‘I Am A Madman’: Screenshots Reveal What It Takes To Work With Vlad Rimburg [EXCLUSIVE]
It’s not often that I do articles like these. To that end, it’s not everyday I get anonymous e-mails leaking group messages, particularly ones led by industry stunt coordinators I’ve been following since their heyday as independent filmmakers in their nascency.
That is, people like Vlad Rimburg, who bares a mix of TV and film credits partly including “Gangs Of London,” “Lucifer,” Netflix actioners Minnal Murali, and Back In Action. The industry notches on his belt are hard-earned after years of plying his trade collaborating with the likes of The Stunt People and Jabronie Pictures, coining the @vjvlad moniker on YouTube, and performing in films like Eric Jacobus’s Contour, and Dennis Ruel’s Unlucky Stars.
His latest shortfilm, Police Force: First Mission, is the latest culmination of his efforts over the years, releasing in December. The development process prior involved a massive auditioning effort that Rimburg began last summer in a group message that outlines just the authority he commands.
“There were a lot of applicants,” said Rimburg, when I forwarded the anonymous screengrabs I received on Friday evening to him. I stated that I didn’t really know what the intent of the sender was except to maybe lend an outsider perspective into how tough and demanding he typically is, to which he replied in part, “…Very tough and very demanding.”
The images below outline Rimburg’s introduction to the first round of stunt performers early last year prior to filming in the following Summer, highlight just what it takes to be a part of a “Vlad Shoot”. In them, he delinates the importance of set etiquette, as well as the caliber of his high-demand action performance and direction, including the expectation that his performers go “100% speed and full energy EVERY TAKE.”
At one point, he discusses how while filming “Osu” (2014), he directed thirty-eight takes of a shot in which Nate Hitpas kicks Micah Karns until he was pleased with the stock. He also tells of how during one pre-viz shoot, he did twelve takes of stunt performer Gui DaSilva kicking Jimmy Chhiu in the head at full speed during each take, ultimately using the first one as a result. “I am a madman” he adds.
By comparison, actor and screen action legend Jackie Chan himself holds two Guinness world records, one of which is for the most takes shot for a scene. The scene in question? The 2,900 takes directed during the shuttlecock game in Dragon Lord (1982), as recorded in Clyde Gentry’s 1997 book, “Inside The Dragon”. Chan is as much of an influence to folks like Rimburg as you might reckon, so you can imagine the influence and inspiration there.
He goes on and says, “I believe everyone deserves an opportunity, but I also don’t have time to waste. If you’re asking for an opportunity, you need to be ready for it.”
This is a rare opportunity that Rimburg himself (albeit jokingly at first) is allowing me to share as a Film Combat Syndicate exclusive. Have a read below, and sub to his channel and enjoy more than a decade of hard-hitting goods!
