It's A Wrap! by LASA Ezine

Scenes Letter from the Editor Some of our experiences making this magazine

4 5

Studio Ghibli An overview of one of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most renouned anamation studios

Short biographies from all the writers

Reviewing the Reviewer Insight into how movie critics review movies

A Moviegoerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Guide to the MPAA 2

Contributors

Descriptions of the factors that the MPAA uses to determine the rating for movies

Star Wars: A Force to be Reckoned With An inside look into the minds of Star Wars fans

Star Wars: An Era of Films Timeline of the films in the Star Wars trilogy

Top 6 Stunts A top list of some dangerous movie stunts

(Cult)urally Significant A look into the world of Cult Films

30 32

Gather Your Gear A first hand interview from a professional stunt man

This issue of It’s a Wrap was created as part of the semesterlong freshman course Electronic Magazine at the Liberal Arts and Sciences Academy. During the spring of 2015, the four contributors have compiled and written this magazine with great effort and collaboration. We have shared many an experience together while making this edition. From Samantha continually attempting to convince Vasanti to watch Star Wars, Vasanti ranting about animation and layouts, Alex’s rather strong opinions, Chet silently judging everybody, to our aversion to using the word “gray”, this lengthy magazine holds both memories and many begrudging compromises.

ST AR WA RS

Letter from the Editors

STAR WAR

ARS

W TAR

ARS!

STAR W

STAR WAR

STAR WARS!

STAR

WAR

! S R A RW

STA

It will be noted that because of the lack of talking or communication across the team, Vasanti forgot the names of her team members while writing this letter. While working on this magazine, the contributors came to the conclusion that, in America, movies are an aspect of everyday life. People are constantly asking each other if they’ve seen the newest movie and what they thought of it. Everyone has their personal favorite, be it Superman or Mean Girls. In this issue of It’s a Wrap!, we decided to look into the less-explored parts of the film industry. What is the cultural impact of classic movies? What is it like being a stuntsman? These questions and more will be addressed, and while everyone has differing opinions, there is one thing we can agree on: Star Wars is the best. (According to Samantha.)

*JUDGING*

Happy viewing! The Editors

Space image courtesy of NASA

Chet Fagerstrom is a very devoted movie geek. He has had a very difficult time choosing a favorite movie because he likes different movies for different reasons. However, the upcoming film he’s most excited for is undoubtedly the Deadpool movie coming out in February of 2016. Aside from movie watching, Chet also spends his free time playing music. He has played the violin for 10 years and has since added viola and mandolin to his skill set. Alex Cohan spends too much time on Netflix. He has seen almost all the respectable movies in the “Action and Adventure” category and will watch anything with Jason Statham in it. He spends his time practicing martial arts which started his love for action movies and interest in professional stunts. He looks forward to when Netflix will slowly release their new movies multiple years after airing. He also enjoys photography and making short films. Samantha Wallace, to say it bluntly, is a rabid Star Wars fan. Star Wars has been a part of her life for years, and she can still remember how excited she was to watch the Star Wars movies for the first time. Not that she isn’t still excited to watch it. Or talk about it. (Her cowriters can attest to this fact.) When she is not watching Star Wars, Samantha can be found quietly reading Star Wars books, listening to (Star Wars) music, or sleeping while dreaming about (can you guess?) Star Wars. Vasanti Varma believes in the philosiphy that any class can be an art class. She is both an avid movie fan and an avid video game fan. (She lives for fan art.) She has many TV shows and movies that she loves to watch, such as the Granada version of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and The Godfather. Among her interests are animation, video games, and illustration. Vasanti looks forward to Sherlock (BBC), Ant-man, and the video games Fire Emblem If, Persona 5, and The Great Ace Attorney.

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This legendary animation studio was named after a war plane which would “blow hot wind through the Sahara.” The first founders of the studio wished to do exactly that: be a fresh and new force in the Japanese animation industry. The studio has since gone on to make what are considered some of the best movies of all time; Ghibli is known to make some of the best animation that has ever come out of Japan. A chart to determine which works is for you, timeline of the studio’s rich history, and a brief overview of the major movies of Studio Ghibli are on the following pages.

Studio Ghibli is founded by Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, Toshio Suzuki, and Yasuyoshi Tokuma with the money from Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, which was made by another animation company in 1984. However, many of the animators for Nausicaa worked for Ghibli.

Only Yesterday is released, and it is considered revoluMy Neighbor Totoro tionary at the time, and Grave of the for it was an animatFireflies, are reed film that focused leased, and both on adult issues and receive high ratings real life, rather than and acclaim. targeting children. Note: My Neigh- It becomes the bor Totoro has a highest-grossing film Fox and Disney in Japan for the year dub in the US. of 1991.

1986 1985

1989 1988

Castle in the Sky is the first movie to be made by Studio Ghibli. It was directed by Hayao Miyazaki.

Pom Poko, which is the first Studio Ghibli film to use computer graphics, also becomes highest-grossing film. It features shape-shifting tanuki, or raccoondogs.

1992 1991

The film Kiki’s Delivery Service is released and is a box office success. It becomes the highest-grossing film in Japan in 1989.

Princess Mononoke is released, and it gains Studio Ghibli exposure to the United States for the first time. It was secondhighest-grossing film of the year in Japan.

1995 1994

Porco Rosso, which exhibits a recurring theme of aviation throughout the studio’s films, is released, and is also the highest-grossing film that year in Japan. It features a pig hero which battles pirates and tries to recover his own humanity.

1997 Whisper of the Heart is released, and was directed by the director Yoshifumi Kondo. However, Kondo died in 1998 before he could make any more films for Studio Ghibli. It has a sequel, which is released in 2002.

A Timeline of the Studio Despite its fame, Studio Ghibli has not stayed stagnant and unchanging, rather, it evolves with the times over its history, transitioning to more computer graphics and coloring as computers have become more prevalent in society. However, certain things are consistent across the many films, even across the variety of films produced by the studio. The studio consistently uses 2-D animation, but it uses both digital and traditional mediums. The Ghibli films that use digital animation starts with Pom Poko, then continues on to Princess Mononoke, My Neighbor the Yamadas, Spirited Away, and many others. The “look” of digitally colored movies does not try to emphasize the use of digital media, but instead imitates traditional media

My Neighbors the Yamadas is the first film to be completed by Studio Ghibli in a all-digital format. It uses a very different art style than the typical Ghibli style, but it resembles instead a strip cartoon.

The Cat Returns, the sequel to the earlier film Whisper of the Heart, is released 7 years after the original. It is directed by Hiroyuki Morita, who worked with animation for My Neighbors the Yamadas and Kikiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Delivery Service.

2001 1999

Tales from Earthsea is the first movie directed by Goro Miyazaki, the son of Hayao Miyazaki. It is based off the Earthsea series.

