Specialist in designing and choreographing fight sequences with standardized safety distances (15–20 cm) and 127 defined fundamental movements per notation system.
Fight choreographers work with standardized safety margins: blows end 15-20cm before the target, jumps are limited to 2.5-3 meters in height. They use notation systems with 127 defined basic movements and coordinate an average of 12-45 choreographed moves per fight minute. Specializations include Sword & Sorcery, Gun-Fu, Wire-Work, and Vehicle Combat. Modern choreographers use previz software like FrameForge 3D for motion planning.
In 1966, Lau Kar-leung at Shaw Brothers Studios first established the independent profession of Action Director in Hong Kong. Yuen Woo-ping revolutionized film-specific fight design in 1978 with "Drunken Master" through 360-degree camera work. In 1999, "The Matrix" brought Wire-Fu techniques to Hollywood, and in 2014, "John Wick" introduced the Gun-Fu subgenre. Since 2018, choreographers have been integrating motion capture data for digital stunt doubles and using LED volumes for real-time compositing of fight effects.
Jackie Chan developed 47 individually choreographed stunts for "Police Story" (1985) with documented camera positions for each move. "The Raid" (2011) used traditional Silat fighting techniques, modified to 1.2-1.8 seconds per strike exchange for optimal editing frequency. Fight choreographers train actors for an average of 3-8 weeks before shooting begins, with a 3-minute fight sequence requiring 8-12 shooting days. They coordinate with stunt coordinators, special effects, and costume designers regarding freedom of movement and material durability.
Fight choreographers differ from stunt coordinators by focusing on aesthetic movement design rather than safety management, and from second-unit directors by having creative rather than technical responsibility. Action Units (independent fight film teams) like those at Marvel combine both functions. Virtual Stunt Visualization is increasingly replacing practical pre-planning, while motion capture suits with 53 tracking points transfer live choreography directly into digital characters. For budgets under 2 million dollars, stunt coordinators often take on fight design.
Ich muss Brennweiten zwischen 35-85mm wählen, da Kampfchoreografen ihre Moves auf diese Bildwinkel abstimmen - bei 24mm verzerren die Proportionen, bei 135mm fehlt mir der Bewegungsraum. Die präzisen 15cm-Sicherheitsabstände erfordern exakte Fokus-Pulls, und ich brauche mindestens 3 Kameras für komplexe Sequenzen, da Wiederholungen die Spontaneität zerstören.
Kampfchoreografen übersetzen meine narrativen Absichten in körperliche Bewegungen - wenn der Protagonist unterlegen sein soll, gestalten sie defensive Moves mit Rückwärtsbewegung, für Dominanz offensive Vorwärts-Angriffe. Ich definiere emotionale Wendepunkte, sie entwickeln dafür spezifische 8-12 Sekunden-Sequenzen, die diese Momente durch Kampfdynamik verstärken.
Kampfchoreografen kosten 8.000-25.000 Euro pro Woche, aber reduzieren meine Drehzeit um 40% durch präzise Vorplanung und minimieren Versicherungsrisiken durch systematische Sicherheitsprotokolle. Ich budgetiere zusätzlich 15% für Previz-Software und 3-4 Wochen Pre-Production, spare aber später bei Stunt-Doubles und CGI-Korrekturen.
1. Zu welchem Department gehört „Kampfchoreograf"?
2. Wie viele verschiedene Fachperspektiven bietet dieser Eintrag?
The Lexikon is part of the Filmfarm ecosystem — alongside budgeting (FilmBalance), an industry magazine (FilmCircus) and crew networking (FilmCall, CrewMesh). One shared vocabulary for the whole production.