www.taittowers.com: Inspired by his childhood dream of flying and his aspirations to do a beautiful stunt for his daughter, David Blaine partnered with a team of subject matter experts including Skydiving Expert, Luke Aikins, Meteorologist, Don Day, Balloon Aviation Expert, Burt Padelt, Aerospace Engineer, Art Thompson, Production Company, Done+Dusted, and Performer Flying Experts from TAIT, to stun YouTube’s live-streaming audience with his most ambitious stunt yet – Ascension.
7 comments:
While I still have flashbacks to the days of watching the Mythbusters pull nearly this same stunt, it doesn't take away from how awesome it is to see this stunt during the covid pandemic. Even more so, it is a privilege getting to learn from Jim in our 'Automated Performer Flying' class, something we wouldn't have had the chance to take otherwise. The regulatory hurdles alone were probably just as challenging as the technical design, knowing the FAA and their process. And then, of course, creating a safe and reliable way to perform the stunt from start to finish, including the quick release, needs to be solved. As an aside, I do appropriate that they included devices to track down the remainder of the balloons to lessen the environmental impact (green theatre anybody?). Finally, the use of a video game rendering engine to create the models is the way of the future. I've talked with people at Tait and other engineering firms, and most agree that even the highest-end CAD packages don't hold a candle to what video game developers have accomplished. Hope to see it become more accessible to us in the future!
This stunt is a childhood dream come to life. Knowing that TAIT was able to team up with subject matter experts to achieve such an incredible stunt reaffirms my desire to work in this field and do crazy cool stuff! I find it exciting that throughout the process, everyone on the team was committed to safety. As the CCO stated, "A top priority for the Ascension stunt was to ensure the health and safety of our crew by having CDC guidelines and social distancing practices in place. Strictly following these protocols while delivering a cutting-edge flying performance for David Blaine gave us a promising feeling for the future of the entertainment industry." Not only did they want to prevent Blaine from dying, they also put in practices to protect workers. I also really appreciate the attention to the environmental impact of the stunt: The entire rig was designed to be recycled back into raw materials such that it wouldn't cause more harm.
I must agree with Elliot here; in getting to have a class with Jim Shumway, I can definitely say I enjoyed this video/stunt much more than I normally might. Having seen it on my own without any knowledge of who was on the team to create this, etc. I would normally be very concerned about this stunt. I would reassure myself with the fact that I know they are going to try and do this with extreme safety in mind, but having Jim be on the team and someone I have talked to… I had no concerns at all. I simply enjoyed the stunt, relaxed. The video also does a good job of explaining everything and walking you through the actual concerns and steps of creating this stunt, that it brings another level to it. This article also provides a great summary of the stunt as well. While I am not a big fan of this stunt as a whole and will keep my own reserves on it, it has a nice feel to it that is probably caused by the world being in a pandemic. This was an appropriate stunt to lift us up.
I grew up being fascinated by magicians and David Blaine became a name known in my household especially after Jim Carrey parodied him in the 2010 film: The Incredible Burt Wonderstone. Originally I had seen a snippet of his balloon ascension on popular influencer David Dobrik’s Instagram story and was amazed by it. It is no surprise to me that he spoke with a Skydiving Expert, a Balloon Aviation Expert, a Meteorologist, an Aerospace Engineer, and Performer Flying Experts before attempting a trick like this because I remember watching a clip from his YouTube show Real Or Magic a few years back where he consulted a doctor before putting an ice pick through his hand. I think it is really interesting how David Blaine does real stunts and pawns it off as being magical whereas most magicians try and trick people into believing magic. I am really interested to see not only what Blaine does next, but also how the entertainment industry will shift as a result of this stunt.
I have to agree with Elliot when he felt the nostalgia of watching Mybusters attempt a similar stunt years ago. I think David Blaine’s desire to go through with this stunt even amid the global pandemic was perhaps even more impactful than he originally intended. Personally, this stunt reminds me of the movie Up, a movie centered around the sense of adventure. COVID-19 has really killed my ambition for adventure so getting to see these stunts still being pulled off is incredibly reassuring and inspiring. As for the technology that TAIT Towers was able to pack into a cluster of balloons is really incredible. I never even thought about the fact that balloons may need to be purposefully popped for consistent flight. Finally, it is always cool to be able to read a story like this and know that I am getting to be taught by one of the minds that were able to help pull this stunt off.
As soon as Jim mentioned this project, my immediate thought was about the environment. They were releasing enough helium filled balloons to lift an adult into the sky...and then what? I was so glad to read down into the article and find out that they planned and executed recovery of all the materials. The second thought I had was...how did they do it? I am curious about the attachment points, and I would like to know more about the hardware and rigging involved. An obvious point of concern is the attachment point between the performer and the rig: not only did he need to fly securely up very high into the sky, but he also needed to be able to detach and drop. There may have also been a custom harness involved, since the integration of a parachute and performer flying rig may not have been totally seamless.
This is such a fun and whimsical trick performed by Blaine. I am amazed at the scientific research that goes into this stunt and all amidst this pandemic. Seeing him float above the canyons evokes images of a sort of human air balloon. I find illusionists very entertaining and what David has done here is reveal some of the curtain and show his audience the process of what it takes to pull something off like that. I think a mom somewhere on facebook probably smiled after they saw this and I’m glad he is using his platform to bring us an escape and some fun through his ideas. I wonder if it felt like being up there floating over the landscape. I think most of us think of Up when they see something flying by balloon but it is also a plot point in Rob Marshall’s Mary Poppins Returns starring Emily Blunt.
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