With the DVD launch of Casino Royal this week, Becky Wicks spoke to Gary Powell, the stunt coordinator for the film, and the fearless Adam Kirley, the stunt man who performed the record breaking Aston roll. How do they handle such a mad job, and why, when you've walked through flames and jumped from one helicopter to another, would you still be afraid to sit in a pot-hole?
So, James Bond, that’s a pretty cool gig for a stunt co-ordinator. How did you score that one?
Gary: You’re right, it’s a really good job! There comes a point when you’re getting a pat on the back for rolling a 200k Aston Martin, when you think, hey surely I must have the best job in the world! But I was brought up in the business - my dad, brother and uncle all do it too. We’ve always had a Bond tie too – my dad worked with Sean Connery and my brother with Timothy Daulton, and now I’m lucky enough to work with Daniel Craig – who’s a really nice bloke by the way.
Adam, what was it like rolling that car seven times, and breaking the world record?
Adam: We didn’t even mean to break the record for the most rolls – we did 7 and three-quarters by mistake really, it just kept on going! It was actually pretty cool though because my step-father held the world record before me, and I beat him. I don’t think he minds, at least we’ve kept it in the family!
Do you get some difficult actors strutting their stuff, being annoying?
Gary: I’ve not really met anyone who’s been difficult to work with – I’ve been pretty lucky in that everyone’s been nice. We always sort of lived in the shadow of the actors, as stunt men, but that’s just the way it is. Actually, we’re getting a lot more recognition now because people know more about the film industry, and they see the extras on the DVD’s. I was nominated for four awards for my work, so we’re getting a lot more understanding from everyone these days.
Adam: It’s true they’ve all been pretty nice to me – we have to spend a lot of time before the shoots with the cast and crew so we all get to know each other quite well. We get quite a good rappor with the actors after a while, most of us have performing backgrounds, too.
Been anywhere extra memorable on location?
Gary: I went to Australia when I worked on Ghostrider, and Thailand for Alexander, which was lovely. We get to go to some pretty good places on the shoots, places that make you think. I mean, you go to all these places where everyone’s got everything you could ever want - Monte Carlo, they’ve all got yachts, you know. But then you go somewhere like Morocco where kids are playing on the streets with old bike parts, and they’ve all got huge smiles on their faces, and you think, wow I’m pretty lucky with what I’ve got.
What advice would you give anyone who wants to become a stunt man?
Gary: You have to really want to do it. It’s very competitive and you need to go through a lot of training, a lot of different qualifications through Equity. People always think a stuntman is fearless but the truth is, you’ve got to be a little bit afraid. It’s usually only the macho men who think they can walk in and deal with anything with no problem, who get hurt. I mean, I’ve done some pretty crazy things – I drove the tank in Goldeneye and the horse fighting scene at the start of Braveheart, but you won’t catch me going down a pot hole or anything. I’m claustrophobic, I’d be terrified!
Adam: It’s a pretty big ordeal getting into though, takes a lot of investment. You’ve got to be fit – there are a lot of gymnasts getting into it because they’re flexible, but they’re all the same height. Luckily we’ve got the big, rough and tough guy market covered! There are only 300 professional stunt men in England but, as you can imagine, not enough work for them all – it takes a long time to get to the top of your game but you’ve just got to stick at it.
So what’s next in line for you guys?
Gary: I’ll be working on the next Bond film, set for November.
Adam: So will I, at the moment I’m doing some work on The Bourne Ultimatum as Mat Damon’s double, and some fast car driving for The second National Treasure film with Nicholas Cage.
Aaaah well, it’s all in a day’s work folks, (for some people).
To celebrate the DVD release of Casino Royale we're offering you the the chance to win one of five city breaks to Venice or Prague where the action unfolds, plus ten runners-up goody bags.
To enter, click here
this site is good.This site give the brief description on advertising&marketing.
awards&recognition
Posted by: dhanu | 13/03/2007 at 03:02 PM