12-31-2009, 11:59 AM
Stunt family's burning passion: their own reality show
By Denise Ryan, Vancouver SunDecember 29, 2009
Vancouver stuntman Jim Dunn sets himself, his wife and their three young children on fire in August 2008 as part of a pitch to land a reality show.
Vancouver stuntman Jim Dunn sets himself, his wife and their three young children on fire in August 2008 as part of a pitch to land a reality show.
Photograph by: Handout, Jim Dunn
VANCOUVER — Canada's only stunt family may soon have a reality show on a major American network — and all they had to do was set themselves on fire, kids and all, to land the deal.
"Nothing gets attention like setting your family on fire," said Jim Dunn, who videotaped himself, his wife and their three minor children fully engulfed in flames as part of their demo reel.
Dunn said he can't reveal any details about the show except that "it's very close to being greenlit."
He doesn't see a parallel to the "Balloon Boy" debacle — a Colorado family's misguided attempt to get publicity and land a reality show, which backfired badly when it was revealed to be a hoax.
"The difference between us and Balloon Boy is that we really were on fire," said Dunn, a North Vancouver professional stuntman whose career includes work in more than 400 films.
Dunn's wife Celia, and kids, Connor, 15, Ali, 12, and Austin, 9, have also performed as stunt doubles in dozens of films. (The kids are affectionately known on film sets as Crash, Smash and Dash.)
Dunn said he knew the family needed something special for their video pitch if they wanted to break into reality TV.
So, in the summer of 2008, he called the three kids into his office.
"He said, 'Guess what! We're all going to be lit on fire,'" Ali revealed.
The video of the conflagration shows young Austin pouring "gasoline" on a fire and then one by one the family goes up in flames.
"Austin was the youngest kid in the family to do a full burn," Dunn said, with obvious pride.
"I was pretty excited because I hadn't been lit on fire before," said Austin, who was seven at the time of the "family burn."
According to Dunn there was a safety crew of 20 overall — with two assigned exclusively to each performer — for the video shoot. Each member of the safety crew carried two CO2 tanks, and wet blankets and hoses were at hand.
The stunt took about two weeks to prepare and complete.
"The worst part was covering yourself in the (fire retardant) Nomex gel," Ali recounted. "It's very cold. So when you get lit on fire, it's sort of a relief."
Dunn isn't concerned that a reality show in which children are shown having fun with stunts like the "family burn" will tempt untrained children to take life-threatening risks.
"I don't think people will try (the stunts)," he said. "A big part of the show will be demonstrating the training and process."
Dunn, who has been stunt double to stars such as Robert DeNiro, John Cusack, Ted Danson and Pierce Brosnan, said the kids naturally gravitated toward the work their parents excelled at.
During his career, Dunn has broken his legs six times, cracked his skull, knocked bones loose in his ears, had two bowel resections, and suffered serious burns to his face.
The kids said they don't get scared, and that unlike their dad, none has been injured.
"I'm nervous, but not afraid. I visualize everything first," said Connor, who is an honour student at Handsworth high school in North Vancouver.
Dunn said that film industry professionals are very careful when working with young stunt doubles, but that what stunts children can and cannot do on set is largely unregulated.
"There are more rules about schoolwork for kids on sets than for stunts," Dunn said.
He admits it's very rare for children to do "burns."
The kids, who choreograph fights for fun before bed, share a genuine enthusiasm for stunts.
"With our kids, everything they've been offered, they've wanted to do," Celia said.
That includes the boys stunt-doubling for girls in movies. "Connor and our daughter wore their first bras together," she laughed.
Connor said that "it was a little weird" when he got handed the pink bra and blond wig on set, but it's all part of the deal.
Connor, who dangled from a ferris wheel with Halle Berry in Catwoman, has built up a solid college fund with his earnings. He hopes to study science or engineering at university.
Their mother said the kids' daily activities sometimes seem more risky than the stunts. "Ali is jumping off cliffs on skis that are 25 vertical feet, Connor downhill-mountain bikes."
The difference between them and the other kids, she said, is that they're more safety savvy than most. At the local skateboard park, it's "helmets, tailbone pads, elbow and knee pads," she said.