2004 2002

Spirited Away becomes the highest-grossing film of Japanese history, and wins the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. It Is the only traditional animation that is not English to win this award. It is considered one of the best movies of all time.

Arrietty, a movie based on the English-language book The Borowers, is released and wins Animation of the Year at the Japanese Academy Prize.

2008 2006

Howlâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Moving Castle is released; it is based off the book by the same name, but the book is considerably different from the movie. The movie was nominated for Best Animated Feature.

The Wind Rises and The Tale of Princess Kaguya are both released the same year, and are nominated for Best Animated Feature for the 2013 and 2014 Academys. The Wind Rises is the last movie Hayao Miyazaki will direct before retiring.

2011 2010

Ponyo, inspired by The Little Mermaid, is released, and sets a record for domestic films in Japan, being shown on 481 screens in the country.

From Up on Poppy Hill is the second film made by Goro Miyazaki, and wins Animation of the Year at the Japan Academy Prize.

2014 2013 When Marnie was There has not been released or dubbed in English yet, although dubbing and distribution is planned for. After the retirement of Hayao Miyazaki, and the announcement of a hiatus of film production, it is possibly the last film to be made by Studio Ghibli.

in style. However, Ghibli has stayed traditional in some ways, for the last traditionally colored animated feature film was Princess Mononoke. A great example of the use of a traditional look but a digital media is The Tale of Princess Kaguya, which uses a very brush-like and fluid art style, but is digitally colored and scanned. Princess Mononoke was also very important for its time, for it used 3-D animation technology in some scenes. The progression of Studio Ghibli over time shows how the art of animation has changed over time, and how the world of animation has evolved and is still constantly evolving.

Which Should I Watch First? There are many movies released by Studio Ghibli over its many years; it is hard to determine which movie to start out with. This flow chart can help you find which movie to start out with!

Are you OK with crying?

Of course.

Of course not!

Historical movie alright?

Eh.

Sure!

World War II?

Fantasy? Nah.

Only Yesterday

Yes!

Why not?

No thanks.

Tale of Princess Kaguya

Spirited Away In a war zone?

荻野千尋 No.

The Wind Rises

Yes.

Grave of the Fireflies

There are a few common motifs across all of the films of Studio Ghibi. These deal with issues or such as nature, war, peace, and nostalgia. The use of nature throughout the movies communicate both beauty and nostalgia, and several of the films feature the destruction of nature and the forest. However, throughout many films, there is also a respect for nature in a very subtle and rather touching way, with shots of very beautiful natural scenes interspersed throughout the movie. A great example of the wartime motif paired with morality is when The Wind Rises depicts a its protagonist as designing war planes, focusing solely on the beauty of the designs he makes, rather than thinking that his works might kill people or send others to their deaths. SOURCES BESIDES SELF: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/film/the-tale-of-princess-kaguya/disney-ghibli-hand-drawn-animation/ http://jimhillmedia.com/alumni1/b/michael_howe/archive/2003/04/15/1391.aspx http://www.tofugu.com/2011/11/22/the-legend-that-is-studio-ghibli/ http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/essay/files/RoslynMcDonald_Ghibli.pdf http://www.filmmakingreview.com/studio-ghibli-film-history/ http://dailyreview.crikey.com.au/why-studio-ghibli-is-the-most-distinguished-production-company-in-history/9914

日本語を話しますか? Say what?

はい

Cats?

When Marnie Was There

CAAATS!

No.

The scenery! What?

The scenery!

Great, let’s fly on a broomstick.

Yes!

Yer a wizard. Of course I am.

What?

The sea! Oh yes.

I don’t think so.

Tales from Earthsea Fish or ship? Ship!

Kiki’s Delivery Service

Fish!

Howl’s Moving Castle

Ponyo From Up on Poppy Hill

Romance? Yes!

Whisper of the Heart

Nah.

Raccoons will save us. No?

YES.

The princess will save us. Pom Poko

Eh.

Yes!

The Cat Returns

Pirates! Nah.

Wolf or Glider? Wolf!

Nah.

Cats or Pigs?

Yay!

Cats!

Pigs!

Porco Rosso

Castle in the Sky Glider!

My Neighbor Totoro Princess Mononoke

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

Reviewing the

Reveiwer

After seeing a movie, most people busy themselves by replaying scenes in their minds. They recall the plot and the characters and the climaxes and proclaim it ‘good’ or ‘bad’. A professional movie critic, however, delves deep into each film they view regardless of their immediate reactions. Almost every large newspaper has a movie critique section and anyone can find countless online critiques with ease. However, not every critic has the same method and as a result, their completed review has the critic’s personal touch added to the analysis. “We are each impacted differently through film. We all relate movies to different parts of our lives, whether they be large or small,” said movie-lover Austin Barron. Barron, 9th grade has taken multiple courses in filmography and went to the movies every Friday as a child. Movies are an integral part of his home life.

Courtesy of Bruce Turner Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

A critic’s job doesn’t just include finding the errors in movies. They also must dissect a film thoroughly and

The Alamo Drafthouse is one of many theaters that Barron watches movies at.

Courtesy of Korey Coleman

hey watch among us, hurriedly scribbling notes in their secret journals. Their hyper-observant minds work furtively to analyze the barrage of sensory and emotional content being thrown at them. Once the deed is done, they report back to their superiors, who then take the acquired information and enter it into the public information circulation for those with the desire to seek out. These individuals, scattered all around the globe, have spent countless hours dissecting one of today’s most revered media forms: movies.

Coleman used this image of himself to advertise the launch of his new site, DoubleToasted.com.

determine what each part does to benefit the greater mechanism of the film. Since a film builds off of itself, a critic analyzes all of the cogs of the film and how they work together in order to synthesize a report that covers most of the important aspects that a reader may want to know. This profession deals in finding both the weaknesses and the strengths of a film. “The beauty of film is its synthesis and integration of the various elements,” said Marjorie Baumgarten, the senior film critic for The Austin Chronicle. A good film removes the viewer from real life and throw them into a different world, complete with an accompanying soundtrack, convenient plot twists, and a satisfactory ending. It mixes and mashes multiple forms of media in order to convey a message to the viewer. Audiences go the the theater hoping, if not expecting, to be stunned and amazed by the combined effort of hundreds of individuals that went into making the picture. “Film is different than any other form of art,” said Barron. “It includes every other form of art. Music has notes and rhythms. Painting has the strokes of a brush, and writing has language and culture behind it. All these different art forms are there to tell a story, and they all reach people in different ways”. There is no reason to compare “Dumb and Dumber” (a hilarious slapstick) to “The Green Mile” (an emotionally demanding drama). Both of those films received critic and fan support. However, neither of those films has anything even

remotely comparable to the other. The strengths of one most definitely do not match up with the strengths of the other. This raises an excellent question: How does a single critic accurately review both films? In order to accomplish this, the critic cannot simply watch and compare a film to another. Each individual movie has its own specific elements that mix differently than another. The critic must take this into account when critiquing “At the core, I’m just trying to determine whether the film has accomplished its goals,” Baumgarten said. “That allows me to analyze comedies, dramas, documentaries, animation by similar standards,”.

going to try my best to tell a story that the audience can relate to’. You know you can tell when somebody has a passion for a project and to me that means a lot...,” Korey Coleman said. Coleman reviews on the Korey and Martin Show which routinely reviews movies via online audio podcasts. A passion project is an example of what critics like in a movie. Unfortunately, for every up, there is a down. There have been movies have existed that almost everyone hated and sometimes, it’s simply because of one ill-thought-out element. Critics especially notice this type of error because of their ability to analyze the film down to its separate parts. The inverse of the passion project example can be seen when a movie gets made but with the only purpose being to make money.

