O'ahu man fights his way to Hollywood

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

Jaime Abregana Jr. has taken his martial-arts skills from 'Ewa Beach to Hollywood, and he's mighty proud of it.

"I play Borg, a major drug dealer, but I have some great fight scenes," said Abregana, a second-generation kingpin in karate, kenpo and jiujitsu, following in the footsteps of his late father, Jaime Abregana Sr. "Since finishing this movie, I've been asked to do another."

"Transformed," filmed in Hollywood with Ken Moreno ("Soul Survivor," "The Fugitive") in a featured role, is produced by Leo Fong through his Sky Dragon Entertainment. Efren Pinon, one of the Philippines' top action directors, directed.

While he plays a notorious heavy, Abregana said the role enabled him to expose his martial arts skills to a wider audience. Interest in martial arts, ranging from Filipino stick fighting to kung fu to karate, is on the rise, he says.

"I think everybody can learn something from martial arts," said Abregana, 40, who says Hollywood technology has made the genre enormously popular in such films as "Matrix" and "The Matrix Reloaded" and crossover hits such as "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and the forthcoming "Shaolin Soccer."

"Transformed" does not glorify or exaggerate the cultural art form, he said. "For me, martial arts is a serious thing; it's about skills to protect yourself and your family. It's a totally different animal for entertainment, such as 'Matrix.' I would do it for movies like that, as long as it doesn't over-exaggerate, but technology ... can make anything look spectacular."

His work in "Transformed," now being edited, led to an expected role in a movie called "Legends: Our Warriors' Heart," which he said could film in the Islands this year.

"This is a story about a samurai boy who wants to challenge his master," said Abregana. A samurai code — "that if you draw your sword, you must draw blood" — is put to the test by accident, triggering consequences. "It's a story with a message about martial artists, who must be grounded and not high-handed, who must be humble."

A black belt artist of the 10th degree, a ranking he was bequeathed after his father died, Abregana — who is Filipino, Japanese and Puerto Rican — said his everyday hero remains his late dad, "who taught me everything — to stand my ground and be humble, to always help others in need, to never turn your back to anyone, to never forget where you come from."

His movie idols are Jet Li and Cary Hiroyuki-Tagawa, "because of the seriousness they have, when they do (martial-arts) scenes," said Abregana. Looking serious while engaging in martial arts has become his signature. "I didn't have to smile in the last movie, and they told me that was perfect; I shouldn't smile as a villain," he said.

Abregana has been a practitioner of martial arts since 1968 and now heads the Hawai'i Martial Arts International Society (www.hmais.com), an alliance that includes students from around the world.