Jack Gill is the man that put the ACTION in the biggest blockbuster of the season, FAST and FURIOUS 5 (Fast Five). Jack is responsible for some of the film’s most over-the-top action sequences including the legendary vault-stealing scene. If you haven’t seen the movie it’s time to get your movie ticket. Pinstripe Magazine had a chance to sit down with Jack and ask him a few questions. Keep reading below to see how all the action in the movie is actually real.
PM: What goes into putting some of the most memorable action sequences on screen?
JG: An enormous amount of time and effort. I start with the script and break it down into the action beats. Then I get together with the director and we decide how to make the action fit the characters and story and make it exciting and memorable. I also take into account that I must design the stunt sequences so that they build in intensity as the story progresses so that we don’t put our biggest action early in the movie and the audience is left with a declining pace and are let down. I want the end of the movie to be the pinnacle and hope that I have built up the scale of excitement so that by the time we get to the end of the movie, the audience is on the edge of their seat and they don’t have time to catch their breath. I also try to design action so that it continually keeps you guessing as to what is coming next and is not predictable. Then the locations have to be found. In most cases, I find what I need to film the action sequences and other times I change the action to fit the location we found because it will look better on screen. After the locations are found, the sets are built and the action vehicles are chosen. On FAST 5, a lot of testing went in to the Vault and the Chargers that were pulling it. We tested for four weeks in Puerto Rico with the Chargers and the vault. Different weights and sizes of the Vault were discussed, the length of the cables connecting the Vault to the Chargers needed to be tested and decided. I had seven different Vaults that I used for that end sequence. All seven of them had a specific duty it was designed for. Safety is also a key factor in action sequences and I had to be very careful about where I put people and which cars were going to get crushed by this vault. Cars had steel safety cages added to them to protect the stunt people from injury. After testing is completed, we start filming. I arrive on the set with each aspect of the sequence on paper, so that every member of the crew can see what we want to accomplish. I also have a bag full of toy cars that I put down on the asphalt and use as a visual aid when describing each shot so that the stunt people and the crew know exactly where each and every car is going to go. After that meeting, we walk the route and talk about safety needs. Then we all get in our vehicles and drive a few slow speed rehearsals so that we all know where we are going and each and every camera knows where the action is going to happen. After that comes the full speed rehearsal, with no crashes. Once we are satisfied that we like the way it all looks and feels, we film it at full speed with all the crashes and wrecks. Then we set it up again with different camera positions and new un-crashed cars. This safety process happens for each and every scene we film. We start again with the sheet of paper describing the stunt, the toy cars come out…and you get the picture.
PM: How much is digital and how much is the real thing?
JG: Fast 5 was almost 95% real driving and crashing. That was our whole idea behind the action. Our director (Justin Lin) insisted it all be real, and I agreed.
PM: How dangerous are these stunts?
JG: The vault sequence was one of the most dangerous stunt sequences I have ever designed. A 10 ton vault being pulled through the city at 75 mph is hard to stop once it gets started.
PM: Did anyone get hurt?
JG: We had our share of bumps and bruises, but no one was seriously injured. We were very safety conscious because the vault was so destructive.
PM: Does FAST FIVE and its car chases set the bar for other action movies?
JG: I think it does. We were striving to accomplish something that had never been done before and to push the envelope without using CGI. I think it will stand for quite a long time.
PM: What has been your most dangerous stunt? Have you ever been hurt?
JG: I have had many dangerous stunts. I have always come out without a scratch on the big ones. It’s the smaller stunts that usually bite you. I have broken my back twice and my neck once and have a 4 inch titanium plate in my neck. I’ve had four separated shoulders, punctured lungs, broken ribs, broken hands, broken ankles, many concussions and cut my finger off and had to have it sewn back on. It comes with the business. If you do big stunts for thirty years, you are going to get hurt. ·
PM: How does one actually get into this line of work?
JG: Luck, skill and an enormous amount of perseverance.
Check out the trailer below.
Pinstripe Magazine Staff
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