The popular Fear Factor reality series has managed to ensure the safety of participants while keeping stunts dangerously exciting.
Recently, Endemol India was contracted to produce a third Fear Factor season that would outshine all previous series. The Stunt Company from South Africa was assigned to supply all of the rigging, mechanising, truss motorising and stunt solutions, as has been the case with many of the other Fear Factor series, including the South African versions. The latest season was due to take the team and their expertise to Rio de Janeiro on an almost impossible schedule due to many delays.
Gideon van Schoor and Craig Ginsberg of The Stunt Company were aware that the budget, skills and truss systems available in Brazil were not up to standard and they would have to find another solution. The products available in Brazil were too heavy for the distances that needed to be accommodated and thus The Stunt Company turned to long-term supplier, T&A Lighting for a solution.
On evaluation of the situation they came to the conclusion that they would build all the rigs in South Africa and ship them across to Brazil, reducing costs while ensuring that the team had access to exactly what they needed. The obvious choice was Prolyte H30v, a safety-tested aluminium product which had proved its mettle in a number of previous Fear Factor seasons.
The team was tasked with constructing a balancing beam between two trucks over which contestants would ride a bicycle, a giant ferris wheel for contestants to run on, a seesaw over a long fall, a sky-high pole hopper, cable stand and more. Prolyte H30v is ideal for this type of application since it can span long distances without support. It is a very lightweight material which makes it easy to erect in challenging areas, giving The Stunt Company the ability to construct strip rigs exceptionally quickly to meet the tight deadline.
With contestants’ lives on the line it was vital that the rigs made it to set without their integrity being compromised. Van Schoor and Ginsberg literally built the truss into the Brazil-bound container to be certain that it arrived safely. Upon its arrival on site, The Stunt Company got to work immediately, knowing that any challenges would have to be overcome without compromising the deadline.
Despite the challenges and risks involved, Prolyte H30v can handle the most demanding applications. Prolyte, based in Holland, has been manufacturing alluminuim trussing and staging for close to 20 years.
