Early life

Shaw was born in Hollywood, California. He spent his early years in South Central Los Angeles and then returned to Hollywood for his adolescence. He became involved with the martial arts and eastern mysticism at a very early age. Both of these subjects have come to define much of his life. He graduated from Virgil Junior High School in 1973 and from Hollywood High School in 1976.

Career

Shaw has had a career in both the arts and the sciences. He first became noticed as an author when his poetry and literary fiction began to be published in literary journals in the late 1970s. Beginning in the mid-1980s Shaw's writings also began to be published on the subjects of anthropology and the social sciences. Though his writings have span many genres, Shaw is most well known as an author on the subject of the martial arts. This is due to the voluminous amount of written work he has composed on the subject. Over three hundred of his articles on the martial arts have been published and he is the author of several books on the subject.

The foundation for Shaw's writings on the martial arts began when he was six years old. This is the point when he began his study of the Korean martial art of Hapkido.

Shaw studied and taught Hapkido and Taekwondo until in 1987 he was the first American to be awarded the 7th Degree Black Belt in Moo Duk Kwan Taekwondo in 1988 he earned the rank of 7th Degree Black Belt in Kumdo. In 1996 he was the first non-Korean to be promoted to the rank of 7th Degree Black Belt by The Korea Hapkido Federation. Previous to this he had been certified a Hapkido 7th Degree Black Belt in Hapkido Moo Hak Kwan. Since that time he has been promoted to 8th Degree Black Belt in both Hapkido and Taekwondo.

Shaw has also written numerous articles and several books on Zen Buddhism, Yoga, Eastern Religion and Asian culture. These writings are based in the fact that from his youth forward Shaw has been involved with eastern meditative thought. He was a direct disciple of Swami Satchidananda. In addition, he studied with such teachers as Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan and Thich Thien-An.

By the age of eighteen he was a certified instructor of Hatha Yoga and Raja Yoga. At this point in his life he traveled to India where he was initiated into various Buddhist, Hindu and Sufi sects and became Sannyasa. Shaw is also a Frater Rosae Crucis of the Rosicrucian Order. He is known to frequently travel in East Asia, South Asia, and Southeast Asia, documenting Asian culture in words and on film. He lives much of every year at his home in Kamakura, Japan.

Zen filmmaking

In association to his writings, Shaw is also an active actor and filmmaker. In 1991 he developed a new style of filmmaking that he titled Zen Filmmaking. This style of filmmaking is defined by the fact that no screenplays are used in the creation of the film. In an interview in Variety Shaw explains, "In Zen filmmaking the spontaneous creative energy of the filmmaker is the only defining factor. This allows for a spiritually pure source of immediate inspiration to be the only guide in the filmmaking process." He also extensively defined this style of filmmaking in his 2008 book Zen Filmmaking.

