Feb. 21, 2011
It was an ordinary afternoon, just outside Vancouver, Canada, when former UIC gymnast Atlin Mitchell got the call. A local stunt coordinator was in need of an acrobatic specialist for a film he was working on and knew of Mitchell and that she was in the area. The film was titled New Moon, the second movie in the Twilight Saga film series. During the call, he asked if she could be on set within the hour to film a stunt scene. Knowing that this could be her big break, Mitchell assured him that she would be there and began the one-hour drag race to the set.
"Had I not been able to make it that day, I would have never gotten the job," said Mitchell.
A native of South Surrey, B.C., a town just south of Vancouver and just north of the United States border, Mitchell began training as a gymnast at age 9.
"My mother (Arlene Mitchell) wanted me to be a dancer, but she only had enough money for one or the other," said Mitchell. "So the whole time I was in gymnastics she actually wanted me to dance."
"I have a masters in classical ballet," said Arlene Mitchell. "I enjoyed it a lot, but I can certainly see why other people don't want to dance around on pointed shoes."
At age 11, Mitchell tried out for the Junior Canadian National Team and made the final cut of 16. She was the youngest person ever to qualify for the squad. After that her list of accolades began piling up, including several top finishes on the national level.
Just as soon as her career looked to be with out limits, Mitchell suffered a serious knee injury her junior year of high school, producing doubt that she would ever compete again.
"I was just hoping she could learn to walk without a limp," said Arlene Mitchell. "At the time I didn't care if she ever went back to gymnastics."
Once Mitchell underwent surgery and completed rehab she was back to training. Several universities in the U.S.A. expressed interest in her and offered athletic scholarships. In the end, Mitchell chose the University of Illinois at Chicago.
"I really didn't know anything about the University," admitted Mitchell. "I was just a kid in high school that did gymnastics."
It wasn't long into her freshman season that Mitchell tore her ACL on the same knee she injured in high school. As tragic as the event seemed, Head Coach Peter Jansson had a different take.
"Her injury was really a blessing in disguise," said Jansson. "The first surgery she had wasn't able to fully stabilize the knee, but the surgery she had at UIC combined with the proper rehab gave her the stability she needed."
During her sophomore season, Mitchell really began to improve her gymnastics and form into a high-level collegiate athlete. She was scoring high marks in all of her events and quickly became a team leader.
"I remember the conference meet that season and Atlin was battling with severe back pain, said Jansson. "She was able to endure through the entire meet and zone out any pain she was having. She was such a tough kid."
Mitchell would go on to finish her career at UIC by matching the school's vault record, guiding her squad to two NCAA Regional competitions and even being named a two-time NACG/W Academic All-American.
"Atlin became really good at balancing college life during her junior and senior years," said Jansson. "After her freshman season, I would have never of predicted she would go on to accomplish all she has."
With a degree in Criminal Justice and a minor in Psychology, Mitchell returned home and began working in the restaurant where she spent her summers.
"I really didn't have any plans out of school," said Mitchell. "I had no idea what I was going to do."
After a few months of being home, Mitchell received a call from Cirque du Soleil, a world-renowned circus company, in response to a demo tape she had submitted. It turns out that the group was looking for talented athletes for their acrobatic-based Saltimbanco show and Mitchell fit the bill.
"Atlin always had the qualities one needs when it comes to performance, said Jansson. "She is very flexible and strong and has beautiful bodylines. Performing is a perfect fit for her."
She spent the next three months training in Montréal, and in October 2004 she joined up with the tour in Rome, specializing in Bungee, Russian swing and Chinese pole acts.
"I know a lot of my friends, especially right out of college wanted to do as much traveling as they could, but had to save up for a year," said Mitchell. "As for me, I was able to make money in a job and be able to travel."
Mitchell spent a total of five years working with Cirque du Soleil, performing on various tours in dozens of cities around the world. Her talents even brought her to the 2007 Super Bowl in Miami, Fla. as Cirque du Soleil performed during pregame.
"There is so much from Cirque that has helped me in my career and at the time I didn't really think of it," said Mitchell. "It really gave me a high level of professionalism, but when it was done I was real eager to go home and try to get into stunts."
And for an aspiring stunt actor, back home was the perfect place to be. Vancouver's third largest industry is film with total spending over one billion dollars per year. Major tax incentives are given to the production companies in B.C., which is the primary reason that Vancouver, aka Hollywood North, is the third largest foreign-film and production center in North America.
Back home, in October of 2009, she began training in Kickboxing, Thai, Tae Kwon Doe, Kali, Weaponry and many other disciplines one needs to work in stunts.
"Every year I try to learn more skills to try and make myself more of a rounded person," said Mitchell. "I actually still train in gymnastics sometimes."
Today, Mitchell lives Strathcona, a small neighborhood of Vancouver, where her and her brother share a house. There are over 400 stunt performers in the area, but less than one-quarter find full-time work.
"I've thought about getting a part-time job because I actually have so much free time," said Mitchell. "But I was recently told by a friend, who is quite successful in the industry, that I'm doing well enough to focus all of my energy on stunts."
Mitchell's hard work and dedication is beginning to pay off as her list of credits now include New Moon and Eclipse, from the Twilight Saga series, The A-Team, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief and hit TV shows Fringe, Hellcats, Psych and Smallville.
"I really hope this is what I do forever," said Mitchell. "I really enjoy it. Hopefully long-term I'll be able to go toward the coordinating side, which is what everyone wants to do because at some point you don't want to thrash your body anymore. You would rather have the experience to be the one coordinating performers."
Mitchell would be the first to admit that her first gig working on New Moon was mostly luck. Another stunt performer had already been chosen for that part but decided to work on another project. It just so happened that Mitchell was in the right place at the right time.
But luck can only take you so far. Luck might get your foot in the door, but the responsibility to walk inside rests solely on the individual. In Mitchell's case, she has clearly done more than simply receive a lucky phone call, she has answered that call.
