Tell about yourself and your background! *
My father was brought to Australia to teach judo in 1965, and at that time introduced taekwondo and established the national association in 1972. I competed on the Australian judo and taekwondo national teams. I also have a Bachelors in Physiotherapy. I produced for the Korean film industry (which sent me filming all over the world). Eventually, I lived in Seoul for 8 years. I came to LA in 2016 for a film festival after directing my second film. That one month visit ended up becoming a greencard application. My first job was training Joel Kinnaman for Altered Carbon. My last big project was stunt coordinating NCIS-Hawaii.
What inspired you to become a stunt performer?
i was studying physio, i was asked to do a short Hong Kong style martial arts film (The Huntsman) for a film school student. That was my entry into the film world. I was hooked! I started acting classes immediately; my teacher just happened to be producing a Richard Norton film (Under the Gun). The next year I went overseas training and competing (taekwondo); the following year I scored a role on Jackie Chan's Mr Nice Guy which was shot in my hometown of Melbourne. This of course was a great learning experience. While working on Moby Dick, I was encouraged to get my stunt qualifications. In Australia, this involves gathering qualifications and video evidence in key areas (body control, heights, water, vehicles, animals, fire, rigging).
What is your greatest skill as a stunt performer, is there a stunt behind it?
My main strengths have been as a Martial arts / action actor. I've also driven a lot on car commercials. Additionally, these days I action design and shoot a lot of stuntviz. I also edit action and sizzle reels for directors.
What is the best part about being a stunt performer?
Getting paid to do the thing you'd be happy to do for free!
Tell your all-time favorite stunt story!
On Matrix Reloaded during the chateau fight, Neo kicks me 20 feet across the room (it was a ratchet gag). I smash into a statue, which spun my lifeless acting body around. When my foot touched the ground, my knee locked out and I pogo sticked off a straight leg (tearing my lateral ligament). I knew it was bad, but they also needed one more shot of me landing. I asked for a mini-tramp, bounced a few times on one leg and threw myself to the ground so that they could tilt up to the next section of the fight - then they took me to hospital.
What advice would you give other stunt performers?
"If you're on time, you're late!" ;)Also, "Train like you compete and compete like you train". This is especially important in fight scenes. What I mean by that is to bring performance and acting skills to training fight scenes. There is a mindset out there that tries to separate actors from stunt performers. However, acting is just another required skill - just as important as throwing a punch or hitting the ground. Whether it's one word, one line, one paragraph, the lead bad guy or no lines at all... if you are in front of the camera, you need to understand acting. This has become even more important in the world of stuntviz. The better the performer can act, the better he can sell the vision of the action director / stunt coordinator (who is then pitching this to the director and producers).
Please share your social media handles and how we can follow you!
@davidwillno (YouTube, insta, FB) also check out @crashzonestunts - a webseries where we crash test stunt equipment then give a rating on fit'n'feel, price and impact protection.
Please include any links to stunt reels or videos you'd like to share!
Best to check out my YT channel for reels, stuntviz vids, films I've directed, other action reel edits and more. www.youtube.com/davidwillno
Specific links:
Screen action reel https://youtu.be/A1pdVvDXa68
Action Design: https://youtu.be/sYpBO6G6IMo
NCIS-HI action reel https://youtu.be/zUHS7_eSEJg
IMDb: www.imdb.me/davidwillno