[email protected]
By Denise Ryan, Vancouver SunDecember 29, 2009
Vancouver stuntman Jim Dunn sets himself, his wife and their three young children on fire in August 2008 as part of a pitch to land a reality show.
Vancouver stuntman Jim Dunn sets himself, his wife and their three young children on fire in August 2008 as part of a pitch to land a reality show.
Photograph by: Handout, Jim Dunn
VANCOUVER — Canada's only stunt family may soon have a reality show on a major American network — and all they had to do was set themselves on fire, kids and all, to land the deal.
"Nothing gets attention like setting your family on fire," said Jim Dunn, who videotaped himself, his wife and their three minor children fully engulfed in flames as part of their demo reel.
Dunn said he can't reveal any details about the show except that "it's very close to being greenlit."
He doesn't see a parallel to the "Balloon Boy" debacle — a Colorado family's misguided attempt to get publicity and land a reality show, which backfired badly when it was revealed to be a hoax.
"The difference between us and Balloon Boy is that we really were on fire," said Dunn, a North Vancouver professional stuntman whose career includes work in more than 400 films.
Dunn's wife Celia, and kids, Connor, 15, Ali, 12, and Austin, 9, have also performed as stunt doubles in dozens of films. (The kids are affectionately known on film sets as Crash, Smash and Dash.)
Dunn said he knew the family needed something special for their video pitch if they wanted to break into reality TV.
So, in the summer of 2008, he called the three kids into his office.
"He said, 'Guess what! We're all going to be lit on fire,'" Ali revealed.
The video of the conflagration shows young Austin pouring "gasoline" on a fire and then one by one the family goes up in flames.
"Austin was the youngest kid in the family to do a full burn," Dunn said, with obvious pride.
"I was pretty excited because I hadn't been lit on fire before," said Austin, who was seven at the time of the "family burn."
According to Dunn there was a safety crew of 20 overall — with two assigned exclusively to each performer — for the video shoot. Each member of the safety crew carried two CO2 tanks, and wet blankets and hoses were at hand.
The stunt took about two weeks to prepare and complete.
"The worst part was covering yourself in the (fire retardant) Nomex gel," Ali recounted. "It's very cold. So when you get lit on fire, it's sort of a relief."
Dunn isn't concerned that a reality show in which children are shown having fun with stunts like the "family burn" will tempt untrained children to take life-threatening risks.
"I don't think people will try (the stunts)," he said. "A big part of the show will be demonstrating the training and process."
Dunn, who has been stunt double to stars such as Robert DeNiro, John Cusack, Ted Danson and Pierce Brosnan, said the kids naturally gravitated toward the work their parents excelled at.
During his career, Dunn has broken his legs six times, cracked his skull, knocked bones loose in his ears, had two bowel resections, and suffered serious burns to his face.
The kids said they don't get scared, and that unlike their dad, none has been injured.
"I'm nervous, but not afraid. I visualize everything first," said Connor, who is an honour student at Handsworth high school in North Vancouver.
Dunn said that film industry professionals are very careful when working with young stunt doubles, but that what stunts children can and cannot do on set is largely unregulated.
"There are more rules about schoolwork for kids on sets than for stunts," Dunn said.
He admits it's very rare for children to do "burns."
The kids, who choreograph fights for fun before bed, share a genuine enthusiasm for stunts.
"With our kids, everything they've been offered, they've wanted to do," Celia said.
That includes the boys stunt-doubling for girls in movies. "Connor and our daughter wore their first bras together," she laughed.
Connor said that "it was a little weird" when he got handed the pink bra and blond wig on set, but it's all part of the deal.
Connor, who dangled from a ferris wheel with Halle Berry in Catwoman, has built up a solid college fund with his earnings. He hopes to study science or engineering at university.
Their mother said the kids' daily activities sometimes seem more risky than the stunts. "Ali is jumping off cliffs on skis that are 25 vertical feet, Connor downhill-mountain bikes."
The difference between them and the other kids, she said, is that they're more safety savvy than most. At the local skateboard park, it's "helmets, tailbone pads, elbow and knee pads," she said.
[email protected]
I would stop eating chocolate.. but I'm not a quitter!
:B
:B
![[Image: Zy3rKpW.png]](https://i.imgur.com/Zy3rKpW.png)
