Blog Archives

Jun 07 2014

Philippines Parkour with a Storyline: Rush Hour

There are plenty of Parkour videos on YouTube and other video sites, but rarely do you find one with an actual storyline! This video features some pretty cool parkour moves and an amusing story about a kid who uses his free-running skills to get to class on time and beat rush hour traffic. The video is well shot, with scenes in traffic and more suburban and rural locations. Also, it features a sound track that really compliments the moves of the featured free-runner, Jhonny Ramos. The video was shot in San Pablo, Philippines and uploaded to YouTube in high definition by the Philippine Parkour FreeRunning Association.

+ Who

The video was made by the Philippine Parkour FreeRunning Association, and features Jhonny Ramos. The PPFA is a non-profit organization that promotes Parkour and FreeRunning Philippines. The group was started by the Philippine free-runners, and in March of 2009, the PPFA was established. It was made up of the Philippine FreeRunners, Parkour Pampagna (now the Pampanga FreeRunners) and the Tacloban FreeRunners. They established a website (parkour.ph) to spread their love of parkour and free-running and have uploaded more than 50 videos to their YouTube channel. They also have an active presence on other social media sites. There are now 13 teams affiliated with the organization, and 20 featured runners.

+ Where

This video was made in San Pablo, a city in the Laguna province in the Philippines. It is on of the oldest cities in the country and has a population just shy of 250,000 people. The city is known as the City of the Seven Lakes and is nestled in the foothills of three mountains. The Philippines (officially known as the Republic of the Philippines) is an island nation in Southeast Asia. It is made up of 7,107 islands.

+ What

The video begins with shots of gridlocked traffic, and Jhonny sitting in the back of a taxi. He hope out (0:17) and begins his run down the crowded sidewalks, as the the traffic continues to flow. He cuts through a forested park (0:25) and the runs along a street, hurdling an obstacle (a person) at (0:32). He takes on some decorative steppes in the park at (0:35) and hurdles a small stream at (0:40). Shortly after, he leaps the stump of a giant tree. He runs along the street again and leaps off the roof of a one story building at (0:50). He hops through an opening in a mural at (0:52) and cuts across a field towards some benches, which he leaps and then crosses a road. He climbs a brick retaining wall at (1:02) and then does an impressive flip. Then it’s back to a more forested area, leaping over huge tree roots (1:07) until he gets to campus. He flips over the parking lot barrier (1:10) and is then running down the hall to class. He hops down the stairs and flips over his teacher (1:25), who has helpfully dropped his papers. He high-fives a classmate at (1:35) and then credits roll along with behind the scenes and practice footage.

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Feb 12 2014

How to undress in style

Professional gymnast, coach, forerunner and stunt-man Damien Walters shows off a wide variety of skills in this amazing compilation from 2011. Leaps from buildings, trampoline, parkour moves, tumbling routines, high dives, and death-defying stunts like leaping over moving cars are mixed with fun, creative tricks like a tumbling routine that works him right out of his clothes. Damien has a gift for showmanship and ingenuity to match his athletic skills. He shows off in gyms, abandoned buildings, the pool and his own home in this beautiful high definition video. Music is “Follow U” by Yogi ft. Ayah Marar (Xilent Remix).

+ Who

Damien Walters is a British former gymnast who specializes in tumbling and trampoline, and participated in four Trampoline World Championships. He has focused on his career as a stuntman since 2007, performing in films like Hellboy II, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, The Eagle, I Am Number Four, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, Captain America, and Kick-Ass. He won an award for “Best Fight” at the Taurus World Stunt Awards in 2010 for the film Ninja Assassin. He is also a freerunner and has one of the most-watched youtube channels, with over 80 million views. Currently Damien runs Derby City Gymnastics Club in Derby, England.

+ Where

This video is a compilation of a lot of tricks in different locations: a jump from a building, trampoline work in a gym, parker in a parking garage and on a city street, tumbling in a park, gymnastics in a gym, inside of a truck, his own bedroom and living room, a pool, a street, the woods and an abandoned building.

+ What

After an intro with his personal logo, Damien appears at (0:20) and starts the video off with a bang by doing a stunt-jump off of a building. At (0:27) we see Damien doing trampoline flips in a gym. At (0:30) we get a taste of parkour in a couple of city locations, and then at (0:35) we begin a mix of freerunning and tumbling in the gym, the park and city streets. He takes on two big wooden cylinders at (0:50), leaping one and then ducking the second. He leaps a car at (0:52) and leaps through a moving truck at (0:57). Tumbling and freerunning return at (1:00) in the gym and the city. Damien does some creative gymnastics in his home at (1:04) and then at (1:10) leaps a moving car from the top of a ladder. At (1:16) he grabs onto a moving workcart and zooms away. At (1:21) Damien returns to tumbling in the gym and then at (1:24) he heads to the high dive for some impressive pool work. At (1:27) he takes parkour to an abandoned building and then back to a park. He does a stunt where he leaps out of a car at (1:37). Trampoline, tumbling and diving follow in quick succession. At (1:56) he does a tumbling routine on the trampoline while removing his hat, shirt and pants. The video finishes up with more tumbling outdoors in the park and city, in an abandoned building and inside the gym, showing off Damien’s impressive skills. Credits roll at (2:26).

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Dec 05 2013

Parkour video compilation of 2013

Parkour has been quickly gaining popularity in the past few years and this video is great example as to why. It can be hard to get a grasp on the concept of parkour when it is explained in words.  This video shows what all the fuss is about. Parkour is more than jumping and stunts, it is an art form. Art such as parkour is not meant to be described or heard, but seen and lived. This video shows what parkour really is and why people do it. 

+ Who

This video is compiled by MonthlyWinner (a channel on YouTube) and contains multiple freerunners’ stunts. The stars of the video that wanted their names(or aliases) known are as follows: In Motion, Cherepko, MegaMatrixs, sonicvova, DragonFireTeamLive, and AlexandeR RusinoV. Many of these users are simply interested in parkour and have multiple posts about them. For the others it seems to be a smaller interest of theirs. Their YouTube libraries contain a large amount of other parkour and stunt videos similar to those shown in this video. While some of the people in the video are from America, others are from France and Russia which shows the international popularity of the sport. While many users prefer not to have their names disclosed, they do have many of their stunts available under their aliases shown above.


+ Where

The video takes place in multiple undisclosed locations. The users come from America, France, and Russia as well as other countries of origin. The nature of parkour calls for city areas as well as other stunt friendly locations and that is exactly what the video shows. There are no famous landmarks or recognizable location that can be used to decipher precise location, but actor locations can be found on their YouTube channels. It can then be assumed that the videos likely took place in their countries of origin. Terrain also includes construction areas, malls, residential areas, parks, and several parkour training centers.


+ What

The video shows a compilation of parkour tricks from different people on multiple terrains. These tricks show many common moves as well as some that are seen as far more risky and are rarely performed by casual freerunners. Many of the stunts include jumping from high heights and landing flawlessly as well as standard freerunning techniques. There are multiple people doing the tricks in the video and all of them perform many styles of parkour. In contrast to most parkour videos, this video gives a good focus in cooperative parkour moves in combination with solo stunts. The video is a focused compilation of only parkour and is targeted primarily at parkour fans.


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