Any advice for beating people up?

sfoster

sfoster

Staff Member
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I want to do a fight scene for an upcoming short, assuming I can raise the money to hire a couple people.

Basically I need them to be able to flip and fall convincingly when they get "hit".

Obviously I'll get them to sign a waiver.
Any other advice for finding and screening people for a role like this?
Does production insurance become absolutely essential?
 
If they sign the waiver, insurance isn't important. Definitely get some mattresses and other cushiony objects, if they need to fall out of frame.

Put an ad out saying you're looking for actors for a fight scene - VERY physical actions required. Aspiring stuntmen preferred
 
There are a lot of independent stunt groups these days, many of whom post their work on youtube - they tend to be independent filmmakers themselves who specialize in action. I'd say look for someone like that to collaborate with; they'll not only be skilled at things like hits & falls, but they can help you improve your choreograpy, cinematography and editing in order to get the best results out of your fight scene. Here's a few I'm familiar with:

The Stunt People (SF/northern ca):
http://thestuntpeople.com/

Beat Down Boogie (midwest, I think):
http://www.beatdownboogie.com/

Lazy Brown Productions (chicago):
http://lbpstuntschicago.blogspot.com/

Jabronie Pictures (san diego):
http://jabroniepictures.com/
 
Does production insurance become absolutely essential?
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That's a matter of opinion.

Even though you may get them to sign a waiver, you may still get sued (and possibly lose) if their reasonable expectations (of their safety usually) aren't met, especially if you fail to clarify in the paperwork what/who specifically needs to be done/supplied etc.. If you don't have the appropriate people/equipment/location to ensure their job can be done safely.

Odds on, if you're not going too far, you'll be fine but there is always a chance.
 
ItDonnedOnMe said:
There are a lot of independent stunt groups these days, many of whom post their work on youtube - they tend to be independent filmmakers themselves who specialize in action. I'd say look for someone like that to collaborate with; they'll not only be skilled at things like hits & falls, but they can help you improve your choreograpy, cinematography and editing in order to get the best results out of your fight scene. Here's a few I'm familiar with:

The Stunt People (SF/northern ca):
http://thestuntpeople.com/

Beat Down Boogie (midwest, I think):
http://www.beatdownboogie.com/

Lazy Brown Productions (chicago):
http://lbpstuntschicago.blogspot.com/

Jabronie Pictures (san diego):
http://jabroniepictures.com/
Click to expand...

They're all so far away.. I don't think they'll be interested in my little film and I was just hoping to raise a few hundred for the people that have to flip around
 
mussonman said:
If they sign the waiver, insurance isn't important.
Click to expand...

Wrong. A waiver is not guaranteed to keep someone from filing a lawsuit, and may not even protect the production in the end. Assumption of risk is one thing, but if the plaintiff can prove that even within a scenario that has known risk there were not enough precautions, training, blocking, and communication to minimize that risk as much as possible, the liability may fall on the production. Insurance is still necessary.

Throwing a couple of punches and slaps can be easy to figure out, but the fight enters the realm of flips and body-throws it becomes complicated to execute safely. The most important thing is to study up on fighting techniques for the camera, and if possible bring in a stunt coordinator to train and supervise. Attention to camera angle, creative shot sequences, and off-camera padding for falls are all going to be key, but the knowledge and experience needed to do this safely are crucial.
 
I was hoping for an on-camera fall but of course I'll compromise if it's not something I'm able to procure
 
My point is there are people doing this kind of thing all over - those are just a few that I could think of of the top of my head. I'm sure there's someone doing similar work that's closer and would be interested in working with you. Most of them are just groups of friends collaborating together on this stuff - even if they aren't available they can probably recommend someone to you.

For example, a few years back we were doing a 7 day competition and thought it would be fun to try action. I emailed the founder of the Stunt People a few days before hand and told him what we were up to and asked if he'd be interested. He was going to be out of town during our shoot, but he recommended I contact another member who was available. I did, he agreed to come on board and pulled in a few other guys to help out. They showed up and put together some great choreography basically overnight, trained our lead actor (who had no stunt experience), and then we shot this the next afternoon:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYF9HB5_43Q

I'm happy with how it came out, but with a few more days planning I think we could have really improved some of the camera work to make it even better. But it's not like we were a big production or anything - this was essentially an unplanned shoot that we pulled together over a few days, everything was volunteer and our entire budget basically consisted of food for everyone.
 
I like using experienced (brown/black belt) martial artists, whenever I need a physical part. People who naturally know how to choreograph moves and fall safely.

Macho guys don't always cut it. On my first feature, this guy was trying to impress me with his resume - "I've done stunt driving and fights." I said, "Cool, can you grab the other end of this ice chest?" He says, "I can't; my back is messed up."

The moral of the story is people like to talk themselves up, but that doesn't mean they are qualified for a physical role. Find out their actual experience.
 
mussonman said:
If they sign the waiver, insurance isn't important. Definitely get some mattresses and other cushiony objects, if they need to fall out of frame.
Click to expand...
But you 100% don't want anyone getting hurt regardless of the fact they sign a waiver. Mattresses etc is a great call, ditto the other advice from the folks above ^.
 
Also see if gym matts are available. Maybe a rental place is available for the matts.

Get the on set insurance for stunts as well. Shop around for the best possible price. I agree in looking around for either martial artists or stunt people. They won't sue you for black and blues. They look at such injuries as business as usual. I can say that from working with them in past productions.
 
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