“The beauty of film is its synthesis and integration of the various elements.”

Courtesy of Chet Fagerstrom Courtesy of Chet Fagerstrom

While a critic must determine a film’s quality as a whole, some decisions always put a smile on a critic’s face. Among these ar- -Marjorie Baumgarten “If a movie is just out to make money and I tifacts, not all of them actually affect the can notice that there’s not a lot of quality in formal review (because personal preferences aren’t always it, then I’m a little harder on it,” Coleman said. pertinent to the audiences). However, despite the fact that everyone has different preferences, many movie critics have Differing ratings among the critic community are common. a good attitude towards productions that were made with a People see things differently and critics hold the same right passion behind the project. to their personal opinions. Occasionally though, a movie will spark a spread of differing opinions among critics. A “There’s...those movies where somebody said ‘I understand little-known example of this is “Forrest Gump”. Today, what I’m doing here. I love what I’m doing here. And I’m this film is considered a classic, but when it first came out, some critics weren’t convinced of its merit. Critics called it “overly sentimental” and “ignorant of actual history” and were just overall not very impressed by the themes of innocence and loss. A moviegoer may consider going to see a film and wants to know what the critics think before spending money and time on a viewing. This moviegoer would feel confused when he or she notices that the ratings range from “terrible” to “great”.

This is the cover page of a recent issue of The Austin Chronicle where Baumgarten works.

“Sometimes critics overrate or underrate a film to make certain points, championing or denigrating movies they think need extra attention. Sometimes it could be a matter of something as simple as deadlines: How much time passes between viewing and writing? Are you writing in the heat of the moment or from a more measured perspective?” Baumgarten said. Movie critics, just like everyone else, have individual opinions about the movies that they review. Because of this, the reviews all touch on different points using different methods of delivery and language. This variation gives readers a larger forum to draw personalized conclusions from.

“The diversity behind film and the diversity behind people means that we will never all love the same thing, and we will never all see eye to eye,” Barron said. “But, throughout this fact, we can all still find different things to love about film, and that is what makes movies so valuable”. The film industry is one of the largest and most popular industries in today’s society. Likewise, the film critic community has grown with it. For every individual film that comes out, hundreds and thousands of reviews come out in every imaginable format. These films and their reviews are worldwide too. Everyone with an internet connection can find them. People from across the world can share opinions and information on films in a matter of seconds. “The fact that there are so many critics and opinions out there kind of shows how large the film industry really is, and how far its reach is,” Barron said.

tography has advanced since its creation and is now an essential part of movies. “Visual effects facilitate the actualization of our dreams in our movies, and so they can be held to a high esteem,” Barron said. While visuals are absolutely an essential part of film, they aren’t the only part. A moviegoer may go to a theater and watch a film with great CGI and come out with his mind working overtime and all sorts of creative juices flowing. A film critic thinks a little bit differently. The “Transformers” series shows an example of an imbalanced visual to story ratio. Critics and fans agree that the visual effects are great. However, critics continually pan the films for lack of a cohesive plot.

“We all relate movies to different parts of our lives, whether they be large or small.” -Austin Barron

One of the most obvious aspects of a film is the visual element. The moving picture invention revolutionized entertainment. “L’arrivée d’un train en gare de La Ciotat” became famous as one of the first films ever shown to a large audience. This film depicts a train coming almost directly at a camera. The urban legend about this film’s first showing says that the audience reacted to this moving picture by panicking and attempting to flee to avoid getting run over by the train. This tale has, of course been exaggerated over the course of history. However, other accounts show that they audience was definitely surprised by this technological advance in entertainment. The marvel of modern cinema-

Courtesy of NASA HQ PHOTO Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic (CC BY-NC 2.0)

Film and camera technology has advanced from flickering black and white images to high-definition 3D.

“Some movies...are completely visual. I mean they don’t even care about the story at all. And more often than not, they just end up being dumb...It’s really satisfying to see that somebody put the story first and has the visuals to help support the story,” Coleman said. It’s one thing to analyze a film and decipher the quality. It’s an entirely different challenge to take this raw information and compact it all into a single verdict that others without the same expertise in the field can comprehend. A film critic typically has some background in film or critical studies of some form. This sparks a small quandary. The critic has a duty to honestly review the film, but presenting the information so that no one understands it doesn’t do any good either. Critics must simply work around this issue.

“The audience one is writing for is a factor, but that doesn’t alter my opinions, but instead forces me to adjust my language and assumptions about shared knowledge,” Baumgarten said. Because a review shares opinions in the form of a report, complete objectivity presents itself as a large challenge. The critic has to get their opinions across to the readers, but at the same time review the movie honestly. Objectivity only states facts and when writing an opinionated report, this can’t be achieved.

doesn’t tell the truth, they didn’t actually review the movie. The critique becomes a work of fiction, which the unknowing audience would perceive as fact. “I think honesty is the best thing when it comes down to it. I mean, it’s not just our reviews that we do where we use that policy. That frame of mind. I think what we’ve done, and whatever success we have out of it, it’s because we haven’t tried to be phony with people,” Coleman said.

“Whatever movie is made, even if it’s one of the worst movies ever, somebody likes it.” -Korey Coleman

“I try to be upfront about my biases, so that readers can judge for themselves whether to take what I’m saying in a particular instance with a grain of salt,” Baumgarten said. On the other side of that, the reviewer’s profession entails explaining a movie’s quality to the audience. If the review

Movie critiques help many moviegoers connect to films in ways they may have not realized by themselves. Critics all over the world have built a library, accessible by anyone with enough curiosity to seek out an opinion on any film and in any format. People sometimes forgot that the purpose of a film is to entertain and inspire. The movies get critiqued, but Coleman reminds us, “Whatever movie is made, even if it’s one of the worst movies ever, somebody likes it”.

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A Moviegoer’s Guide to the

M.P.A.A.

