One of the most difficult and dangerous props an actor will ever use is a firearm.
Firearms on set are always issued and supervised by a licensed film armourer; an expert in the loading, handling and discharge of weapons.
Some actors when issued with a gun think all of their Christmases have come at once and they immediately morph into irresponsible idiots – waving the gun around and even pointing the gun at other actors. If the armourer sees an actor doing this the gun will be immediately confiscated and the actor discharged from the set. Guns serve one purpose only: killing things.
Firearms must always be handled safely and responsibly and only used under instruction from the armourer and the director. When discharging a firearm loaded with blanks in Australia, the gun must be aimed 30 degrees to the left or right of the actor facing the weapon and the camera set so that it appears that the gun is pointing directly at the other actor. This is so the blast from the gun and the discharge of material from the blank is aimed away from the actor who is being “shot.”
Blanks can kill – something most actors do not understand. Fire a blank from a .38 calibre handgun at a thick piece of chip board from a distance of 30 centimetres and you will blow a hole in the chip board the size of 20 cent piece. Do it with a shotgun and you can almost put your fist through the hole! So imagine what a blank fired at close range could do to the human body. Brandon Lee was killed by a blank on the set of The Crow. The 30 degree firing rule used on Australian film and television sets doesn’t apply in the United States and Lee’s death was found to be due to a fatal mistake by the armourer. The armourer emptied six shell casings from the gun at the end of the previous day’s filming, but neglected to check the barrel of the handgun. The plastic tip from one of the blanks fired that day had lodged in the gun barrel just forward of the cylinder. When the gun was fired on set again the next day, the plastic tip from the fired blank blasted the tip hidden in the barrel into Lee’s chest with the force of a live round. He died instantly. The lesson? A blank fired at close range can kill or maim you just as easily as a live round.
Understanding the safety protocols and having theoretical and practical experience with firearms makes an actor a very valuable commodity when casting film and television action-based drama. And it is a real talking point when a casting agent scans your resume at an audition.
But how do you gain this valuable experience in the first place? Because of time restrictions you will only receive a very basic run down on set when issued with a firearm. So how do you carry the gun convincingly when playing a police officer or a criminal? How do you load it, handle it and fire it realistically? Simple: You can attend the only course available for actors in Australia that’s how!
Film armourer, SFX technician and pyrotechnics expert Tony Garland (Superman 3; Rescue Special Ops; Underbelly Razor) tutors the Armoury for Actors master class at the Screen Actors Workshop in Sydney. The course runs over a full day at The Botany Pistol Club, Australia’s premier firing range. The course consists of a four hour theory session followed by a four hour practical session where the students fire every type of imaginable weapon used on film sets – from revolvers and automatics to assault rifles and shotguns. This comprehensive and seriously fun master class fully prepares the actor for the safe handling and discharge of any weapon they may be assigned on set. The course also explains how to tell the difference between a dud, a blank, and a live round. Armourers are only human and can make mistakes just like anyone else, so being able to differentiate between the 3 different types of bullets can save a life. Also covered in the master class is the use and practical application of blood sacks and SFX.
Invaluable training and a good talking point when a casting agent sees your resume! If the casting agent knows you have completed this course and the role you are testing for involves the use of weapons then it will give you a major league head start on every other actor auditioning for the role.
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