Remember how I was complaining about teasers 4 weeks ago? Here's what he came out with. It's ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. Kind of like Vellu in the tricking scene: this eastern European kid comes out and just bursts the difficulty bubble with one bonkers video. He's surprisingly well rounded - he shows off some trampoline, tumbling, tricking, and he even does air flares. Seems like the kind of guy who could learn anything in a couple of tries.
Nice hair too.
Sorry I've been lacking in posts. I'm in Montreal right now, seeing some incredible stuff. Greg Kennedy is amazing, but put him in a Cirque du Soleil production and it reaches a whole new level.
Maybe I'll write up some reviews of the shows I'm seeing here. Stay tuned!
My relationship with tricking has changed a lot since I started. For most people who do it, it's an extreme sport where the goal is to the most difficult and creative tricks and kicks. Since I've decided to pursue performing, it's become less important to be the best tricker and more important to do good looking tricks. Coming from a gymnastics background, I try to do my corkscrews with locked knees and pointed toes as much as I can. I think it makes it easier for general audiences to appreciate a skill if it is done with form - with the intention of having it look presentable regardless of its difficulty. Most trickers seem to be doing it for other trickers who can objectively identify skills, making classical form less important.
So for a person like Tim Man, a professional stunt actor, you can tell that he wants everything he does to be performed with poise and polish. Instead of landing a combo and walking off looking at the floor, it's a point for him to land in a fighting stance. His flexibility allows him incredible extension for all of his kicks, making it easy to communicate exactly when and where he is kicking.
My favorite part is the bit on the punching bag: training to attack with realism while still looking visually intricate. Extra badass points for letting the hair down.
If you like what you see, you must see him in action in this. A "cover fight" if you will of a scene from the Jackie Chan film Gorgeous. He also makes appearances in the critically panned Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li as well as Tony Jaa's Ong Bak 2.
I feel like maybe if I write about Damien Walters 2010 it will prevent the inevitable rush of "have you seen this video w/ ninja man?" e-mails from aunts and uncles and casual acquaintances who know I do "that flippy stuff". Not to belittle Damien Walters in the slightest because for four years in a row his reels have been consistently insane, innovative, and fun. But what makes his videos always go viral?