By Chet Fagerstrom

The Motion Pictures Association of America (otherwise known as the M.P.A.A.) is a group of high-brow movie studios that decides what the age range for moviegoers should be. Parents can make informed decisions about films based on information from sites like ParentalGuide.com. A movie theater can decide whether or not (and how strictly) to enforce these ratings because there are no legal repercussions for not following them. That said, if a theater decided to ignore a rating, the movie studio who made the movie could choose to not allow that theater to show the movie. Or, angry parents of young children could give the theater a bad review on Yelp or Angie’s List for letting their 5-year-old watch “Fifty Shades of Grey”. Predictably, most theaters opt to follow the rules.

RATING DESCRIPTION

RATING

All images Courtesy of Chet Fagerstrom

Every film is given a rating that provides a suggested age range for viewing. The ratings are G, PG, PG-13, R and NC-17.

This includes a definition of what the rating means and how old the MPAA thinks viewers should be.

RESTRICTED UNDER 17 REQUIRES ACCOMPANYING PARENT OR ADULT GUARDIAN

VIOLENCE, GRISLY IMAGES, LANGUAGE, SOME NUDITY AND SEXUALITY WHY?

Films receive the rating that they do for different reasons, so it’s necessary to include why the film got the rating it did.

MPAA

Each film’s rating is determined by the MPAA. The members are Disney, 20th Century Fox, Paramount, Sony, and Warner Bros.

General Audiences

• Little to no suggestive content/themes. • Few mildly inappropriate expressions tolerated Very little violence • No drugs, sex, or nudity whatsoever

PG-13

• • • •

PG for Younger than 13

2 F-bombs used as expletives, not sexually PG film with drugs Nonpersistent/unrealistic violence Moderated non-sexual nudity

NC-17

No Children 17 or Younger

• Any or all elements of ‘R’ are persistent/ intense • Abberational behavior • Intense sex, nudity, violence, and/or drugs • No children at all

A full comprehensive list of all of the factors are available for download at FilmRatings.com

• • • •

Moderated violence Moderated mild profanity Moderated suggested non-sexual nudity No drugs, sex, or on-screen nudity

R • • • • • •

Parental Guidance Suggested

Restricted to 17 or older

Children only admitted with adult Adult themes/content Persistent/realistic violence Hard Lanuage Drug Abuse Sex/Nudity

More information on film ratings can be found at MPAA.org/Film-Ratings

A Force to be Reckoned With

“A a trap!”

long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.” “[Luke,] I am you father.” “Do or do not, there is no try.” “You’re our only hope.” “It’s

These are some of the most recognizable words ever to cross a movie screen. Though not everyone has seen George Lucas’ films from a galaxy far, far away, “you’d be hard pressed to find people today that don’t know that Darth Vader is a bad guy or what The Force is. Even if they haven’t seen Star Wars, they at least know what it is and get the references.” Tim Harrison, the Senior Director at KEYE 42 and part time filmmaker, appears a more casual Star Wars fan than one you might find at Comic Con, but the

Courtesy of Kamerson Earles Courtesy of Kamerson Earles

And he’s not alone. Millions across the globe have fallen in love with the Star Wars saga. And, with Episode VII: The Force Awakens due to be released on Dec. 18, many wonder “What makes Star Wars so great anyway? Why is it such a cultural phenomenon? Why do so many people care about Star Wars?” People are exposed to the Star Wars universe in many different ways. Kameron Earles, the commanding officer of Star Garrison, a branch of Star Wars fan group 501st Legion, first saw “A New Hope” with her dad. “I was about 4 or 5, [and] I remember sitting in my dad’s lap and Star Wars was coming on HBO...and I just fell in love with it,” Earles said.

Members of the 501st dress in their costumes for all sorts of occasions.

original trilogy still holds a special place for him. “I was a military brat living in Germany when the first Star Wars movie came out in 1977...I was very much aware of the film and wanted to see it badly, but I had no way of doing so...I finally saw the film on a bootleg VHS...The VHS copy was terrible (a copy of a copy of a copy of a camera shooting a screen), but I wore that thing out.”

The 501st tends to be focused towards the younger generation, hoping to introduce them to the galaxy far, far away.

Actually, even though it often seems many Star Wars fanatics are introduced to the fandom by their fathers, fans can be anyone, male or female, young or old. A fan is just “someone that just has a lot enthusiasm for the movies and wants to keep learning about the galaxy far, far away,” senior Kinsey Winter said. Winter is a definite Star Wars enthusiast and, without Star Wars, “I wouldn’t have a large part of my reputation,” Winter said. In the past, people had to choose one fandom or genre and “be loyal to that genre,” Earles said. “You either like[d] Star Wars or you like[d] Star Trek, you couldn’t like both,” Earles said. “[But] there’s not a typical Star Wars fan anymore. It’s not just boys, it’s girls too. It’s not just young people, we have people in our club who’re

Courtesy of Samantha Wallace

Star Wars merchandise comes in a great varitey of shapes and sizes.

in their forties, and still love to wear their costumes,” Earles said. Fans can be basically anyone, though some stereotypes persist. “I would say that Star Wars fans, they’re a little bit geeky, but they’re also diverse,” Earles said. All these different fans can come together and establish fandoms, each created to illustrate different parts of the Star Wars universe. Some, like the R2 Builders, use their time and talents to construct droids, while others, such as the Belgian Prop Crew, construct one-to-one scale models of scenes from the Star Wars films. However, the 501st Legion takes a somewhat different spin on the franchise. According to the official 501st website, The Legion is an organization made up completely of volunteers seeking to bring “costume enthusiasts under a collective identity within which to operate.” It goes on further to state, “The Legion seeks to promote interest in Star Wars through the building and wearing of costumes, and to facilitate the use of these costumes for

Star Wars-related events as well as contributions to the local community through costumed charity and volunteer work.” The Legion is so much more than just another fan club. “It’s a big brother- and sisterhood. We get to help different charity groups. We’ve brought smiles to kids’ faces right before they pass away,” Earles said. In fact, some of the members of the Star Garrison, the 501st outpost in Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, met a little boy through “Make a Wish,” and were later asked to be pallbearers at his funeral, Earles said. Being a member of 501st isn’t just about the Star Wars movies. “It’s about getting to help people in some way...we all just try to stick together and do what we can to help each other out,” Earles said. One of the major ways 501st gets the word out is through online videos. According to Earles, many people are completely blown away after watching one. “One of the first things they say is ‘I wanna join. I wanna do that. I want

Courtesy of Samantha Wallace

to be that person who gets to put smiles on kids’ faces.’ And so it’s always really awesome to hear that somebody’s seeing what you’re doing and they can appreciate it...It’s the best part of being a part of the 501st,” Earles said.

Courtesy of Samantha Wallace

Children across the United States enjoy playing with Star Wars themed LEGOS.

amanth a Wall ace Courte sy of S

One way to tell a Star Wars fan is by check the back of their car. They may have Star Wars themed decals.

