Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nancy Cantine. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Nancy, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Looking back on your career, have you ever worked with a great leader or boss? We’d love to hear about the experience and what you think made them such a great leader.
Kevin Cusick is the best boss I ever had before stunts. He was a friend that I met through acting class in New York City, but Kevin had worked as an ESPN2 anchor for years, announcing at hockey and tennis matches. He knew I was training hard core and was passionate about breaking into the stunt industry. Unprompted and unasked, Kevin took me on as a PA for the ISKA Championships in Orlando, Florida to help with the live broadcast on ESPN2–but mostly he introduced me around to stunt folks who were competing in the tournament and co-anchoring with him.
Anyone could have run printer errands and collected catering orders, but Kevin trusted me to have his back and knew that I would get more out of that experience than anyone else he knew. I schmoozed the schmooze, I met the sponsors, I ran laps with a company card around McDisney World. That gig gave me a lot–a solid paycheck, the opportunity to network, and many new experiences and a couple of friends who I’m still in touch with.
Kevin Cusick’s creative hiring process taught me that when I have opportunities to give, whether it’s hiring a stunt performer, staffing a stage combat workshop, or selecting only a few of my favorite fire safeties for a job, to look for the people who are going to be able to take it and run the farthest with it.
It probably took me another year and a half to get my SAG-Aftra stunt performer status on Trick!, directed by Patrick Lussier with stunts coordinated by Corey Pierno. I can’t say that working for Kevin was a direct path into stunts, but it provided amazing context for producing live TV. All of that education and awareness building is cumulative. I will never forget the kindness of him acknowledging my talent and professionalism, and offering the bridge he had to offer. Especially before you’ve “made it,” the votes of confidence from people you respect really do mean the world.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I’m your friendly neighborhood multi-hyphenate–a stunt performer, fire rigger, director, producer, and occasional actor. My company iGnarly Entertainment mostly provides fire rigging services, picture cars, and stunt coordinator services for film and TV. My specialty and reputation is built on fire, both performing, rigging, and safetying fire stunts. I’m known for the brutal aesthetic of my burns, as well as not “hooding” my burns. I want the viewer to have to confront the violence of a burn while witnessing the spectacle of watching a real person safely set on fire. Especially as CGI and AI replace real performers in any high octane stunt that an insurance company doesn’t want to risk a payout on, it’s important we keep humans front and center, giving the performances AI and machine learning hasn’t caught up to yet.
Another bonus of having performers’ faces visible: I’ve never had to push a production not to “wig” or “paint-down” a stunt double when casting a stunt double for a burn. The aesthetic they’ve hired me for having actually just demands appropriate casting. It’s a great jumping off point. It’s hugely important to cast stunts racially and gender appropriately. Oftentimes those on the receiving end of violence in life and on film are portraying marginalized groups and miscasting those roles is added erasure. It’s not only a loss of authenticity, but this kind of miscasting positions a production to profit off of violence to a marginalized community without paying back to a singular individual from that community. As a little blonde stuntwoman 80% of my on screen work is portraying a victimized woman in some way. Maybe 10% of the time you’re the bad ass. Maybe 10% of the time you’re being saved or being carried out of a burning building. The common stories that are told so often brutalize the same types of people in the same exact ways. As soon as I walk on set and see a pregnancy bump in wardrobe, I know I’m going down the stairs or doing something really gnarly. I’m not the writer, I’m not there to change the story. It’s my job to try to honor the violence, giving it the weight and drama it needs, hopefully in a way that inspires people to start changing the story out in the world.
Upcoming Offerings!
Born Great
Born Great by Ben DeViller – Official Music Video
Just released, this music video for Ben Deviller features Brynn M. Knickle and was directed by myself. They were amazing to work with and were on board for all the Monty Python visual jokes.
Dallas Fire Workshop – April 6-8, 2024
If anyone is inspired to dip their toe into fire stunts, I’m teaching this workshop in Dallas April 6-7, 2024. I’ve got fire team members coming in from NY and LA, and we’re going to have an amazing time teaching safety and performance. All students will get a reel of them on fire. Please email [email protected] to inquire about securing a spot.
New York Summer Sling- midAugust, 2024
https://www.summerslingnyc.com
This coming summer, Mike Magliocca and I are coordinating Summer Sling, a very established stunt and stage combat workshop. We bring in stunt performers, action designers, Broadway fight directors for masterclasses at every experience level. There is also an application-only choreographer’s intensive that was, quite frankly, life changing when I first took it.
Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
Ab-so-fugg-in-lutely. Lots of people will try to sell you something on your way to your dream. These spaces may bring value–community, classes, structure, etc.–but if you feel like you are treading water for a few years, you probably are. Sometimes coaches don’t have the keys to the proverbial castle. They’re maybe just a barkeep in the village outside the castle. There are “free-mium” resources, like Google and IMDB, where you can quickly look at the level of someone’s work, the roles they played in production, etc. StuntListing.com is another “free-mium” resource, which allows you to both market yourself as a stunt performer and also look into some else’s credits and abilities.
Pay for training, pay for coaching, pay for good quality gear. Invest in opportunities, but don’t pay for advice from people who don’t have the results you want. Continuing to move forward requires laser focus and a willingness to move.
For stunts specifically? Currently? I feel the best coaching currently available for stunt performers and folks trying to get into the stunt industry is available at https://www.atlasaction.com with Brad Martin, who is a very real deal dude.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
My byline on my website is “art as entertainment” that’s probably as close to a thesis statement as I’ve got.
But honestly, my passion is still unfolding. I felt a lot of purpose as a ballet dancer, and that joy transformed into a broader joy when I found music videos. Music videos lead me to film, which lead me to acting, which lead me to stunts, which lead me to martial arts, which lead me to playing with swords, which led me to historical European martial arts. I can’t be copied because I’m always innovating and I’m always onto the next thing. There are absolutely moments of feeling satiated when I see a project of mine be executed and postpartum depression after wrapping a set (the good ones anyways). I never know exactly what I’ll be doing, but I know I’ll be working in entertainment.
Not knowing what comes next, not having the next project on deck is actually an incredibly fertile place to be as an artist. When finances are okay and you have a few months of savings and you can stay out of fear based lizard brain, there’s a massive opportunity in an open schedule with no negotiated commitments. What better place for creativity than a blank canvas with the most valuable asset: time.
Contact Info:
- Website: nancycantine.com
- Instagram: @nancyclairecantine
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancycantine/