30 August 2005

5th Annual Taurus World Stunt Awards

Time to Honor Hollywood’s unsung heroes

New Zealander Zoë Bell has been nominated for two awards at this year’s Taurus World Stunt Awards. Her nominations are: Best Fight category - Kill Bill Vol.2 and; Best High Work category (stunt double: Laurel) - Catwoman.

The 5th annual Taurus World Stunt Awards™, created by Red Bull Energy Drink founder Dietrich Mateschitz, will take place once again on the world famous Paramount Pictures lot on Sunday, September 25th, 2005. The show will air in more than 140 countries world wide, captivating a billion of viewers.

The Taurus World Stunt Awards, inaugurated in 2001, honors and celebrates the entertainment industry’s ‘extreme athletes,’ the stunt professionals who consistently push the limits in thrilling movie going audiences throughout the world. The Taurus World Stunt Awards is the only show completely devoted to recognizing these behind-the-scenes heroes and their death defying work. Winning the ‘Taurus’ has proven to be the most prestigious honor a stunt professional can take home.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is one of the greatest supporters of the Taurus World Stunt Awards, says “I know firsthand the value of these dedicated professionals and without them there would be no action heroes. In fact, there would be no movies” (Hollywood Reporter, June 30, 2005)

The event, has grown with each passing year and now with academy awards not having a stunt category at the Academy Awards, it makes the Taurus World Stunt Awards that much more necessary for the stunt community and solidifies the Taurus as the highest honor a stunt professional can achieve. Recipients of the Taurus statuette are voted on by Taurus World Stunt Academy members, who include the elite stunt professionals of the industry.

This year, nominees will be voted upon from films which were released between January 2004 and April 2005: Troy, Kill Bill Vol. 2, House of Flying Daggers, The Bourne Supremacy, Torque, Be Cool, Hostage, The Aviator, Starsky & Hutch, Ladder 49, Spiderman II, Taxi, National Treasure, Collateral and many more. The nominees will be competing for the prestigious Taurus from nine categories: Best Fight, Best Fire Stunt, Best High Work, Best Work with a Vehicle, Best Specialty Stunt, Best Stunt Coordination and/or 2nd Unit Direction, Best Overall Stunt by a Stunt Woman, Best Overall Stunt by a Stunt Man, and Best Action in a Foreign Film.

This year stage design is being created by Ray Winkler of Mark Fisher Studios, which specializes in show direction, production design, portable architecture, stage and set design and video animation. Mark Fisher Studios are known for their extraordinary and exciting stage-designs, e.g. for The Rolling Stones, U2 and Robbie Williams. Winkler states:” The Taurus World Stunt Awards has quite a reputation for being a spectacular show that is not only visually intriguing but allows for the occurrence of a myriad of stunts to wow the audience.”

Charlie Haykel, one of the Executive Producers of the show, stated: “This year’s production will be more visually exciting and entertaining than ever before. Once again, we expect to create an event that will be attended by many of Hollywood’s biggest stars and hopefully be remembered as one of the best of the year.”

In the next few weeks, several announcements regarding the recipients for the Lifetime Achievement Award, Honorary Award (e.g. The Action Director of the Year and Action Movie Star of The Year) and The Taurus World Stunt Award Foundation will be released.

In addition, the shows hosts and a star-studded list of presenters will be announced as the show has brought out Hollywood’s most recognizable stars including: Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Harrison Ford, Carrie-Anne Moss, Jennifer Garner, Vin Diesel, Vince Vaughn, David Arquette, Michelle Rodriguez, Kelly Hu, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Quentin Tarantino, Michael Bay, Michael Clarke Duncan, Gabrielle Union, James Gandolfini, Matthew McConaughey, Jason Biggs, Keanu Reeves, Bill Paxton, Jonathan Mostow, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Seann William Scott, Johnny Knoxville, Kristanna Loken, Burt Reynolds, Jason Statham, Brad Garrett, Kevin Nealon and many more.

The Taurus World Stunt Awards benefits the Taurus World Stunt Awards Foundation, which was envisioned and became a reality through the commitment of Red Bull Energy Drink founder Dietrich Mateschitz. The Foundation was established by an endowment from Mateschitz to provide financial assistance to stunt performers who experience a debilitating stunt related injury.

Dennis Hopper, two-time host of past Taurus World Stunt Awards, says: “I think it’s the best show we have—it’s a lot more exciting than the Academy Awards, I’ll tell you that.”

ENDS