Besides social impact, Star Wars has also affected major industries, such as special effects. Star Wars revolutionized both digital and practical effects. According to an article in WIRED by Jason Michelitch published in February 2013, “The two Star Wars trilogies--original and prequel-each redefined special effects for their respective eras, but produced strikingly different critical legacies.” As each new movie came out, Star Wars innovated special effects again and again. “Without Star Wars pushing the effects, they wouldn’t have pushed them further, trying to top themselves,” Harrison said. “I’d go so far as to say that certain shots could be used in a modern film and hold their own.”

After Darth Vader, lightsabers are one of the most recognizable symbols of Star Wars.

Modern films have been affected in many other ways as well. “As I see it, the benefits [of the Star Wars special effects] are a robust and healthy special effects business which has helped make possible to make special effects cheaper than they used to be,” Harrison said. These same effects also helped with the creation of the effects in movies such as “Life of Pi” and television shows like “Game of Thrones.”

Many Star Wars fans have a great variety of Star Wars merchandise hanging around their house.

Courtesy of Samantha Wallace

These effects completely changed filmmaking, and not necessarily for the better, says Harrison. “As far as the negative effects, you only have to look at terrible films by the likes of Michael Bay. They are brazen cash grabs, made easy by the effects that are so easily added to films now,” Harrison said. Before Star Wars, most films focused on having a great plot, Harrison stated. But after Star Wars, this was no longer always the case. “Star Wars ushered in an era of

simplistic stories with fancy special effects,” Harrison said. Gone are the days when every film needed to posses a riveting plot. Many movies nowadays use special effects in place of plot, resulting in superficial plots and characters, Harrison continued. Even these superficial characters are still loved, though. At least this is how it appears, because Star Wars also kicked off the need for merchandising. According to Harrison, Star Wars may have been one of the first movies to use merchandise, but it definitely isn’t the only one. “With every big special effects movie aimed at kids and young adults that comes out, you’re sure to find some toy tie-ins,” Harrison said. This is apparent from even an act as simple as walking down the toy aisle at Target. Toys from recent and upcoming movies line the shelves. A Frozen doll. A Ninja Turtles backpack. A Big Hero 6 coloring book. Anything and everything someone might be tempted to buy. But why would people even be tempted to purchase these products? What makes these items so important? It is because of the movies they represent. But now the question is, why do fans care so much about some fandom movie? What’s so special about it? Why do people like Star Wars, of all things? According to Kinsey Winter, it was the drama, the battles and the story of family that originally brought her into the fandom. The storyline completely changed the way people worldwide view science-fiction, Winter stated. When asked why, she replied,“I think the way it transcended normal science-fiction boundaries to become such an intricate part of popular culture [makes it unique]. Star Trek still belongs to the Americans, Star Wars belongs to everyone,” Winter said. But to Winter, the best thing about Star Wars is more than just the films. “I think the best thing is the way it just keeps expanding and growing, and the people...that keep helping it expand and grow.” Kameron Earles takes a slightly different view on things. She had ties to the movie before she even knew it. Her dad told her that her great-uncle had actually helped to develop the lenses for the kind of cameras that were used to film Star Wars. “It gave me a feeling of kind of belonging to the movie,” Earles said. But that’s not all. Earles loves the cool costumes, the message of loyalty throughout the films, fan’s love for the movies, and Leia (played by Carrie Fisher)’s strong female character. “She doesn’t back down...She’ll just grab the blaster and shoot,” Earles said.

Harrison believes that the essence of Star Wars goes deeper than just the characters. “As a kid, the special effects were the amazing thing to me. They were pretty much the most amazing effects I had ever seen and the time,” Harrison said.

“Star Trek still belongs to the Americans. Star Wars belongs to everyone.”

But he still really connected with the characters of Luke -Kinsey Winter Skywalker (played by Mark Hamill) and Han Solo (played by Harrison Ford). Luke represented feeling that just about every kid feel at some point or another, Harrison explained. “[He] was young, naive and itching to grow up and be on his own,” Harrison said. But Han, on the other hand, was different. “Han Solo taps into what you wanted to be. Cynical but cool, with just the right amount of heart to show that [he] isn’t a complete scoundrel,” Harrison said. The characters aren’t the only thing that make a movie fans connect with. Plot is important too. In fact, therein lies the reasons why Harrison, a former Star Wars devote, has become more relaxed in his Star Wars-ing. “I’m afraid the newer ones sapped my enthusiasm with their awfulness… [The worst part was the] story. Who cares about a trade embargo?...I can forgive bad acting if you’ve got a plot that moves forward,” Harrison said. As a rule, nearly all Star Wars fans share this attitude toward the prequels. However, exceptions do exist. “People [...] are really picky about the prequels and that bothers me because they do have some of their good points,” Winter said. She believes the political intrigue of these movies were a definite high point and gave Star Wars a completely different spin. “If they were standing on their own, then they would be decent movies, but compared to the old Star Wars movies, they’re just not that great,” Winter said. People tend to only compare the prequels to the originals and the prequels fall short every time, Winter mentioned. And this leaves fans anxious. No matter what new Star Wars movies are created and released, it seems they will never even begin to compare to the original three (A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi). On Oct. 30, 2012, when Disney officially announced the production of Episode VII: The Force Awakens, many fans panicked. They faced questions such as “What about the expanded

universe?”and “Will this movie even come close to comparing to the original trilogy?”.

the Sith, came out almost 10 years ago. That’s a long time without any new Star Wars movies.

The answer to the former question is easy. On April 15, 2014, Lucasfilm announced that the Expanded Universe of Star Wars is now non-canon under the label of “Star Wars Legends.” Basically, this means that all the Expanded Universe was thrown out the window in favor of the new movies. But the answer to the second question? Not that simple or straightforward.

Fans want to love the newest Star Wars movie, Episode VII: The Force Awakens, so much that they’re willing to deal with the Expanded Universe becoming non-canon. They’re willing to deal with the renovation of Star Wars. They’re even willing to deal with Disney owning Lucasfilm and being the producer of Episode VII. They just want this movie to reinstate Star Wars in everyone’s minds as one of the best sagas ever to grace the movie screen.

Some fans are excited, wanting as much Star Wars as possible. Others remain unenthusiastic, upset to see their beloved Star Wars saga remodeled. All appear at least a little apprehensive. “I have--I don’t want to say super high expectations,” Earles said. “But I’m also going in with an open mind because I want to love the movie so much.” This strategy will likely be shared by many as the release date, Dec. 18, 2015, draws nearer. The last Star Wars movie, Episode III: Revenge of

For good or ill, Star Wars remains an integral part of American culture. The effects of this cultural phenomenon extend beyond the movie screen. Star Wars affects the lives of those who love it, just as it does those who do not. Star Wars fans serve their community. They band together in their shared passion. “That’s what makes it unique...George Lucas had a vision and he created the movies. He didn’t know if it was going to go anywhere, after that one movie. But it did. And it’s just grown into this massive fandom,” Earles said.

