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SWH:
I've read stories of 300
training & preparation in interviews with the actors. Based
upon what they've expressed, am I correct in saying that you
and the principle actors worked together as a unit in training?
And, the movie presents what looks like a true sense of camaraderie
among the Spartans. Was there reality to that bonding?
Kit: There
were approximately 6 weeks of training prior to shooting. Some
people had more, and I assume most of the actors were put on
some sort of program prior to this, as a certain look was required
by the Spartans that does not happen overnight. The average
training day was 8 hours. Even on shooting days just about everyone
did some sort of training program. Every time the actors trained,
the stunt performers were there. With this amount of intense
exercise regime an incredible level of camaraderie is attained.
Incorporating the stunt aspect where a high level of trust is
needed to perform as well as we did, this brotherhood flourished.
It manifested itself into relationships that you would not normally
find on sets. On many occasions we would find ourselves hanging
out together for dinner or parties on the weekends... Yes, Spartans
do party, especially in a city like Montreal.
SWH:
There was a wealth of video diary footage released in the months
leading up to 300's release, some of which showed us
snippets of your training. One of the things that struck me
was the way in which you trained with weapons. Some of the actors
have commented that you were trained to use the weapons in the
film as realistically as possible. Was that your experience?
Since you played multiple characters from multiple cultures
and used a range of weapons, were there any that presented a
particular challenge for you?
"The
movie was like a painting in motion and the action
needed to look like a dance."
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Kit:
Weapon training and choreography were the majority of
our training. The training was so intense we had a full
time massage therapist and physiotherapist every day working
on us. The actors' training was much more specific to
the Spartan style of fighting that was created. The rest
of us worked on broader styles incorporating double sword
that the Immortals used, sword and shield, and spear and
shield. The actual techniques were developed by Damon
Caro and Chad Stahelski. The styles took real techniques
but modified to accommodate the look of the film. The
movie was like a painting in motion and the action needed
to look like a dance.
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I
am generally left-handed which can cause problems in a right-handed
world. Doubling actors can be quite difficult when they are
right-handed. But having said that, I spend much of my career
working on my right-handed skills, firing guns with the right,
and other tasks. These last few years I concentrated on swords
so when it came to double swords both my hands were equally
able to perform, where most of the guys had a problem with their
neglected left hand. The biggest challenge for me was my age
(lol)... I don't seem to heal like I used to!
SWH:
Many viewers have commented on the realistic nature of the battle
sequences. They don't look obviously choreographed. How much
of the fighting was choreographed vs. organic?
Kit:
All of the actors' actions were choreographed. Most of the background
action was choreographed on the spot just prior to filming,
incorporating the specific styles that were taught to us. All
of the stunt men on this film were incredibly talented performers
and while on many shows the background fighting will be a free
for all, we all realized the importance of the choreography
and by keeping to this it made it seem more natural.
There
were several key fights where you saw Leonidas fighting 70 guys,
or any one of the other main cast fight, and these were rehearsed
daily for months to make sure that every move was perfected.
Since we were swinging around spears and swords (although they
were not steel) there is a danger of making mistakes. By the
time we got to shooting the action, the actors were so confident
in their choreography that it seemed natural, because all the
movements were like second nature. Many people don't realize
the time put in to some of these scenes. In most fights you
see in films, they are almost never one uncut shot. However
in this film there were a few fights lasting over a minute with
over 100 moves that needed to be perfected.
SWH:
Bringing the focus back to training, could you give us a basic
idea what a typical training day was like, including the diet?
Kit:
The typical training day was
incomprehensibly brutal! I have been in this industry for 17
years and normally when we go to a rehearsal we show up, stretch
a little, and work on some choreography while not usually breaking
a sweat. I remember day one. It was a Monday. On Sunday 10 of
us arrived from Vancouver, and we were the last group to show
up for the training. All the other guys were already there for
a few weeks. So most of us, knowing what normal rehearsal/training
days are like, took advantage of Montreal's club scene and spent
too many hours "out on the town"... Big mistake! We showed up
at 8 am, and started to swing swords around for a couple hours.
Imagine the hardest aerobics class and do it twice in a row.
Next up was meeting the personal trainer, Mark Twight. Mark
is a mountaineer. For fun he has competing in marathon mountain
climbs, climbing for 48 hours non-stop. Only to take one day
off to do it again! His job was to make us look like Spartans...
(I still think he was actually trying to kill us!) This training
lasted another hour or two until lunch. After lunch, specific
choreography with the actors for two hours, then another two
hours of conditioning with the weapons. Generally, each day
would have been equivalent to about 6 or more hardcore aerobics
classes. After the rehearsal/training day we would usually all
go to the gym to do about an hour of weight lifting. Tired yet???
The diet was critical... Seven meals each day. Breakfast was
always chicken breast, egg whites, and oatmeal. All very bland.
