Wrestling

[r4z2]

Alright, now I haven't watched WWF in years, I realized it was all fake and it lost my interest. Recently, I was browsing YouTube for random videos, when I saw this;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gu-FJ23KdrU&

Apparently the most recent world heavyweight championship. And as I saw it, I realized how well done it is, how could the wrestlers survive those falls and be in enough of a fit state to get back up again and dramatically try to kill the opponent?

I just don't get it, is it fake ladders, tables and chairs that soften the fall, or are the wrestlers just extremely resistant to pain?

Can someone please explain to me how this works?

Thanks,

r4z2

[Fisherking]

On the last film I worked on, From Parts Unknown, we had professional wrestlers working as consultants (wrestling is a large part of the plot). As the SFX guy, I wasn't there for most of the training, but as far as I can tell, the wrestlers are trained to fall properly and the surface of the ring is fairly deformable.

Sorry, that's about the extent of my knowledge.

[UndergroundLairProductions]

To be fair, wrestling isn't so much 'fake' as it is 'choreographed'.
Fisherking is right about the ring being fairly deformable, as I've been in one (a friend of mine owns a small wrestling promotion here in Des Moines). As for the tables, the tables are thick enough to support the weight of a person, but thin enough to break on any sort of impact. The ladders are real ladders, as they work, but are made from a very light-weight material. The wrestlers themselves have had extensive training in how to fall. Essentially, they're 'glorified stuntmen'.
But make no mistake, those guys do take a beating. The Untertaker is currently on hiatus from the WWE due to some nagging injuries from Wrestlemania a few months ago, which is why they're pulling the whole "Undertaker banned from WWE" thing, but he is slated to return in late July.

[r4z2]

Cheers guys =) Appreciate the info

[UndergroundLairProductions]

Cheers guys =) Appreciate the info
No problem, happy to be of service.