Roger, roger. Battle droids are one of the many iconic characters of the prequel trilogy, extremely stupid and winning battles through strength in numbers as opposed to tactical experience. They don’t last long enough to gain any. Courtesy of Samantha Wallace

Moviegoersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Favorite Popcorn!

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Release Date: May 25, 1983

Directed by: George Lucas

First film of the Original Trilogy

Third and final film of the Original Trilogy

EPISODE IV: A NEW HOPE

EPISODE VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI

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Release Date: May 25, 1977

1999 1983

EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK

EPISODE I: THE PHANTOM MENACE

Release Date: May 21, 1980

Release Date: May 19, 1999

Directed by: George Lucas

Second film of the Original Trilogy

First film of the Prequel Trilogy

With Star Wars, things can get a bit confusing because release dates don’t really correspond to chronological placement. Check out this timeline for some help!

Why do the Star Wars movies go IV, V, VI, I, II, III, VII? Because in charge of planning Yoda was!

Release Date: Dec. 18, 2015

Release Date: May 16, 2002

Directed by: J.J. Abrams

Directed by: George Lucas

Consultant: George Lucas

Second film of the Prequel Trilogy

First film of the

EPISODE II: ATTACK OF THE CLONES

Sequel Trilogy

EPISODE VII: THE FORCE AWAKENS

2005 2002

2015 EPISODE III: REVENGE OF THE SITH Release Date: May 19, 2005 Directed by: George Lucas Third and final film of the Prequel Trilogy

The Trilogies ORIGINAL: Luke Skywalker and his friends fight for freedom against the evil Galactic Empire. PREQUEL: Young Anakin Skywalker’s journey to become a Jedi and his descent to the dark side SEQUEL: The plot is a mystery... Sources: starwars.com, decentfilms.com, and starwars7.com

(Cult)urally Significant By Vasanti Varma

Courtesy of Ottojula via Wikimedia

Cults have a stigma in society, with an almost derogatory connotation. You usually never see cults in daily life. But, at recent film festivals and on movies online, people describe movies using the terms “of the cult genre,” or “a cult film.” Even on film review sites, critics state new films such as The Interview could become a cult film in the future. The cult film is like a silent genre, it is hard to see if one does not look carefully. These films are, in a basic sense, a film with a fan base which is devoted to it, much stronger than other people would; cult film fan bases are devoted, and are typically unseen by the common and typical audience. The cult film is something that only sparks interest and excitement about the movie in a certain person or a certain limited audience. Even the overarching genres in which cult films are classified vary, ranging from comedy to sci-fi; several examples of cult films include The Big Lebowski, 2001, A Space Odyssey, Donnie Darko, and Blade Runner. These are simply the most famous ones; there are many other movies in many other genres. An exact definition is still hard to find, as people’s’ opinions vary about the fanbase. However, certain things are consistent across whatever personal definitions people have about cult film. With film festival season, and the rising of new cult films, it is very essential to understand what they are. Richard Whittaker, a film reviewer for the Austin Chronicle, states that a cult movie is “ a film that a small group of people are really dedicated to and really think it’s great and special... But it’s a really small hard-core audience, and the reason they like them usually isn’t a very mainstream reason… There is stuff that nobody remembers, and those could have cults as well.” It seems that the definition of a cult film does not vary much between him and Michael Thielvoldt, a film history professor at ACC. Cult films, to Thielvoldt, are ”defined less by narrative or formal conventions than by audience. A cult film, as I define it, is a film that fails to

A classic and early sci-fi cult film released in 1959

land an audience upon initial release, but which later finds a particularly loyal and rabid fan base. It is thus circulated heavily through word of mouth and popularized through recurrent viewing by a limited collective of obsessive fans.” Sally Miller, a high school student who is an avid fan of 80’s films, states that the fans are the biggest part of the cult film and the genre as a whole, and the fans are the only part that makes the cult even special. She says that truly, a “ [cult film] is anything and can be anything that is really popular in certain circles, like THX1138. It is really the fans that matter in these situations.” The cult could be a lot bigger and more wide-ranging than just one film, as directors can have their own dedicated fan base. For example, “[Sion Sono] has this cult around his work. And people who know Sion and his work will love it. At least somebody who has seen his films will have a strong reaction to them, but most people do not know

who he is. So, he’s a cult in that way.” Whittaker later mentioned Suicide Club as an example of the director’s work. Cult film fans seem to be extremely dedicated, and bring life to old movies, as they “Cult film fans are by definition rabid fans. Cult films find life and longevity due to the recurrent consumption and promotion of cult films by their die hard viewership,” Thielvoldt said, “Cult fans tend to share similarities with. ..and may very well be — genre fans... the two [fan-types] share impassioned connections to often lesser known genre/cult films... both fan bases desire to learn extensively about genre/cult films, beyond simply the viewing of them...”

She did note that she would watch 80’s films “Any genre really, but I hate comedies.” So, she does still have some selectiveness in her watching. Cult followings grow out of people who are passionate about a film, but there has to be just more than one person in a group of fans. Once somebody finds “somebody else who really loves it, and they just get super excited about it, if you find that one other person, and that, I think, that is a cool thing, because a lot of times, it’s a film that you don’t think anybody else in the world likes that film, and you find somebody else who does, and you just get really excited...”

“The cult film is the ‘late bloomer’ that finds acceptance not in the arms of the greater public, but in the warm embrace of a select devout few.”

He then continues, comparing genre films to cult films, as “cult films have no defined conventions. This is because the definition -Michael of a cult film is not based in formal or narrative technique, but rather in its fans and a trajectory of popularity. To be a cult film, a picture must start low and rise late. The cult film is the “late bloomer” that finds acceptance not in the arms of the greater public, but in the warm embrace of a select devout few. With that said, I think there is a populous-albeit, somewhat limited--expectation that cult films embrace a kind of grindhouse exploitation in limited production value and centering of sex and violence.”

The naming of the genre is also based on the audience as well, as the word “cult” describes the, “limited, obsessive, devotional Thielvoldt nature of cult film fandom. It also carries appropriate connotations of fringe community-ship; the fringe self-identification is as much a part of cult fandom as is the defining obsessiveness,” Thielvoldt said. However, another perspective is that “it’s the strength of emotion of the people who believe in the film and really support that film,” Whittaker said, It’s about the... passion of a small group of people who know and love a film. Anything can be a cult film, it’s just a matter of if the people really going to vouch for it.”

The audience seems to enjoy cult films for multiple reasons, but “generally, with cult films, there is something about them that speaks to some people, and it may be it’s a film they found in a particular time in their life, or something about it just spoke to them,” Whittaker said. When asked about why she likes 80’s movies so much, Miller says, “ I really enjoy good camera work and good scripts and good acting. If a film has all that, than I will probably enjoy it. And 80’s films just has very unique features in [all of these qualities.]” She then talks about how the style of the films from the decade just clicked.