We started to add peanut butter to the oatmeal to make it more
palatable. Lunch was meat and salad, and a big salmon or chicken
wrap for dinner. Throughout the day, a couple protein shakes
and lots of snacks like ham and cheese plates... protein protein
protein...
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SWH:
Once
it came to filming, was it odd to work in such a blue
screen & CG heavy environment for so long, or was that
something you'd encountered before?
Kit:
I worked on many CG heavy films. Chronicles of Riddick
was one where 40% of the shots were green screen. I,
Robot was also CG heavy as were two of the X-Men
films I worked on. 300 was a little different as
every scene we worked on was blue screen. There were a
total of 1500 shots in the final edit, of which about
1300-1400 were CG. It can be difficult doing scenes like
with the elephants. The Visual effects director is trying
to convey his invisible vision, looking at us and the
lens of the camera, giving us marks to make sure we don't
get stepped on by the elephant. Can be a little hard to
react to nothing, but it all worked out in the end. At
times it can be a little time consuming.
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"The
Visual effects director is trying to convey his
invisible vision, looking at us and the lens of
the camera, giving us marks to make sure we don't
get stepped on by the elephant."
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SWH:
You
had the benefit of playing characters on both sides of the battle,
the 'good' and the 'bad'. Was that enjoyable? Did you have a
preference for Spartan or Immortal (or another)?
Kit: I
loved that fact that I played more characters than most of the
stunt performers. I think that only a few of us played 5 roles.
But I loved getting into the Spartan costume, not because of
the leather codpiece (lol), but because of what the Spartans
represented. My favourite role was the Immortal. They were more
skilled than the rest of the Persian army and I loved the double
sword. The deaths were a lot more dramatic as well with the
Immortals; instead of just running in and getting killed, there
was a huge interaction and a volley of strikes with the Spartans.
The Spartan stunt guys generally did not do much except killing,
and the majority of fun for a stuntguy is getting killed!
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"The
actors on this show are probably more skilled now
than many stunt performers, in terms of fight ability."
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SWH:
Obviously this was physically demanding filming and Gerard
has mentioned sustaining a few injuries. Were you at all
injured?
Kit:
Everyone on the fight team, including the actors I believe,
had tendonitis in their elbow from the constant swinging
of the swords. I know Gerry had a problem with his arm
for a while. It took me a month or two after the show
to clear up my tennis elbow. With the amount of combat
in 300 there were very few serious injuries. Someone
got a spear in the eye during rehearsals and a flap of
his eyeball was hanging. I think the doctors wanted to
stitch it back to his eyeball! He refused and was actually
back after a week of rest.
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The
was one other minor knee injury where one of the stunt men landed
on someone's leg, putting him out for about a month. All in
all it was an incredibly accident-free film. And this could
be all attributed to the daily rehearsals. In my career most
of my injuries were a result of the actors' lack of skills or
stunt knowledge. The actors on this show are probably more skilled
now than many stunt performers, in terms of fight ability.
SWH:
Many of the readers at SWH came to 300 as fans of particular
actors. I know that Gerard Butler and David Wenham are particularly
well represented in the fan base. But for the benefit of those
who have a special interest in the various leads, could you
tell us anything about what it was like working with Gerard,
David, or others in the cast? Do you have any enduring impressions
or memories of working with them?
Kit:
What a cast we had! Every single one of them came into the film
totally willing to work with us and to do what it took to make
what I think is one of the best fight films to date! Gerry is
a brilliantly funny, charismatic gentleman. David was more of
the quiet type, and was a true gentleman. Micheal Fassbender
was just one of the guys and could be found hanging out with
us on the weekends. We
were all just members of the team, and I am sure each and every
one of the actors will always remember 300 in this way.
No one put themselves on a pedestal because they truly realized
that every one of the jobs played a huge role in the final product.
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was quite funny though; when we first showed up on set every
one of us was slightly self-conscious about the Spartan
costume. We would walk in draping our robes around us as
everyone's eyes were on us! By the end of the film it seemed
like we belonged in the costume, like it was nothing out
of the ordinary. We all became a part of the Spartan machine
and were nothing else. All thoughts were on our "next battle"
and not the codpiece... |
| "We
all became a part of the Spartan machine and were
nothing else." |
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-DC
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Kit's
films include:
• 300
• Catwoman
• Fantastic
Four
• Fantastic
Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer
• Final
Destination
• I,
Robot
• Insomnia
• Night
at the Museum
• Reindeer
Games
• Scary
Movie 3
• Scary
Movie 4
• The
6th Day
• The
13th Warrior
• The
Chronicles of Riddick
• The
Sum of All Fears
• X2
• X-Men:
The Last Stand
Kit's
television includes:
• Andromeda
• Battlestar
Galactica
• Dark
Angel
• Smallville
• Stargate
SG-1
• The
Dead Zone
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