Hollywood spends millions. Daz spent ten pounds. The difference? Daz had Tuk Tuk Yow.
"None of what we did, did we really know what we were doing. What script? But we had a plan."
— Darron Eden
Chapter 22 — V0 Bruce
Tuk Tuk Film School
Plan Not Script
Location, Location, Location
Written by V0 Bruce | For children who want to make films with nothing but friends
Lesson 1: Friends Are Your Film Crew
Daz has been friends with the same Tuk Tuk drivers since he first went to Thailand thirty years ago. When Ronnie Green needed to film Mythaistory, it was the Tuk Tuk drivers who made it happen. Not a production company. Not a film studio. Taxi drivers who became family.
Tuk Tuk Yow is the main man. He operates from the World Championships hotel. His son is an ex-fighter for Jartui's camp. When Daz told Yow that Ronnie Green was coming to make history, Yow did not ask for money. He asked: "Where do we go first?"
The Cast of Characters
Top left: Tuk Tuk Yow hiding in the shade - the man who made it all possible. Top right: Jartui's young fighters, the film stars. Bottom left: Grandmasters including the late Yodtong Senanan (RIP) with Hong Kong's Alex Tsui. Bottom right: Thai Garuda made of flowers in Ayutthaya.
Lesson 2: Location, Location, Location
Hollywood builds sets. Daz asked Tuk Tuk Yow: "Can you find Seangmorakot Jartui's camp?" Yow's son trained there. Within hours, Daz was filming inside a Buddhist temple where an Air Force officer runs a Muay Thai camp. No permission forms. No location fees. Just respect and friendship.
Ayutthaya Temples
The Tuk Tuk crew took Ronnie's son's team to Ayutthaya for a whole day. Cost: ten pounds. Because Daz went too.
Wat Arun at Night
Tuk Tuk Yow took Daz out in the middle of the night. "Go down that dark alley! You're safe, Daz! Go look!" A cheap camera. Less than one hundred and ten pounds. Twenty-nine years ago. Magic.
Lesson 3: Zero Budget, Maximum Heart
Ronnie was in Bangkok for two weeks. Daz stayed four. The Tuk Tuk drivers fixed everything they needed. Every location. Every journey. Every taxi. Every motorbike. All arranged by Yow and his crew - free of charge.
They tried to pay Yow. He refused. So they told him: "Take the money - it's your wife's now!" Gangster style. That is how you pay a friend who will not take payment.
The Connections
Top left: Ex-Army General Kwan Robcop greeting Ronnie - warm friends across decades. Top right: Alex Tsui's historic Khunchieng Muay Thai Society silk - that is art. Bottom left: Ayutthaya elephants. Bottom right: Jartui's Nak Muay kids and the legendary Nounours Krongsak "The Professor".
Lesson 4: Respect Opens Every Door
In Thailand, they respect Daz's oriental eyes. They respect his friends. When Yow told the camps that Daz was a friend of Ronnie Green, every door opened. The Thai military look at Ronnie like a Nai Kha Knomtom - the legendary warrior who won freedom for his people through Muay Thai.
Daz's Nai Kha Knomtom Medallion
March 17th is Nai Kha Knomtom Day in Thailand - celebrating the warrior who defeated ten Burmese champions to win his freedom. This medallion is sacred. Daz was there for the yearly celebration during filming.
Lesson 5: Film Your Heroes Before They Are Gone
The late Grandmaster Yodtong Senanan. The legendary Nounours Krongsak "The Professor". General Kwan Robcop. Kash "The Flash" Gill - the first British South Asian to win a world title in a contact sport. Michael "Venom"Page. All captured on Daz's camera because he was there with it ready.
The Hall of Fame
Top left: Master Sken and Ronnie - old mates. Top right: Kash "The Flash"Gill who drove from Birmingham to Manchester twice weekly to train with Ronnie. Bottom: The family of Michael "Venom" Page - UFC and Bellator hero. They all came for Ronnie. Daz got camera first.
Lesson 6: Make It Art
Daz only had a few bad photos of Randy Couture meeting Big Joe Egan in Manchester. So he turned them arty. Black and white. Guy Ritchie tribute. "Lock Stock and Barrels of Fun" he called it. Bad photos become art when you have vision.
A Daz Snatch Shot
Randy meets Big Joe. "What tough guys!" "You seen any?"Black and white. Mouth shut. Camera first. Art made from imperfect photos.
The Tuk Tuk Formula
1
Make Friends First
Daz spent thirty years building friendships in Thailand before he ever needed to film anything. The crew was ready before the mission existed.
2
Have A Plan, Not A Script
Scripts are rigid. Plans are flexible. When the World Championships and Nai Kha Knomtom Day fell on the same dates, they adjusted. Zero panic.
3
Use What You Have
A cheap camera. A phone. A Tuk Tuk. Respect. That is enough to make history.
4
Stay Longer Than Expected
Ronnie stayed two weeks. Daz stayed four. The extra time filming Sasiprapa and Jartui's camps alone made all the difference.
5
Pay It Forward
Yow would not take money. So they made sure his wife got it instead. Gratitude finds a way.
V0 Bruce Says
Every film has a protagonist, an antagonist, a location, a moral, and many lessons. This book is the film. The protagonist is Ronnie Green. The antagonists are all the people who said it could not be done. The location is Bangkok, Manchester, Birmingham, and everywhere the Tuk Tuks took them.
The moral? You do not need money to make history. You need friends, a plan, a camera, and the courage to walk down dark alleys when Tuk Tuk Yow tells you it is safe.
"Look who I met. Look who Darron got to share with. Enter the Dragon."— That is Ronnie Green's quote about Darron's attitude. Which dragons? All of them.