How do movies and TV shows "get" characters to perform difficult athletic feats?
I'm using examples from the TV series Hazel, but this could come from any number of sources. On one show, the title character makes three "strikes" in a row at bowling. On another, she calls, and makes a complex series of pool shots, one after another. On a third show, it might be a "hole in one" at golf.
These are doable, but highly difficult athletic feats that may require world class performers. A show might feature actors/actresses that could perform them. But there are probably more usual ways to generate these results on screen. What might they be?
Best Answer
There are at least three ways of doing this, and different shows will take different approaches. I'll use the "three strikes in a row" scene as an example.
- Use stunt doubles
It doesn't have to be the actor themselves performing the feats. Bring in an accomplished athlete of roughly the same height and build, dress them up to resemble the character, and then shoot them from angles that make it impossible to tell the difference. A pro-level bowler could easily achieve three strikes in a row.
- Train the actor
Sometimes, the actor will insist on performing the stunt themselves. In this case, you'd have a pro-level bowler come in and train the actor until they're able to reliably score a strike, or the actor might just go off and study bowling of their own volition.
- Just fake it
Your bowling scene might consist of three separate shots:
- A shot of the character releasing the ball down the alley
- A shot of the pins getting hit and falling over
- A shot of the character celebrating
These shots may not all have been filmed in one go. You could, for example, film the actor releasing the ball and celebrating a strike they didn't actually get, then later splice in footage of a strike they did get in a different take, or that someone else got on their behalf (overlapping with "Use stunt doubles").
An interesting real-life example that combines all three approaches is this scene from Hannibal, in which Mads Mikkelsen, playing the titular Hannibal Lecter, pulls off a fancy trick using an egg. The producers planned to fake it by having Mikkelsen attempt the trick, then cutting to close-up footage of a trained chef actually succeeding. This proved to be unnecessary because Mikkelsen, a trained juggler, pulled it off on the first try.
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