Works

Partial Bibliography

• About Peace (ISBN 1-59003-003-6)
• Advanced Taekwondo (ISBN 0-8048-3640-X)
• Arc Left from Istanbul: A Photographic Exploration (ISBN 978-1877792571)
• Bangkok and the Nights of Drunken Stupor (ISBN 1-877792-06-3)
• Cambodian Refugees in Long Beach, California: The Definitive Study (ISBN 1-877792-02-0)
• Bangkok: Beyond the Buddha (ISBN 978-1877792649)
• Bus Rides (ISBN 1-877792-23-3)
• Chi Kung for Beginners: Master the Flow of Chi for Good Health, Stress Reductions & Increased Energy (ISBN 0-7387-0419-9)
• E.Q. (ISBN 1-877792-07-1)
• Gods in Polyester: A Survivors' Account Of 70's Cinema Obscura (Contributor)
• Hapkido Articles on Self-Defense (ISBN 978-1-877792-65-6)
• Hapkido: Essays on Self-Defense (ISBN 1-877792-42-X)
• Hapkido: Korean Art of Self-Defense (ISBN 0-8048-2074-0)
• Hong Kong Out of Focus (ISBN 978-1-877792-58-8)
• Independent Filmmaking: Secrets of the Craft (ISBN 1-877792-49-7)
• In the Foreboding Shadows of Holiness (ISBN 1-877792-17-9
• Israel in the Oblique (ISBN 978-1877792618)
• Junk: The Back Streets of Bangkok (ISBN 1-877792-05-5)
• L. A. Tales from the Suburban Side of Hell (ISBN 1-877792-18-7)
• Last Will & Testament According to the Divine Rites of the Drug Cocaine (ISBN 1-877792-00-4)
• Los Angeles Koreatown: An Urban Geographical View of the Factors That Lead to Its Inception & Its Current Urbanization (ISBN 1-877792-09-8)
• Love Lived Too Long (ISBN 1-877792-21-7)
• Marguerite Duras And Charles Bukowski: The Yin And Yang Of Modern Erotic Literature (ISBN 1-877792-45-4)
• Mastering Health: The A to Z of Chi Kung (ISBN 8-178222-72-8)
• No Kisses for the Sinner (ISBN 1-877792-12-8)
• Nirvana in a Nutshell: 157 Zen Meditations (ISBN 1-59003-017-6)
• On the Hard Edge of Hollywood (ISBN 1-877792-38-1)
• Pagan, Burma: Shadows of the Stupa (ISBN 1-877792-63-2)
• Sake in a Glass, Sushi with Your Fingers: Fifteen Minutes in Tokyo (ISBN 1-877792-22-5)
• Samurai Zen (ISBN 1-57863-104-1)
• Sanskrit, the Language: Inception and Modern Day Ramifications (ISBN 1-877792-10-1)
• Scream of the Buddha (ISBN 1-877792-55-1)
• Scream: Southeast Asia & the Dream (ISBN 1-877792-01-2)
• Sedona Realm of the Vortex (ISBN 978-1-877792-66-3)
• Shama Baba (ISBN 1-877792-15-2)
• Scribbles on the Restroom Wall (ISBN 1-877792-53-5)
• Shanghai Whispers Shanghai Screams (ISBN 1-877792-26-8)
• Shattered Thoughts (ISBN 1-877792-44-6)
• Siam Tracy (ISBN 1-877792-25-X)
• Simple Bliss: Nirvana Made Easy (ISBN 1-86204-850-9)
• Singapore Off Center (ISBN 978-1-877792-60-1)
• Skid Row 1983: A Photographic Exploration (ISBN 978-1-877792-62-5)
• South Korea in a Blur (ISBN 978-1-877792-59-5)
• Suicide Slowly (ISBN 1-877792-14-4)
• Taekwondo Basics (ISBN 0-8048-3484-9)
• The History of the Hmong
• The Ki Process: Korean Secrets for Cultivating Dynamic Energy (ISBN 0-87728-879-8)
• The Little Book of Yoga Breathing: Pranayama Made Easy (ISBN 1-57863-301-X)
• The Little Book of Yoga Meditation (ISBN 978-1-877792-67-0)
• The Tao of Self-Defense (ISBN 1-57863-190-4)
• The Most Beautiful Woman in Shanghai (ISBN 1-877792-24-1)
• The Passionate Kiss of Illusion (ISBN 1-877792-04-7)
• There Is No Wind Through the Trees on a Treeless Beach (ISBN 1-877792-11-X)
• The Screenplays (ISBN 1-877792-48-9)
• The Voodoo Buddha (ISBN 1-877792-56-X)
• The Warrior Is Silent: Martial Art and the Spiritual Path (ISBN 0-89281-668-6)
• The Zen of Everything (ISBN 1-877792-40-3)
• TKO: Lost Nights in Tokyo (ISBN 1-877792-08-X)
• War (ISBN 1-877792-17-9)
• Wet Dreams and Placid Silence (ISBN 1-877792-19-5)
• Wo' Ton of the Blue Vision (ISBN 1-877792-16-0)
• Yoga the Inner Journey (ISBN 0-595-16549-4)
• Zen and Modern Consciousness (ISBN 1-877792-52-7)
• Zen Buddhism: The Pathway to Nirvana (ISBN 1877792365)
• Zen Filmmaking (ISBN 1-877792-47-0)
• Zen in the Blink of an Eye (ISBN 1-877792-4-11)
• Zen: Tales from the Journey (ISBN 1-877792-43-8)
• Zen O'Clock: Time to Be (ISBN 1-57863-124-6)
• Zero One (ISBN 1-877792-20-9)

