Monkey With a Gun Productions
Monkey With a Gun Productions, also known as Monkey With a Gun or MWAG, is an American film production company specialising in professional paintball documentaries and tournament broadcasting. It was established by filmmaker Patrick Spohrer and his wife Bonnie following Spohrer's earlier collaboration with Bryon Benini through Division One Productions.[1][2]
The company is best known for producing Cereal Killerz (2004), Heroes for a Day: The XSV Story (2007) and Cereal Killerz 2 (2009). It also produced live broadcasts of professional Paintball Sports Promotions (PSP) tournaments during the late 2000s.[2][3]
The company's documentary catalogue, together with the earlier Division One films Push and Sunday Drivers, has subsequently been made available through Major League Paintball PLUS.[4]
History
[edit]Origins
[edit]Monkey With a Gun Productions emerged from Patrick Spohrer's earlier work in tournament paintball filmmaking.
During the late 1990s, Spohrer was involved in producing films about surfing and skiing. He subsequently became involved in paintball after offering to produce a team documentary as a tournament prize.
The winning team, The Family, invited Spohrer to play alongside its members, introducing him to organised tournament competition.[1]
Spohrer subsequently collaborated with professional player Bryon Benini to produce Push, a documentary following professional paintball teams during the 1999 and 2000 tournament seasons.
The film premiered during the 2000 Paintball World Cup in Kissimmee, Florida.
The pair followed it with Sunday Drivers, which premiered during the 2002 Paintball World Cup.
Both films were produced through Division One Productions, before the establishment of Monkey With a Gun Productions.[1][5]
Establishment
[edit]Following the Division One projects, Spohrer established Monkey With a Gun Productions with Bonnie Demenge, who was also identified as Bonnie Spohrer in contemporary reporting.
Bonnie brought business management, sales and marketing experience to the company, including previous employment with JT USA.
Patrick was responsible for filmmaking and cinematography, while Bonnie contributed to the company's commercial and marketing operations.[1][2]
The company was operating by 2004, when contemporary WARPIG reporting described it as a relatively new production business.
Its first major release was Cereal Killerz, which premiered during the 2004 National Professional Paintball League (NPPL) Commander's Cup in San Diego, California.[2]
Documentary productions
[edit]Cereal Killerz
[edit]Cereal Killerz was the company's first major documentary release.
Unlike Push and Sunday Drivers, which concentrated on professional teams and tournament competition, Cereal Killerz was structured around individual professional players.
The film featured ten competitors, including Oliver Lang, Alex Fraige, Chris LaSoya, Bob Long, Matty Marshall and Davey Williamson.
The documentary combined interviews, tournament footage and music-driven player profiles.
It premiered at the La Paloma Theatre in Encinitas, California, during the 2004 NPPL Commander's Cup.
Contemporary WARPIG coverage reported that the screening attracted a sold-out audience of more than 400 spectators.[2]
Heroes for a Day: The XSV Story
[edit]In 2007, Monkey With a Gun Productions released Heroes for a Day: The XSV Story, a feature-length documentary following the professional team Sacramento XSV.
The film was produced over approximately three years and documented the team's development following its formation by former Los Angeles Ironmen players and other experienced competitors.
It followed the team through international tournaments, practice sessions, internal disagreements and life away from competition.
Professional player and commentator Matty Marshall co-wrote the screenplay with Spohrer.
The original DVD edition included more than 25 minutes of bonus material and a 45-page collector's booklet containing photographs and a discography of the film's fourteen soundtrack recordings.[1]
Cereal Killerz 2
[edit]Monkey With a Gun released Cereal Killerz 2, also known as CK2, in 2009.
The documentary continued the individual player-profile format of the original film.
Featured players included Ryan Greenspan, Travis Lemanski, Konstantin Fedorov, Angel Fragoza, Brian Fow and Thomas Taylor.
A distinguishing feature of the production was its use of high-speed cameras recording at approximately 500 frames per second.
The footage allowed detailed slow-motion sequences to be incorporated into the player profiles and tournament action.
Cereal Killerz 2 premiered during the 2009 PSP Paintball World Cup.[3]
Tournament broadcasting
[edit]Monkey With a Gun Productions expanded into live professional paintball broadcasting during the late 2000s.
At the 2008 PSP World Cup, the company produced a live webcast covering professional tournament competition.
The production used six cameras to provide multiple views of the playing field, together with live scoring graphics, footage from the tournament pits and interviews with players and equipment manufacturers.
Matty Marshall served as the broadcast commentator.
The event began with a free day of viewing, while coverage of the remaining competition, including the finals, was offered through a pay-per-view service.
