ZeroGravity (stunt team)
Encyclopedia
ZeroGravity is a stunt team based in southern California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. They were founded in 1998 by Tony Chu and Kerry Wong. Their first performance was in the Specialties Act division of the 1998 Pinnacle Fantasy Productions Talent Spokesmodel Showcase and continued to perform martial arts stage shows for several years. ZeroGravity is also known for their independent martial arts films and being the motion capture actors for The Matrix Online
The Matrix Online
The Matrix Online was a massively multiplayer online game developed by Monolith Productions created by Richard Carroll. It was the official continuation of the storyline of the Matrix series of films. The game began closed beta-testing in June 2004 which was then opened for people who pre-ordered...

and Devil May Cry 3.

History

ZeroGravity began by performing martial arts stage shows at various cultural festivals, talent showcases, and import car shows. In 2000, they branched into the indie
Independent film
An independent film, or indie film, is a professional film production resulting in a feature film that is produced mostly or completely outside of the major film studio system. In addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies, independent films are also produced...

 film genre by making short martial arts, action films. At this point, their focus began to shift more from stage shows to their film projects. Other early projects included stunt work in an indie martial arts film starring Ho Sung Pak
Ho Sung Pak
Ho-Sung Pak is an American film actor, martial artist, action choreographer, writer, and producer.-Early life and career:Pak, a Korean American, was born in Seoul, South Korea...

 titled Epoch of the Lotus. In 2001, Kerry Wong moved to Los Angeles and founded a new division of the stunt group named ZeroGravity South. At that time The original group was renamed ZeroGravity North. Shortly after, Kerry Wong established relationships with ACT, an action stunt training group in Los Angeles. Through this new relationship Reuben Langdon and other members of ACT joined ZeroGravity South. After the release of Title Pending 2 and Damn 3, the group began devoting their efforts to breaking into the film business as stunt performers. Several members have also done motion capture for some well known video games, like the The Matrix Online
The Matrix Online
The Matrix Online was a massively multiplayer online game developed by Monolith Productions created by Richard Carroll. It was the official continuation of the storyline of the Matrix series of films. The game began closed beta-testing in June 2004 which was then opened for people who pre-ordered...

and Devil May Cry 3. Some members even provided voice overs for characters in Devil May Cry 3, with Reuben Langdon returning as the voice of Dante in Devil May Cry 4
Devil May Cry 4
Devil May Cry 4 is an action game that was published and developed by Capcom in 2008 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Windows platforms. The game is the fourth installment to the Devil May Cry series....

. In addition, Langdon was featured in the tokusatsu B-Fighter Kabuto
B-Fighter Kabuto
is a Japanese television series in the Metal Hero Series. It is the sequel to Juukou B-Fighter, taking place ten years after the preceding B-Fighter series. Kabuto aired from 1996 to 1997. The action footage and props were used for the Beetleborgs Metallix series.-Plot:Ten years after the...

, as well as stunt work for Power Rangers
Power Rangers
Power Rangers is a long-running American entertainment and merchandising franchise built around a live action children's television series featuring teams of costumed heroes...

. Lateef Crowder was also a villain in the 2005 Tony Jaa
Tony Jaa
Tatchakorn Yeerum , formerly Panom Yeerum , better known in the West as Tony Jaa, in Thailand as Jaa Panom, is a Thai martial artist, actor, choreographer, stuntman, director, and monk...

 film, Tom-Yum -Goong. Other works include small bit parts (mostly martial arts or fighting oriented) in the TV series Monk
Monk (TV series)
Monk is an American comedy-drama detective mystery television series created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as the titular character, Adrian Monk. It originally ran from 2002 to 2009 and is primarily a mystery series, although it has dark and comic touches.The series debuted on July...

and Entourage
Entourage (TV series)
Entourage is an American comedy-drama television series that premiered on HBO on July 18, 2004 and concluded on September 11, 2011, after eight seasons...

. Reuben Langdon and Aaron Toney are planned to be villains in the American TV series Kamen Rider Dragon Knight. The team was also featured on Animal Planet
Animal Planet
Animal Planet is an American cable tv specialty channel that launched on October 1, 1996. It is distributed by Discovery Communications. A high-definition simulcast of the channel launched on September 1, 2007.-History:...

's Most Extreme.

Independent films

Their first film, Title Pending, featured no dialogue or sound effects but instead played music, much like silents films from the early 20th century. The films run from 10 to 20 minutess in length and had many lengthy fight sequences. They were distributed largely over the internet where they gained popularity. Other early films included a series called Damn, Kid Gusto vs The Matrix, and US vs HK. After producing their earlier films, the group began to release films less frequently but increased the production level by using higher-quality cameras, adding more dialogue and incorporating more plot elements than before.

Film chronology

  • Title Pending - 2001
  • Damn - 2001
  • Damn 2 - 2001
  • Kid Gusto vs The Matrix - 2001
  • Damn 4 - 2001
  • US vs HK (US versus Hong Kong) - 2001
  • Title Pending 2 - 2002
  • Damn 3 - 2003
  • Cha Cha Chinaman - 2004
  • Hero vs Alien - 2004
  • Inmate 451 - 2006
  • An Act of Revenge - 2008
  • Yeah Sure Okay - 2009

Members

ZeroGravity has had numerous members join since its inception. Some members joined for single projects and left shortly afterwards. Members also sometimes participate in other projects and collaborations with other stunt groups. With a large influx of members interested in their film projects, ZeroGravity began a screening process which consisted of a 3 hour test of stunt work, acrobatics, and fight choreography. This screening process is no longer in use.

ZeroGravity South

  • Kerry Wong
  • Larry Leong
  • Lateef Crowder
    Lateef Crowder
    Lateef Crowder Dos Santos is a Brazilian-born American actor, stunt performer, and martial artist. As a member of the ZeroGravity stunt team since 2000, he has been featured in multiple internet short videos and demo reels, such as Inmate 451. He's a 26-year experienced practitioner in the art of...

  • Sam Looc
  • Aaron Toney
  • Samuel Yu
  • Reuben Langdon
    Reuben Langdon
    Reuben Christopher Langdon is an American stunt actor, motion capture actor, actor, martial artist and voice actor for various martial arts films, television shows, and video games. He is a co-founder, producer and action director for Just Cause Productions, a motion capture company for various...

  • Ilram Choi
    Ilram Choi
    Ilram Choi is an American actor and a member of the Martial Arts stunt team Zero Gravity.He was born in Washington, D.C. of Korean descent. He states in his biography that "I was made in Korea by my loving parents Hwang il Choi and Kab Duk Choi but later was born in Washington, D.C." When he...

  • Ken Ohara
  • Lianne Lin
  • Andrew Suleiman
  • Mike Wilson
  • Darian Vorlick (Matrix Online and Animal Planet)


External links

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