Q&A with stuntman Danton Mew
March 4, 12:03 AMLA Asian American Movie ExaminerEd Moy
San Francisco Bay Area martial artist, Danton Mew has been a stuntman since 1995 and a coordinator since 2001.
Mew, who recently worked as stunt coordinator for Emmanuel Lee's short film "Grand Ma Takedown," took time to answer a few question for Examiner.com:
What inspired you to pursue a career as a stuntman?
Actually, I was very lucky! This business fell into my lap! You hear about being at the right place at the right time and being discovered...back in 1995 a Hong Kong film production group came to SF to shoot a gangster drama titled "Gates of Hell". They visited all the martial arts gyms in San Francisco looking for a new face and they found me teaching my class at Navarro's Muay Thai Academy out in the Mission. They wanted me to be the martial arts director and have a supporting role as "Tiger". That was my first exposure to any type of filming and it left me with a hunger for more! I got to work with Hong Kong actors - Chan Kwok Pong (Once Upon a Time in China 6) and James Pax (Big Trouble in Little China). Pong inspired me to pursue this business as he felt I would do well in it. After this production wrapped, I started going to casting calls and auditions. I signed up with casting agencies like Nancy Hayes and Beau Bonneau Casting and I was landing jobs on a regular basis.
Where did you get your training?
I believe you have to have it in you to be a stuntman. It's born in you, and it comes out naturally. I guess my earliest self training was at age 6, as I loved to jump, and do somersaults on sofas and climb in the highest places. When my family lived in Oakland, the roof tops of our house and my neighbor's houses were my playground. I'd jump from roof top to roof top and roll off. I could scale fences and walk up walls with my hands by the time I was 8. I was not afraid of heights! I was tiny, had severe asthma, and was always sick, but I never let it hold me back from what I loved to do! I wanted to overcome this ailment and worked hard to build up my body. I started my martial arts training in junior high at Doc Fai Wong's Kung Fu school and moved on to several other masters including Sifu Bosco Young, Master Michael Chau, Sifu Wilson Ng and Grand Master Toddy. In high school & college, my main sport was gymnastics.So, thru the years, I went from a 110lb boney skinny kid to a muscled gymnast. Although, I specialized in martial arts, to be a well rounded stunt professional, one must do it all - ground pound, high falls, car hits/exits, stunt driving/precision driving, wire-work/rigging, air rams, mini tramps, burns etc... and of course all sports. The majority of my stunt training is credited to my best friends and family members of the San Francisco Stunt Association (
www.SFstunts.com). I learned stunt/precision driving from Rick Seaman's Stunt Driving School in L.A. and high performance driving from BMWCCA sponsored driving courses.
Who were some of your mentors?
Kevin Larson, Mike Martinez & Rocky Capella who are founding members of the San Francisco Stunt Association and have been in the film industry for over 35 years. They all had part in making me what I am today!
What did you learn from them that has stuck with you over the years?
Safety first! If you can't do something safely, don't do it! Prep/plan everything early and account for the unexpected.
What films or TV shows have you worked on?
Nash Bridges, Memoirs of a Geisha, Rent, Just Like Heaven, Pursuit of Happyness, Harrison Montgomery, Half-Life, 4 Christmases, Milk, Wolvesbayne, The Awakened and the latest being NBC's "Trauma".
Which ones were your favorites?
My favorite show was working on the film production of "Rent" because it allowed me the chance to meet and work with over 35 hollywood stunt professionals all under one roof! We had a blast coordinating the big riot scene with 150 background extras and 35 stunt performers. We were bashing each other with police batons and laughing all the way! My favorite commercial was for Hong Kong Acura directed by famous "Infernal Affairs" director Lau Wai-Keung. I stunt-doubled Hong Kong superstar Andy Lau in this 10 minute long love story car commercial.
What is your most memorable stunt?
Getting my butt kicked by the Iron Chef America Chairman! It was an honor to work with the great martial artist/actor - Mark Dacascos. We worked out a cool sword fight scene with a bloody ending for a SyFy Channel horror titled "Wolvesbayne".
How did you get involved with "Grand Ma Takedown"?
It was a challenge coming in the last minute, but then I love challenges! Emmanuel Lee had originally wanted Larry Lam (WMAC Masters) and/or Will Leong (Matrix Reloaded) to be the stunt coordinators, but they were both already booked and not available. And both had called and recommended me for the job, so I was honored by this request!
What's your next project?
Hopefully... "Pirates of the Caribbean - On Stranger Tides" and "Battleship", both of which will be filmed in the Hawaiian Islands.
Any advice for young aspiring stunt players?
Be an all around stunt performer! Don't just focus on one specialty like martial arts! Keep making self improvements each year! You can never learn enough! Practice Practice Practice!! Be humble, work hard and give back to the community!
For more about Danton Mew, go to his website at:
www.dantonmew.com
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