Partial Filmography

• Blade in Hong Kong (1985)
• Guongdong Province, China: Poverty and Promise (1990) (Director)
• Long Feng cha lou (1990)
• Sunset Beat (1990)
• Just a Moment That Passes in Time (1991) (also Producer/Director)
• Zhi zai chu wei (1991)
• Wu fu xing chuang gui (1991)
• The Roller Blade Seven (1991) (also Producer)
• Long mao shao xu (1991)
• The Divine Enforcer (1991)
• Capital Punishment (1991)
• Palomino (1991)
• Samurai Vampire Bikers From Hell (1992) (also Producer/Director)
• Nu hei xia huang ying (1992)
• The Player (1992)
• The Naked Truth (1992)
• The Legend of the Roller Blade Seven (1992) (also Producer)
• Jing ling bian (1992)
• Return of the Roller Blade Seven (1993) (also Producer)
• Samurai Johnny Frankenstein (1993) (also Producer/Director)
• Atomic Samurai (1993) (also Producer/Director)
• Samurai Ballet (1994) (also Producer/Director)
• Exploding Angel (1995)
• Cambodia: Living in the Killing Field (1996) (Director)
• Max Hell Frog Warrior (1996) (also Producer/Director) (a.k.a. Hell Comes to Frogtown III, Toad Warrior and Max Hell Comes to Frogtown)
• Shotgun Boulevard (1996) (also Producer)
• Hollywood Cops (1997) (also Producer/Director)
• Guns of El Chupacabra (1997) (also Producer)
• Guns of El Chupacabra II: The Unseen (1998) (also Producer/Director)
• Armageddon Boulevard (1998) (also Producer)
• Ride with the Devil (1999) (also Producer)
• Ghost Taxi (1998) (also Producer)
• Quest of the Invisible Ninja (2000) (also Producer/Director)
• Poppugurûpu Koroshiya (2000)
• Liquid Tokyo (2001) (also Producer/Director)
• No Boundaries (2001) (also Producer/Director)
• Slip Into Oblivion (2001) (also Producer/Director)
• Undercover X (2001) (also Producer/Director)
• Sedona (2001) (also Producer/Director)
• Hollywood P.D. Undercover (2002) (also Producer/Director)
• Hitman City (2003) (also Producer/Director)
• The Rock n' Roll Cops (2003) (also Producer/Director)
• Vampire Blvd. (2004) (also Producer/Director)
• Super Hero Central (2004) (also Producer/Director)
• Legend of the Dead Boyz (2004) (Producer/Director)
• Interview: The Documentary (2005) (Producer/Director)
• The Final Kiss (2005) (also Producer/Director)
• Dinner and Drinks (2005) (also Producer/Director)
• 9mm Sunrise (2006) (also Producer/Director)
• Killer: Dead or Alive (2006) (also Producer/Director)
• One Shot Sam (2006) (Director)
• Vampire Noir (2007) (also Producer/Director)
• Yin Yang Insane (2007) (Producer/Director)
• Witch's Brew (2007) (also Producer/Director)
• Angel Blade (2008) (Producer/Director)
• A Drive with Linnea and Donald (2008) (Producer/Director)
• The Adventures of Ace X and Kid Velvet (2008) (also Producer/Director)
• A Little Bit About What's Going On (2008) (Producer/Director)
• Naked Avenger (2008) (Producer/Director)
• Frogtown News (2008) (also Producer/Director)
• Sealed with a Bullet (2008) (also Producer/Director)
• The Hard Edge of Hollywood (2008) (also Producer/Director)
• Vampire Black Trail of the Dead (2008) (also Producer/Director)
• The Cancelled Movie (2008) (also Producer/Director)
• Vampire Abstracta (2009) (also Producer/Director)
• Crimes of the Chupacabra (2009) (also Producer/Director)
• Bluegrass Christmas Party (2009) (also Producer/Director)
• DGJ Q and A (2010) (Producer)
• Mimes: Silent But Deadly (2010) (Producer/Director)
• Count Vlogula (2010) (also Producer/Director)
• Crimes of Tomorrow (2010) (Producer)
• El Chupacabra: Las entrevistas perdido (2010) (also Producer/Director)
• Cinematografia {{{2}}} (2010) (also Producer/Director)
• Diary of a Michigan Migrant Film Worker (2011) (also Producer/Director)
• The White Cat (2011) (Producer/Director)
• Speaking Chinese in Hollywood (2011) (Producer/Director)
• The Back of Beyond (2011) (also Producer/Director)
• Abraxas: Day of the Warrior (2012) (also Producer/Director)
• Conrad Talks Hollywood (2012) (Producer/Director)
• Preachin' the Gospel (2012) (Producer/Director)
• Roller Blade Seven: The Unseen Scenes (2012) (Producer/Director)
• A Space in the Time (2013) (also Producer/Director)

Partial Discography

• Nights of Gothic Horror
• Ambient Light
• Just Zen
• Themes from the Zen Movies
• Beggar's Grave
• Jail House Brew
• The Second Passageway of the Golden Illusion
• Vague Illusions
• Cinema Noir
• Angels Oblivion
• Coriander Shades of Tibet Tears
• Vampire
• Sanskrit
• The Back of Beyond (Soundtrack)
• Nuclear Tan
• Synth
• Cave of Siddhi

[ Source: Wikipedia ]