Filipinos should be proud of themselves!
With his world-class talent for stunts and action sequences, Filipino-American stunt coordinator Robert Alonzo continues to make the Philippines' entertainment industry proud — Alonzo was in charge of preparing Robert Pattinson (Batman) and Zoe Kravitz (Catwoman) for their intricate battle scenes in Warner Bros. Pictures' The Batman, which is presently showing in Philippine theaters.
Aside from being a trainer, Alonzo is also in charge of the additional physical responsibilities that come with the film's major action sequences. He's also a second unit director, which means he's in charge of shooting extra footage to go along with the original, such as large stunt shots and transitions.
Pattinson, who plays Bruce Wayne in the DC film, stated in an interview with Warner Bros. that the weeks of preparation with Alonzo had prepared him completely for the battle scenes.
“Rob [Alonzo] has a great style. You learn certain signature moves, which you can build into different patterns quickly,” said Pattinson.
Kravitz, who has known Alonzo for most of her life, described him and his colleagues as "amazing people".
“He (Alonzo) was concerned about everything feeling grounded and being motivated by emotion, and that’s great,” said Kravitz, who stars as Selina Kyle in the movie.
Alonzo was cast in two jobs this time: supervising stunt coordinator and second unit director.
"Dylan Clark, with whom I had previously worked on Tom Cruise's Oblivion, called me. I was also the supervising stunt coordinator and second unit director for Oblivion "For Rappler, he remarked.
Clark also contacted Matt Reeves about collaborating on this project once more. Reeves stated that he intended this version of Batman to be "raw, grounded, and visceral."
So, how did Alonzo plan the action to put Matt Reeves' idea into motion?
"Matt’s vision was to have the action raw and real so that the audience feels every punch, kick, fall, hit, and crash through the emotion of the characters, whether they are enduring extreme amounts of pain or experiencing pleasure and satisfaction while doing it out,” Alonzo explained.
"For example, the goal of fight training with Rob Pattinson was to allow the jeopardy to come in much closer than he’s used to eliminating anticipatory movement and heighten his proximity reactivity. With this as a primary goal, we trained him in FMA – escrima/kali/arnis, penjak silat, muay thai, JKD, boxing, and kickboxing."
“For Rob, we avoided kicking and used more hammer fists, elbows, and knees, while also drilling with sticks that would later enable him not only to improve his reaction time in closer pockets of engagement but also to pick up anything and use it as a weapon.”
“In contrast to this, the character of Selina Kyle/Catwoman felt like she kept everyone at a purposeful distance and was always beguiling in her personality. With that as an overall character focus, we complimented her physicality by training Zoe Kravitz in the styles of TKD, hapkido, capoeira, boxing, savate, and muay thai.”
“Her style was focused more on speed, agility, footwork, feinting, and evasive movement because it requires her comfort level to be much more distance-oriented.”
Read full interview on Rappler.
