I don’t know what the world’s best television show is. But I reckon the best telly of all time was made by Channel 4 with their hit 2000s show Faking It.
Faking It takes ordinary people (in one memorable instance, an insurance wokrer) and gets them to try out a “fake” a life that’s very different to their own (ie by training to become a stuntman).
While I was watching the insurance man/stuntman episode last night, though, I turned to my partner and said the amount of skills they were training him in was unrealistic.
Surely, I said, not every stuntman has to be great at fencing and driving and stage fighting and falling.
Except that they do, even to become what the British Stunt Register calls a “probationary stunt performer.”
What?
To get a spot on the British Stunt Register, you have to “demonstrate a high level of skill across six different disciplines.”
Optional disciplines are grouped into: riding and driving, falling, water, strength and agility, and “miscellaneous”.
“Stunt career” counts as one of the six skills if you’ve already put some years into the craft.
A martial art (fighting) is also compulsory.
You’ll need to have experience in front of the camera to get on the register, and you have to provide both video and documentary evidence of your skill in your disciplines.
Aspiring stunt performers will also need to complete a Level 1 Health & Safety Stunt Course and log all their experiences as novices.
Newbies must present that as “evidence” to show they’re able to upgrade to “stunt performer” (remember, all this is just for your one-year “probationary stunt performer” period).
What are the grades?
The British Stunt Registry’s grades go as follows: probationary stunt performer, stunt performer (which lasts a minimum of three years), senior stunt performer (which you can only progress from after two years), key stunt performer (again, for a minimum of two years), and eventually a full member or co-ordinator.
This “status can be achieved in eight years, though it typically takes longer,” the Stunt Registry’s site reads.
Stunt work is notoriously dangerous, so I’m glad the process is so thorough.
Nonetheless, the more I read about the industry, the more I understand Ryan Reynolds’s comment: “Stunt work doesn’t have a category at the Oscars and I hope that’ll change someday,” he wrote in an Instagram post last month.