N.Z. stuntman lands on his feet

Press, 18 January 1986, Page 8

N.Z. stuntman lands on his feet

Top New Zealand stuntmen such as Peter Bell are helping the nation’s film industry to land on its feet. One film in particular, “Shaker Run,” with Bell’s action-packed stunt choreography, was the best selling .New Zealand film at last year’s Cannes film festival. This Mirage-Aviscom production came soon after “Came A Hot Friday,” another of the company’s popular productions featuring Bell’s stunt work.

Christchurch audiences will get a better taste of New Zealand’s growing professionalism when “Shaker Run” begins screening on January 24. New Zealanders are “good at knocking themselves,” said the young

Fielding-born stuntman yesterday. “People just did not think we could achieve what we set out to do with the stunt work in ‘Shaker Run.’ ”

He was speaking last evening at Christchurch AirEort after a gruelling day of igh-speed car driving near Te Anau for a commercial. He had had no time to eat since breakfast and the film crew had to delay their flight to Christchurch for an hour to get all the shots they wanted. One of the most dangerous stunts for Peter Bell in “Shaker Run” was driving a burning van over a cliff and crawling out of it unscathed while an anxious film crew waited. Thirteen vehicles were write-offs by the end

of the filming.

Movie followers will be familiar with many other stunt acts with the Bell stamp on them in films such as “Heart of the Stag,” “Mutiny on the Bounty,” “Death Warmed Up," “Bridge to Nowhere” and “Queen City Rocker.” Peter Bell has held world records for hanging the greatest height from a helicopter by his teeth, lasting the longest time as a “human torch” (on fire) and the highest fall into a pile of cardboard boxes. He described how as a teen-ager he was “fortunate enough” to win two New Zealand boxing titles, Was a keen rugby player and a fitness advocate. “I guess this athletic side

of me encouraged me to answer an advertisement in an Australian newspaper to train as a stuntman,” he said. “As it turned out the company running the course was only trying to make a bit of money on the side with no intention of taking bn any of the trainees for stunt work later.

“Anyway two of us were invited supposedly to be back-up men for a stunt at Broken River. Luckily for us, but no so fortunate for the stuntmen, they were injured and the company had to give us a go.” Two years later, Peter Bell was still working for the company touring Australia with live stunt acts that involved minimal safety procedures.

“The work was an adventure for me and not very lucrative. It was a solid but rough grounding for me in precision stunt work because everything was done on the cheap with the audience expecting us to have safety equipment but demanding not to see it,” he said.

"Whatever stunt I do on film now is basically the same as those I first learnt, only dressed up to make it a riveting spectacle. Yet my film work has been injury-* free, mainly because I am not in it as a thrill-seeker but to professionally and safely earn a good living.”

After he crushed two vertebrae during a live stunt overseas, Bell re-

turned to New Zealand just , when the New Zealand film industry was catapulting into action. He also was seen in several television programmes and quickly became one of the most sought stuntmen in , New Zealand. Shortly, he is ; off to Australia and the United States to feature in and choreograph for still more hair-raising movies , large audiences crave for. How does he manage to > relax? , .

“I am a person who cannot wind down easily. The best way for me to find afull release is to come up trumps with a successful stunt.

“Then I’m really enjoying myself.”