I had a great week last week testing for a film that is going to start filming this year, i was hired as a stunt performer for green screen action tests.
I was working for aus stunt co-ordinator Guy Norris, we had a small team of stunt guys and two lead actors / martial artists, Richard Norton and Bren Foster.
Richard has been in alot of martial art films of the 80's and 90's along side Chuck Norris and Jackie Chan, also Richard is a respected martial artist and master.
Bren is a champion in a few different martial arts and has done a couple of programs for the Discovery channel, "Fight science" and "The traveling warrior" .
The first day i see Brens true speed and power, if this guy hit you, you would not get up. So we start to show Bren some movie fighting secrets and get straight into it. The first fight sceen i come in behind Bren and wrap him up, in a split second he has broken my grip, dropped and turned a round picking me up around my legs lifted me above his head and driven me into the concrete. The co-ord and director love it so we film it six times because the camera operator seems to be missing the impact and believe me there was alot of impact.
The next few days we put alot of different types of fights together, fast, explosive, and heavy hitting.
For most of the fights i'm coming in off timing from other stunt guys, to throw a punch or a kick and get totaly worked over by Bren then fall down or get thrown to the concrete.
The second last day we shoot a sceen were bren starts on the ground floor of an office and travels up a stair case to the top, were he takes me out with a gun shot and then throws me off the top floor through a brake away hand rail down to the ground level. The team and i put a wire rig in for me to do the stunt as i'm falling 16feet to the ground face first and the director wants to see the fall and impact in one take.
We double check the marks on the rig and were ready to go, i'm looking down at my end mark on the ground and going through my action in my head, the director calls "action" and i make my move in Bren turns and shoots then follows with a spinning back fist and launches me threw the hand rail and off the top floor down to the ground were i impact the concrete face first.
On the last day Richard Norton has his turn to beat up a group of stunt guys, this guy is hard as nails and really works you over when he gets his hands on you. I had his fists and elbows flying at and towards my face all day. He is a martial arts master and still moves like he is in his twenty's, respect.
The whole research and development process is always a challenge and seems to be one of the best parts of this job, it's always great to work with high quality stunt men and martial artists not to mention a great stunt co-ordinator.
Thank you
RHYE COPEMAN
