Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Naomi Chaffee. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Naomi, thanks for joining us today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.
Stunts is a wild ride. There’s no “school” for stunts, and that’s why it can be hard to break into the industry. It’s all about who you know. When it comes to learning how to do stunts, a lot of folks take martial arts, gymnastics, or just train with stunt people. Once you begin to train with other stunt people, you learn what makes stunt fighting looks good compared to real fighting. Stunts is an exaggeration of the physical, so it’s hard to imagine why people thinking throwing real punches would look better on camera than trained stunt professionals who know how to use their bodies to appeal to cinema.
I could have sped up my learning progress by moving to a big market sooner than I did. Did I learn a lot where I was? Absolutely. I felt like the time I was there was how much I needed in order to move down to Atlanta confidently. There’s still so much I need to learn, and that’s one of the most fun things about stunts. You can take a same sword class from two different people but look at the differences in teachers and what is being taught. I think the most essential skill in stunts is footwork. If your footwork is bad, everything else will look bad. From hand to hand fighting, weapons, being hit by a car, etc. if you aren’t fully in control of your body and don’t recognize every precise movement, it will look worse than it could have looked. Once you nail the basics, then you can move onto the harder, cooler things.
The obstacles that stood in my way of learning was simply not being in the market I needed to be. I loved Kansas City, but at a certain point, I just plateaued. I wasn’t getting what I needed, so I had to move to where the industry was. I have so much more resources down here that the learning supply is endless. The industry obviously down here is super competitive, I have to hustle a lot more, but that’s all a part of making my dream a livable career. If you feel like you’re on the top, that’s a sign to move markets.
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?
Hey all, my name is Naomi Chaffee. I got an introductory to “violence” back in 2020 doing a production of She Kills Monsters at Bismarck State College under the director of Danny Devil and technical director Dean Bellin. I didn’t know combat was a legit path of work regarding stage and film. That show taught me that I have control of my body, I don’t need to be afraid to use my body, and that combat is an art. After that, I went to Greece and performed the Trojan Women under the director of Nathan Bowman, and he taught us a style of acting called Suzuki. It was basically a series of exercises that kept us in the moment, taught us how to stay intense, and kept us in shape haha. By doing that, I unlocked a new sense of body control. After I got back, I began taking martial arts- the ultimate form of body control. It was liberating taking a few different styles of martial arts because I had no idea that I could do any of that. If a tall, lanky, and clumsy girl can gain body control, than anyone can.
I’ve been doing stunts for about two and a half years, but I am most proud of doubling on the HBO show, The Righteous Gemstones. I had been on sets many times before but never at that scale. To know “I did it!” and to get a stunt job because of my skill and word of mouth overjoyed me. I was doing something right. I was lucky though, I’m tall and there’s not a lot of tall stuntwomen out there. I am proud of getting this far and to much more growth in the future.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
When I decided I wanted to do film, there’s always been a mission on my heart. Be the bright light in the room. I’ve been told by multiple people that they think I’m a bright light on sets, and to be able to affect the mood of the crew, cast, etc. in a positive way only means that they product will turn out the best it can be. When people are on set and complaining, angry, etc. that makes everyone stressed. I want to people someone people can lean on and talk too when they need it, especially because of how intense the film industry can be. Besides that, my film friends were the ones there for me, and if I can do anything to help them out, that is another goal of mine.
Lastly, I am going to become an entertainment law lawyer. Many people get screwed over by production because they don’t know their contracts. If I can help film become a fair ground, I think more people would feel comfortable and safe on sets. Besides that, it also helps me as a producer to know my rights. It’s important that everyone is treated fairly and feels safe in a film environment.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding aspect of this is making cool stuff with cool people. I am blessed I have the friends down here that I do that genuinely want me to succeed, and I want the same for them. Being on set with friends is so much fun because you’re experiencing doing something you both love together, and that’s special.
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