International Stunt Academy Audition

 Some countries (such as the United Kingdom) have a government regulated, standardized qualification system that prerequisites working in the stunt industry. The United States has no such thing. However if you can afford it, I highly recommend investing in some stunt training.

 In addition to the skill-specific classes mentioned above, a stunt education center can provide access to equipment that is widely used in stunts but extremely difficult to come by on your own; such as high falls, fire-burns, and ratchet pulls. Stunt education also gives you the opportunity to film yourself on this hard-to-find equipment, making them very useful for obtaining demo reel footage!

 Lastly, you will also have the opportunity to network with your instructors. Regardless of whether they have retired or not, your instructors will most likely have active contacts and intel from the stunt community that you may be able to tap into.

 Regardless of how much work you're getting, you have to keep training your skills and continually working to develop new ones. Look up stunt training facilities in your area that offer "open gym." The types of gym most widely used for stunt training are Cheer Gyms, Gymnastics Gyms, and Parkour Gyms. Don't be shy about going up to people that you see training stunts there and making connections. I will expand on networking later.

 You will need to own an assortment of body pads and armor to work in stunts. The best pads for stunt protection tend to be motorcycle and motocross gear. Here is the gear that you need by relative order of importance:

  Have TWO pairs: one for you and one to keep fresh and brand new to offer for the actor that you are doubling.

 Ya know, because female actresses often wear slim and revealing clothing when having to do lots and lots of action. I got mine at StuntBumpers

 This is a complete back armor, like a turtle shell. Think you don't need this? How many times have you seen someone get kicked or thrown onto a table and break it in a movie. Yeah, you need this.

 You don't need to have this right off the bat, but this is basically considered a requirement for every stunt performer to own once they work in films and TV. Getting yanked around can be extremely uncomfortable and even dangerous if your harness doesn't fit quite right, so stunt performers order custom-made ones. Climbing Sutra is the industry standard. People will straight-up look at you weird if you somehow don't get your harness from Climbing Sutra.

 Networking is up first because that's how the vast majority of jobs are attained and doled out in the stunt world. The overwhelming majority. But what even iS that and hOw dO yOu nEtWoRk?

 Networking is establishing relationships and connections with people that could potentially benefit the advancement of your stunt career.

 - Job Offers: You never know whom you're training around or where they'll end up. You may come across stunt coordinators or people who end up becoming stunt coordinators.

 -  Access to Private Training Facilities: Some people might know a guy who's an expert at fire-burns and does them at his ranch. Some might know a guy who has a high-fall setup in their backyard. Someone might know of a tactical training facility that doesn't charge up the ass. Getting access to these facilities by becoming friends with the people who go there and meeting even more people at those facilities and having them watch your skills in action is only good for you.

 -  Training Partners: Training partners are incredibly important to have, for all kinds of skills and disciplines. Hold each other accountable and use an objective perspective to provide feedback and improve each other's skills.

 -  Demo & Video Collaborators: Hey man you need someone to film for you for showreel footage and stuff. And vice versa.

 A bit of personal advice- don't do "networking" by being fake and using people. Help others out for no reason other than it being a nice thing to do, and expect nothing in return. Being a good person will get you much further than acting fake to get people to like you and using others to get ahead. Remember that there are other people trying to make it out here too, and they deserve a shot as much as you do. The world doesn't revolve around you.

 Stunt Contact is an online subscription that releases a list of pending and active US productions along with their location and contact information every two months. You can go in on a subscription alone or find someone to share it with and split the cost.

 Hustling is the most ridiculous thing. The first time I was told about it, I deadass thought someone was playing a joke on me. Alas, hustling is very real. The act of "hustling" is when you show up to a set or production office (generally unannounced) to get in contact with the stunt coordinator to introduce yourself and give them your resume. Wild right?! This is not a career for the introvert, guys. I don't have any experience hustling as of yet, so I'm just going to tell you what I was told.

