How to Become a Stunt Double

A stunt double stands in for the actor when the action or fight scene gets dangerous or goes beyond the capabilities of the actor. To become a stunt double, you must be in excellent physical condition and have special skills.  

1. Exercise regularly if you want to become a stunt double. Eat nutritiously for optimal health and strength.

2. Take lots of lessons because the more skills you have, the better. Gymnastics is extremely important in becoming a stunt double. Get good at trampoline, skateboarding, swimming and high board diving. Take scuba diving lessons. Practice rock climbing and horseback riding. Learn to water ski and snow ski.

3. Enroll in martial arts classes, especially judo. Judo is excellent for learning how to break falls.

4. Get training in CPR(1) and First Aid. This training looks good on a résumé, especially for stunt double careers. Injuries happen.

5. Have valid driver's licenses for both car and motorcycle. Take advanced driving classes so you'll be qualified for difficult driving scenes.

6. Move to Hollywood and plan to work your way up from the bottom. You must get into the Screen Actors Guild(2) and have a union card(3) .

                                                                                  Taken from Google

(2) Annual prize promoted by the American Syndicate of Actors.

(3) A card certifying membership in an organization. 

EXTRACT 1

Japan’s shipyards remain intact after quake

Japan’s major shipyards escaped the full impact of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that struck the northeastern coast of the country with full force. An official at the Japan Ship Exporters’ Association said the devastating natural disaster “will have no impact on future export ship orders at all”. Although several small shipyards in the quake-hit areas were affected, major Japanese shipyards that build large vessels for exports are concentrated in western Japan and remain intact, the official said. Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding sustained “slight material damages” in the company’s Kasai Center and Chiba Works but did not consider such slight damages would cause serious impact on operations. “The rotational schedule of interruption of power supply due to the earthquake may affect our operation at our works and subsidiaries. However, the degree of the impact is not known now,” the company said in a statement. Japanese export ship orders rose for the 15th consecutive month in February o a year-on-year basis. Japanese shipbuilders received orders for 277 export vessels – 259 bulk carriers, 10 oil tankers and eight general cargo vessels – in the April-February period.

                        (Adapted from: www.australianmerchantnavy.com, March 2011)

EXTRACT 2

Tsnunami Debris Expected on U.S. Shores in 3 Years

The powerful tsunami triggered by the 9.0 Japanese earthquake destroyed coastal towns near Sendai, washing such things as houses and cars into the ocean. Projections of where this debris might head have been made at the international Pacific Research Center, university of Hawaii at Manoa. What their model predicts about the tsunami debris is that they first spread out eastward from the Japan Coast in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre. In a year, the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument will see pieces washing up on its shores; in two years, the remaining Hawaiian islands will see some effects; in three years, the plume will reach the US West Coast, dumping debris on Californian beaches and the beaches of British Columbia, Alaska, and Baja California. The debris will then drift into the famous floating junk yard, the North Pacific Garbage Patch, where it will wander around and break into smaller and smaller pieces. In five years, Hawaii shores can expect to see another barrage of debris that is stronger and longer-lasting than the first one. Much of the debris leaving the North Pacific Garbage Patch ends up on Hawaii’s reefs and beaches. These model projections will help to guide clean-up and tracking operations.

                                                 (Adapted from: www.geog.ucsb.edu, April 2011)