Jackie Chan: 70 Years of the Flaming Dragon
Darkness as the absence of light. One spark is enough and the candle shows the way. Another candle follows. And soon it lies clear and distinct before you. The path of inspiration. Eureka!
Sometimes all it takes is a sparkling idea to be creative. An ember of one’s own character, life experiences, external stimuli, random juggling of synapses and a modicum of trust in God. Those who follow their intuition can discover new horizons. An artist is one who pays attention to the light of the candles in life.
For Friedrich Schiller, the universe was a thought of God. So when we live out the Creator in ourselves, we form our own worlds. Since the dawn of humanity, our species has strived for this source of inspiration. Be it through painting, drama, music or literature. Regardless of age, culture or gender. Humans create.
What existed separately for millennia experienced a symbiosis of often underestimated proportions thanks to the medium of film. A new big bang. A new thought of God. In the final result, film is both a work of sensory stimuli and of many artists, creators and innovators. Here, visual and performing arts, rhythm and language join hands. For at the beginning of every film, immediately after the idea, is the word.
Just as a film consists of successive individual images, martial arts is composed of individual movements to tell a story in sequence. Everything is Kung Fu. A moment, a day, a month, a year, a whole life inspired by a spark, a dazzling thought of God – Jackie Chan.
Jackie Chan has not only mastered the high art of film, but is also an admirer of various genres of art from all over the world. A torch of warming inspiration that has burned for what feels like eternity, moving people of all backgrounds emotionally for decades, inspiring them to create.
Inspiration forms action. Action creates power. Those who learn to control power give inspiration back. And the light remains brightly illuminated in the cycle of a thinking universe. An eternally flaming dragon.
Thorsten Boose
In April 2024
