Retrieval (2020).
My name is Will Torres. I was born and raised in Lorain, Ohio on November 5th 1986. Since the age of five I have shown a strong interest in martial arts. By the age of eighteen I began studying martial arts. I have a black belt in Tang Soo Do karate. I have also studied and practiced in jiu-jitsu, muay thai, boxing, wrestling, krav maga, and wing chun. I also have experience handling weaponry such as katanas, nunchucks, & bow staff. I completed a summertime acting program at Emerald King High School. In March 2019 I joined the Kane Action Team. It has always been a dream of mine to become an actor and stuntman in the Cleveland area.