There are many students who are interested in movies and interested in the study of film, but students who are interested in cult film at ACC are typically, “already well versed in film history and/or criticism and want to develop their cinema interests further. This is the group that would most likely embody the cult film fans,” Thielvoldt said, “While I cannot definitively identify the “kinds” of students who are interested in cult films. I can anecdotally tell you that the students I have met who have an interest in fringe or cult cinema tend to be fanatical about the medium, their niche interests, and enjoy films that fly in the face of populous tastes and conventions.”

When Miller watches, “I feel engaged in the story, so time passes by very [extremely quickly].”

On a different note, comparing cult films and what are considered regular films, reviewing is not much different

“You try to approach cult films in the same way, because I review films, what I am trying to do is not say whether a film is good or bad.”

Many cult films are held in high regard, and can be from any time period.

Courtesy of We hope via Wikimedia

But, mediums and genres change as time passes. The differences between the watching of cult films and the watching of cult movies currently helps the genre of the cult film grow and come more into public attention. Whittaker describes his experiences when first watching film in comparison to now, as “...when I first started watching films and being a real film fan, between the 80s and 90s, it was hard to get a hold of stuff. That was when I think the age of the cult film really first began because it was difficult to get a hold of things. You know, you had to hope you could find it on VHS somewhere. Now...you can usually find it on DVD or on Netflix... So the barrier to finding a cult film and being able to

Courtesy of We hope via Wikimedia

between the two. “You try to approach cult films in the same way, because I review films, what I am trying to do is not say whether a film is good or bad.” Whittaker continues, “What I try to do is say ‘Here’s this film. Here’s what I think about it. Here’s why I think it’s worth your time, or why it’s not worth your time, or whether certain people will really like it.’ Reviewing films is indeed a very, very important factor in if a person watches a movie or not, so this job carries much responsibility.

Movies which are “mainstream” can also be a cult film.

-Richard Whittaker

Sally Miller continues this idea, and she says that she knows the history of the cult film through the VHS and other technologies, but she instead just “[watches cult movies] On a TV or my computer.”, and that she doesn’t use physical media such as CDs or Blu-ray anymore. Cult films have many conventions (referred to as “cons”) which are a celebration of the film and a big gathering of all the big fans of the movie or the genre. One example includes the Lebowskifest, which centers around the rather recent cult hit from the 90’s The Big Lebowski. Fans dress as the titular character and watch the movie with great fervor. There are

Courtesy of lonutzmovie via Wikimedia

watch it has dropped a lot.... it means you can see this stuff that literally 20 years ago was impossible to find.”

Cult movies range across many genres, including horror, sci-fi, fantasy, or a combination of many.

Courtesy of Vidmon via Flickr

The main actors of “The Big Lebowski” at Lebowskifest, a festival centered around the classic cult film.

several festivals of this type around the States, all celebrating different cult movies and other fan favorites.

fans are still as active as ever, and they now can communicate much more with each other. While some people claim that the magic of a Again with the help of social cult film is gone, now that media and mass media, these both the sharing though gatherings are even bigger, and word of mouth and the many cult fans are connecting VHS copies of the film together. Sally Miller explains are gone, the cult movie her connection to all the fans, is very much alive, though and continues to say, “I like changed. The cult film will -Sally Miller talking to [fans of cult films] always be a driving force about [80’s movies and 80’s TV shows] I watch, because for the film industry and an inspiration for many, as when we can swap info and fangirl or stuff [about the films].” there is a passion for movies, there will always be cult film.

“I now don’t have to find a DVD or physical copy of the movie, I can just stream it off Netflix. It’s fast and easy to find all the movies I really like watching.”

With the evolution of this obscure genre of films, and the transitions with technologies and generations, these films have changed in very dramatic ways. Now, the cult film is easily accessible, and the world can talk about these films even more with the advent of the internet. The

Top 6 Stunts

By Alex Cohan

he stunts were chosen in no particular order by lists compiled by Askmen, WatchMojo, and Timeout. Each list had different ranking parameters, so I picked out a few of them.

All art courtesy of Alex Cohan

JACKIE CHAN is known for courageous almost deadly stunts, including his pole slide in “Police Story” (1985). He slid down a pole covered in holiday lights, through glass and into a kiosk. He got second degree burns on his hands, a dislocated pelvis and a broken seventh and eighth vertebra. This stunt left him nearly paralyzed.

TOM CRUISE in “Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol” (2011) scaled Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, 123 stories off the ground. All of the harnessed scenes were actually shot that high, except for the ones with dialouge. Those were shot only a few stories up because it was too hard to hear so high up.

In “Goldeneye” (1995), a JAMES BOND stuntman bungee jumps off the Contra Dam at 720 ft off the ground. To decrease the risk of hitting the side of the dam, he jumped off a platform at the top that was a few feet off the side.

Seen in “The DARK KNIGHT Rises” (2012), Christopher Nolan had stuntmen hang the fuselage of a plane from another one while flying over the Caringorm Mountains in the British Isles. There was no CGI involved in the exterior shots of the planes, and they were actually dropping plane parts to the ground. While the exterior shots are real, the interior ones were shot in a studio.

2 3

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Another JACKIE CHAN stunt: From “Project A” (1983) is his fall from a clock tower through multiple awnings and proceeding to fall on his head. Chan is also a perfectionist, preforming the stunt three times before it was up to par. This stunt was modeled off of a similar stunt done in a silent film: “Safety Last” (1915).

A scene in “BEN HUR” (1959) during a chariot race was almost catastrophic. A stuntman took a planned bump too fast and was not properly strapped in, causing him to flip over the top of the chariot and almost get trampled by horses. Luckily, he managed to pull himself back on with only a bloody chin.

ost people get up for work every morning with a checklist of things to do, which might include some meetings, a walk with the dog and a talk with your boss. Richard Hancock prepares to roll over cars, jump off buildings, or get yanked through a wall by a ratchet. His day may start like everyone else’s, but he has to be prepared for whatever the entertainment industry literally might throw at him.

Richard’s stunt career started 35 years ago and continues as he hits 60. He not only has a wife of 28 years and two kids, but also has 108 credits on IMDB ranging from roles in “Pretty in Pink” in 1986 to “Boyhood” in 2014. After a mind-blowing almost 35 years Richard has plenty of experiences from his stunts. Because a stuntman’s life is so unpredictable, and sometimes he can sometimes be asked to do insane things, some people may wonder why anyone would want to be a stuntman.

Courtesy of Alex Cohan

Having a successful career as a stuntman requires a weird skillset and an open mind set. Stuntmen need an open mind set because they don’t always know what they will get into on set. “In that case, you bring a complete set of pads, all of your fireproof underwear, all of your harnesses, and you got a trunk load of crap”. Richard, a professional stuntman who lives in Austin, is always ready to work. Even in a world of CGI and special effects, the need for a stuntman has not gone away.