The broadcast was also distributed to television monitors in the tournament trade-show area, allowing spectators and exhibitors to follow matches away from the playing field.[6]
Monkey With a Gun continued producing professional tournament broadcasts during 2009.
Contemporary reporting documented Spohrer's involvement in PSP webcast production alongside Marshall, including coverage of the Mid-Atlantic Open.[7]
Production style and music
[edit]Monkey With a Gun Productions was associated with a documentary approach combining player interviews, competition footage, music and behind-the-scenes material.
Spohrer's filmmaking background included shooting on both video and motion picture film.
The company's productions used music-driven editing to accompany tournament footage while retaining interviews and documentary sequences about the players' experiences.[1][3]
Soundtracks were a documented component of the company's films.
Cereal Killerz featured recordings by Statistics, From Autumn to Ashes, Strike Anywhere, Onelinedrawing and other artists.
Heroes for a Day incorporated fourteen songs, with the official track listing published by Patrick Spohrer on PbNation in March 2007.
Cereal Killerz 2 also featured independent artists, with a contemporary soundtrack transcription acknowledged by Spohrer in November 2009.[8][9][10]
Detailed track listings are documented in the individual film articles.
Filmography
[edit]Monkey With a Gun Productions
[edit]| Year | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Cereal Killerz | Documentary profiling ten professional paintball players |
| 2007 | Heroes for a Day: The XSV Story | Feature-length documentary following Sacramento XSV |
| 2009 | Cereal Killerz 2 | Sequel featuring ten professional players and high-speed cinematography |
Earlier Division One Productions films
[edit]The following films were produced by Patrick Spohrer and Bryon Benini before the establishment of Monkey With a Gun Productions.
They subsequently became part of the documentary catalogue associated with Monkey With a Gun.
| Year | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Push | Documentary following leading professional tournament teams |
| 2002 | Sunday Drivers | Follow-up documentary concentrating on tournament action and professional paintball culture |
These earlier films should not be confused with original Monkey With a Gun Productions releases.[1][4]
Distribution and preservation
[edit]The company's documentaries were originally distributed on DVD through specialist paintball retailers.
Additional material, including trailers and soundtrack information, was made available through the company's website and online paintball communities.[1][3]
The films subsequently circulated through online video platforms and digital distribution services.
In October 2025, the Monkey With a Gun documentary catalogue became available through Major League Paintball PLUS, including Push, Sunday Drivers, Cereal Killerz, Heroes for a Day and Cereal Killerz 2.[4]
The streaming catalogue also includes trailers, commentary editions and selected bonus features.
The availability of these productions provides access to historical footage of professional tournament paintball during the transition from ten-player competition to modern seven-player and X-Ball formats.
See also
[edit]- Patrick Spohrer
- Bryon Benini
- Push (paintball film)
- Sunday Drivers
- Cereal Killerz
- Cereal Killerz 2
- Heroes for a Day: The XSV Story
- Paintball Sports Promotions
- Paintball media
- History of tournament paintball
References
[edit]- WARPIG, Bill Mills, "Heroes for a Day: The XSV Story DVD Review", 2007. Historical account of Patrick Spohrer's earlier films, formation of Monkey With a Gun with Bonnie Demenge and production of Heroes for a Day.
- WARPIG, "NPPL Commander's Cup 2004". Contemporary coverage documenting Monkey With a Gun's establishment, the founders' backgrounds and the premiere of Cereal Killerz.
- WARPIG, Bill Mills, "Cereal Killerz 2 DVD Review", 2009. Retrospective account of the company, documentary productions, broadcasting and Cereal Killerz 2 premiere.
- Major League Paintball PLUS, "Monkey With a Gun: Paintball Documentaries". Official digital catalogue of the company's films and associated earlier releases.
- WARPIG, "NPPL World Cup 2002", October 2002. Contemporary reporting on Division One Productions and the premiere of Sunday Drivers.
- WARPIG, "PSP World Cup 2008 Trade Show", October 2008. Contemporary report documenting Monkey With a Gun's six-camera live webcast, Matty Marshall's commentary and pay-per-view coverage.
- View from the Deadbox, "Global Paintball Conspiracy", 22 April 2009. Contemporary commentary documenting Spohrer's involvement in PSP Mid-Atlantic Open webcast production.
- PbNation, "Cereal Killers Music Tracklist", 25 February 2005. Soundtrack transcription and contributions from Patrick Spohrer.
- PbNation, Patrick Spohrer, "Heroes for a Day - Official Soundtrack Tracklist", 26 March 2007. Official fourteen-song soundtrack listing.
- PbNation, "Full CK2 Soundtrack", 8 November 2009. Contemporary soundtrack listing acknowledged by Patrick Spohrer.