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Vlad Yudin is a Russian born writer, director, producer, who started his film career with films as “Big Pun: The Legacy”, and “The Last Day of Summer” which starred Nikki Reed of “Twilight fame”, and DJ Qualls from “Road Trip”. Vlad has just made his move in to the realm of graphic novels with his book “Headsmash”. A story of betrayal and revenge set in a fictional yet violent world. Media Mikes caught up with Vlad after his successful appearance at this year’s New York Comic Con to discuss the book as well as some of his other current projects.

Adam Lawton: Can you give us some background on “Headsmash”?
Vlad Yudin: “Headsmash” is the story of a young orphan super sent to live in the worst orphanage in this fictional which is run by various mod syndicates with the largest one being the Horde. The Horde has infiltrated every aspect of the city and has pretty much control of everything. Smash ends up being adopted by Maurice who is the head of the Horde and groomed to be one of the group’s top lieutenants. While out on a mission Smash is attacked and basically left for dead. Upon surviving the attack and returning to the city Smash finds out that his wife has been taken along with their unborn son who plays an important role in the story. In order to save his family Smash starts taking this special serum which helps him on his quest for revenge.

AL: How did the idea for the book present itself?
VY: It was a combination of things. Sometimes when you start on a story you might have the basic story line happening and then you build in the characters and other times you have a character in which the story is centered around. In this case we had the character of Smash so we constructed everything around him. Each twist the story takes is directly related to his character.

AL: The book has a trailer which is narrated by Bill Paxton. How did he become involved in the project?
VY: We did a three part prelude/trailer which sets up the story. One part talks of the prophecy, one part talks about the serum and the last talks about Maurice and Smash’s relationship. Bill narrated this story playing the character of Maurice. Bill Paxton is an amazing actor and it was really cool to bring him in to this role as a villain. I don’t think he is someone seen in this type of role. He has this great voice and did a really great job. Bill got in to the character and took it very seriously which was great to see.

AL: Can you tell us about the talks of this story becoming a film?
VY: We have just finished writing the screen play version. The story is going to be pretty much the same but there were a few things that we need to adapt to make it work on screen. We are taking our time with and hope to have it into production sometime next year.

AL: Do you find any similarities between graphic novel writing and script writing?
VY: Yes. When you create a graphic novel you essentially are creating story boards. You have to take in consideration the shot in the same you do when you are working off a shot list for a film. The way you construct a scene before its captured on film is very similar to how you would when writing a graphic novel.

AL: Can you tell us about some of the other projects you have in the works?
VY: I am happy to say that our film “Generation Iron” which is a film about modern day body building is currently playing in theaters both here in the States and also in Canada. This film is basically the follow up to the 1975 film “Pumping Iron” which was produced Jerome Gary who also produced this new film. The film is doing great and I hope people continue to go see it.

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Photo Credit: Bobby Quillard

Growing up in Russia, Vlad Yudin took advantage of his countrymen’s love of movies by seeing pretty much everything he could. Be they action films from America or the more “art” films of Europe and Asia, each time he left the theatre he could envision himself making movies one day.

After a successful series of documentaries on rap artists like Big Pun and Twista, he turned to features. His first film, “Last Day of Summer” earned good reviews and can currently be seen on the various Showtime cable television channels. His next project is “Generation Iron,” a revisit to the world of professional bodybuilding that was made popular in the 1977 documentary “Pumping Iron,” the film that introduced Arnold Schwarzenegger to the world. What was intriguing about “Pumping Iron” was not the actual body building contest but the mental contest played between the participants. In one segment Schwarzenegger senses that Lou Ferigno is not mentally ready to compete and slowly begins to attack him. By the time Ferigno took to the stage he was already a loser in his mind, enabling Schwarzenegger to win his 7th consecutive Mr. Olympia title. The film also serves as an early example of the sheer willpower that Schwarzenegger has to achieve whatever his goals may be, from Mr. Olympia to Hollywood star to Governor of California.

While in post-production on “Generation Iron”, Mr. Yudin took time out to talk about his inspirations, the benefits of bootlegging and his upcoming projects.

Mike Smith: As a young man growing up in Russia what inspired you to try your hand in the film business?
Vlad Yudin: As a young boy I enjoyed going to the movies…all kinds of movies. Living in Russia gave me access to films from all over the word. European films, American films, Asian films…I used to watch everything. I would watch a film and think about what it would be like to make one. So that’s where the interest came from and I kept that interest growing and growing and growing and little by little I got into it.

MS: We’re there a lot of western films available to you?
VY: In Russia in the early 1990s there was a lot of bootlegging going on. You could get almost anything on VHS tapes. So we would buy them and trade them with each other. That gave us a chance to see everything from action films to horror films.

MS: Addressing “Generation Iron.” What made you want to revisit a film like “Pumping Iron” and update it?
VY: Well first it’s important to mention that “Pumping Iron” was a monumental film. Not only as a documentary, but as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s introduction to the world. It changed the entire fitness industry and introduced body building to the world. In the 35 years since it’s been released the fitness industry has gotten huge…it’s big all around the world, but the sport of body building is still relatively unknown. It seemed like a great sport to revisit and to try to introduce some characters who just happen to be body builders. I think that’s what made the first film so interesting and fun to watch. The guys were just so colorful. So to me it made sense to revisit it.

MS: Besides the present day body builders will there be any appearances by some of the original “Pumping Iron” stars, like Schwarzenegger or Lou Ferigno?
VY: (laughs) I will only tell you that there are a lot of cameos. And that fans of the original “Pumping Iron” will not be disappointed.

MS: The competition aside, to me the best parts of “Pumping Iron” were the behind the scene looks at the various competitors and their lives. Will “Generation Iron” continue that theme?
VY: Definitely. That’s what really made the film. The great access I had to these guys behind the scenes…how they prepare. I mean, the most important thing is the preparation. In body building, when you go on stage and pose you’re showing off what you’ve been working on for the last year. Dieting…working out…your lifestyle…pushing your body to its limits every day. This is all of the stuff that takes place off stage. This film is about how much these guys want to win and how seriously they take it.

MS: A lot of your work to date has been documentaries. Do you hope to branch out and create fictional feature films?
VY: Absolutely. I would love to work in both directions. To me it comes down to making an interesting film…be it a documentary or a narrative feature. As long as the film is interesting to watch.

MS: Do you have a project planned after the release of “Generation Iron?”
VY: A few projects. “Generation Iron” is scheduled to come out this summer. Then we have a graphic novel being developed called “Head Smash” which will then be developed into a feature film. The graphic novel will be unveiled this year at the San Diego Comic Con. We also have a horror film in post production called “Catskill Park,” which should be ready by the end of the year.

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Vlad Yudin talks about graphic novel “Headsmash” and film “Generation Iron”

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Vlad Yudin talks about directing the long-awaited follow up to "Pumping Iron" titled "Generation Iron"