Richard stands in Crenshaw Athletic Club, where he hosts a weekly stunt class.

“...the mystique of it was just so attractive that when I got a taste of it I just couldn’t think of anything else,” Richard said. This reason draws many people into the entertainment industry in general, though getting a job as a stuntman isn’t easy.

Richard moved to Los Angeles in 1978 to pursue his stunt career. At that time, all of the successful stuntmen worked in LA, so naturally that’s where he moved to. 21 years later he moved back to Austin, because he and his wife decided this is where they wanted to raise their two children. While in LA, he made his ca-

Courtesy of Vinnieh, Heyuguys, ReggiesTake, Fanart, IMDB, Meetinthelobby, Squarespace, Nitehawkcinema

to fall down the stairs, because it’s always going to hurt. You always hate it when they ask you stand in the parking lot when the car drives by, and it’s gonna knock you off your feet. That always hurts.” But stuntmen will do what the director asks. Being 60 years old stuntman means that Richard has passed on some of those, but not all of them. “Most stunt guys are pretty much finished at 50. And a lot of them are finished at 50 because they’re just broken down. A lot of them are finished because they just don’t move well anymore.” For “Surf 2”, Richard performed what he thinks was one of the stupidest stunts of his career. Not once or twice, but three times, Richard jumped from a mini-tramp into a hole dug into the sand. Here are some of the movie posters of the major movies that Richard has credits for.

reer as a stuntman, even though it took a while. He described beginning his job as a stuntman. “I guess my first stunt job was in 1978, and then it was probably a year before the next one, and may have been another year before the next one but by 1980 I was starting to work enough doing stunts to make a living just doing stunts.” Once he got his career going it transformed into his dream job. He says that he enjoys doing the “meat and potatoes” of stunt work, which includes getting thrown on the ground, fight-work, and getting hit.

“I still like getting out there on my feet and things blowing up and me falling and crashing into other people and really hitting the ground,” he said. “And as much as I like that and the pain that goes with it and the risk of pain that goes with it by slamming yourself on the ground, and [I] can chip and elbow and somehow it only hurts and is gone in days.” Richard has stunts that he likes to do, which means that he also has stunts that he doesn’t like. Those things he knows will hurt, and that generally means that nobody wants to do them. “You always hate it when they ask you

“Very, very, early in my career, the scariest thing I did that now looking back probably was maybe one of the stupidest things. I dove off a mini-tramp into a hole we dug in the sand, head first with my hands at my side.” Having no padding at the bottom of the hole but a cardboard box with a hole just big enough for his head, Richard dove right in. This is a reason why stuntmen have jobs: to do the things that look great but are too dangerous for anyone else to do. Richard credits his gymnastics training for making the accomplishment of these dangerous stunts easier. He competed at a college level, and skills like weight transfer, timing, and agility helped him become a more dynamic stuntman.

“That’s what I’ve grown up doing, jumping off mini- tramps and diving through little things, and hitting a target and rolling out and stuff.” Richard thinks gymnastics is fundamental in becoming a versatile stuntman. Through his experience, Richard has discovered that people that have a pronounced skill like driving or riding horses overall get less work than the “jack-of-all-trades” stuntmen. A knack for acting is another crucial aspect of stunts.

Richard believes that it is important for someone who wants to be a stuntman to live in a hot-spot for filming. Having good “set etiquette” is necessary as well. “You get on the set and you misbehave by accident because you don’t know any better, and the stunt coordinator is asked not to bring you around anymore,” Richard said. And because stunt coordinators work with each other, getting on ones bad side can be a career ender, so some previous experience is required. Working on a set for multiple hours a day is bound to make some strange stories.

“...seeing your end result and sitting in the theatre and hearing people go, “ooh” when you hit is a thrill.”

“All through when you’re doing stunts you’re always acting. You’re always acting like you’re getting hurt, you’re always acting like you’re somebody else, you’re always acting like you are moving in a normal manner but you’re moving in where your face can’t be seen.”

While stuntmen are waiting on set, and they wait a lot, they trade stories. On set there exists an order of where everyone belongs. The grips stay with the grips and the stuntmen reside with the stuntmen.

Richard said that sometimes needing to wait can be a good thing. For bigger productions or where the scenery is very important, all the crew gets taken on location. This could be Hawaii, Tokyo, or some stinky apartment building. “They’d go on location and I would spend 12, 16 weeks on location, staying in the same hotel room. For the run of a picture,” Richard said. Traveling on location can happen multiple times a year. Richard said that after doing a few of these a year, there isn’t much time to do anything else. In 1988, Richard traveled on location for one of the biggest productions of its time, “War and Remembrance”. “We spent a month and a half in Hawaii getting shipped out every day from the marina out to a submarine or out to a battleship, which was a destroyer that was dressed up like a battleship and work all day jumping in the water and swimming.” Richard thinks that lots of people decide that this kind of lifestyle is too

Courtesy of Alex Cohan

Contrary to popular belief, stuntmen usually don’t get hit. That visual is a combination of clever camera placement and impeccable timing. Convincingly acting like you just got punched or kicked can be difficult but is accomplished by stuntmen all the time. Acting isn’t the only skill that is helpful in stunts.

“There’s a story on your way to the bathroom there’s a story on your way back from the bathroom, something that happened.”

“God, I’ve waited 12 hours to not work. A lot. A lot, you go in the second day and wait and wait and wait until they call you.”

Richard took gymnastics from Crenhaw’s starting when he was 8 years old, and now teaches children’s gymnastics.

Courtesy of Richard Hancock

Richard preforms a stunt where he had to jump off a parking garage. He is in the second window on the left side from the right.

complicated, too unpredictable, and too stressful. Because of this lots of people quit. But Richard said that one of the things that has kept him in it for so long is watching himself in the theater and hearing the reactions of other people.

is commonly seen in “Jackass”. He said that this is not true and gives stuntmen a bad rap. Another is that all stuntmen are big, strong, blond and fairly attractive.

there’s been pain and there’s been suffering and there’s been highs and there’s been lows. I wouldn’t change any of it. Any bit of it for anything.”

“You can’t do a movie with all of those guys. You have to have some big fat people and you have to have some tall weird looking guys and some short guys like me. It takes all kinds of people to make a movie,” Richard said.

“In that case, you bring a complete set of pads, all of your fireproof underwear, all of your harnesses, and you got a trunk load of crap”.

“...seeing your end result and sitting in the theatre and hearing people go, “ooh” when you hit is a thrill.”

Witnessing the surprise from the audience is a huge pro, but Richard has some common misconceptions other people have about stunts that frustrate him and other stuntmen. One of Richard’s least favorite is that all stuntmen will do anything for money, like what

An assortment of men and women are needed to make a movie and Richard has relished doubling short guys for all 35 years of stunts. “It’s been just fun to look back and

THAT’S A WRAP!