 How do you know where to go and when? Networking, people. When stunt performers go hustling, they often know someone on the set or were told about it by someone they know outside of the set. You could just show up to a set that you learned about on the Stunt Contact listing, but obviously having a mutual associate with at least one person involved in the production will drastically improve your chances of success. Ideally, you know someone that is working or has worked with the stunt coordinator that you are looking for.

Professional Stunt School

 Always wear all black when hustling - it makes you look like you belong on set and is standard stunt dress anyways. Also bring your headshot & resume in a nice satchel to look official; don't hold papers or a folder in your hands.

 You can either go to the active set or go to the project's production office if you have the address (Stunt Contact often includes it). Go either by yourself or with one other person that does not look like you.

 Really act like you're supposed to be there. Exude confidence, not arrogance. You'll most likely have to sweet talk the PA's (Production Assistants) in order to get to the production office or active set for the hustle.

 Once on set, say "I am here to visit [Stunt Coordinator], can I get a callsheet?" Once you have it, fold it in half and go where the CS indicates that the stunt coordinator is. If in a production office, just ask for them.

 If you don't get the chance to introduce yourself to the stunt coordinator, leave your resume on their desk along with a note.

 If you cannot go a set or office in person, feel free to send your information to stunt coordinators from afar. Do BOTH email as well as a physical letter and title both "ATTN: Stunt Coordinator" or "ATTN: [Stunt Coordinator's Name]" when addressing them. Include your headshot and resume.

 There are several stunt listings online that many people use to get their name out there. You pay an annual or monthly fee and build your profile. If you hate manually entering your work history information on site-specific forms I've got some bad news for you 🙃Stunt coordinators often look on these websites to find stunt performers of certain types for their projects.

 There are several stunt listings online that many people use to get their name out there. You pay an annual or monthly fee and build your profile. If you hate manually entering your work history information on site-specific forms I've got some bad news for you 🙃Stunt coordinators often look on these websites to find stunt performers of certain types for their projects.

 The one online account that you definitely need (once you get a couple of credits under your belt) is IMDb Pro

 Once you work with or establish a relationship with a stunt coordinator, don't let that relationship go. Touch base with the stunt coordinators that you know every few months or every time you have a significant change in your showreel, resume, or appearance. Give 'em the good old "hope all is well, would just like to send some updated materials your way" in order to make sure that you stay fresh in their minds.

 When you seek a career in stunts, becoming a SAG member is the goal. You can begin your career with non-union work (often in advertisements and small or independent productions), but you will eventually have to make the effort to become union. There's no way around it. That's where the money is, and that's where the future is.

 In order to become a member of SAG you must first become "SAG-Eligible," then pay your dues into the organization. These are the three main methods of becoming SAG-Eligible as a stunt performer.

 You get a union voucher when you work a union background job. "To become SAG this way, you must have completed 3 days of work as a background actor in a SAG-AFTRA bargaining agreement." So get 3 days of background work on a SAG production to become eligible.

 Equity is the stage actors' union, which is a sister-union to SAG-AFTRA. If you are a registered member of Equity, you are also SAG Eligible. You get Equity through professional theatre work. Some stunt shows in Disney parks give you Equity-Eligible status after working a certain amount of time there, usually like a year. SAG apparently has some other sister unions as well.

 This is the holy grail of stunt opportunities. It is the shortcut into SAG. A Taft-Hartley Report is the form that a stunt coordinator has to fill out when he hires someone that is non-union for a union job.

 If you are non-union and get hired to do a stunt in a SAG production, your stunt coordinator will fill out a Taft-Hartley Report and send it to SAG on your behalf. In the industry we call this "getting Tafted." You will then receive a document in the mail informing you that you are now SAG-Eligible.

 I was Tafted on NCIS New Orleans because the stunt coordinator needed a girl to do parkour for a stunt acting scene (a bunch of "gutter punks" running away from police), and I also happened to be a good match to double their guest actress in another scene. He killed two birds with one stone by hiring me.