Tracers is an upcoming action-thriller unlike any other featuring parkour. Shot in New York City, the production cast minor roles to NYPK members and the local community. The film depicts Taylor Lautner as a bike messenger named Cam trying to pay off a debt. During one of his runs, he comes across an attractive stranger named Nikki, played by Marie Avgerpoulos. Nikki introduces Cam to parkour and more intently lures him into an organized crime gang. Scenes of violence led to the initial “R” rating. The Classification and Rating Appeals Board soon overturned the decision to “PG-13”.
Lautner expressed to MTV news that Tracers challenged his abilities as an athletic performer. He stated, “The action difficulty is through the roof. Some people think that parkour is just running and jumping off walls and buildings or something but it’s…they take it very seriously. If a parkour artist heard you say that they’d be very offended. It is an art form to them, so it required a lot”.
In contrast to a production, parkour needs no equipment. However, in comparison, it fully contextualizes the artist with the environment - or script. Spatial perception is key to the cameraman as well as the traceur. The seamless reel is the synergistic result of physical labor and technical skills. Check out the final take of the film and share your input on the cinematic parkour movement. If the plot doesn’t move you, the moves will.
