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Fifth Annual Stunt Festival Set to Start

You've seen scores of action flicks and probably never given much thought to what goes into producing them. But the organizers of the Fifth Annual Moscow Festival of Stunt Art want to change that. The festival -- which begins Thursday and runs to May 26 at the Krylatskoye Sports Complex -- aims to show just how special stuntmen really are.

In five years, the festival has grown from an event featuring just a few local stuntmen to an internationally recognized extravaganza that draws stuntmen from all over the world. This year's festival will consist of three main components: a stunt show program, a film festival and an exhibition of commonly used stunt equipment.

The stunt show, the festival's biggest draw, will include flaming skydiving, motorcycle ramp jumping and equestrian and aquatic stunts.

Of course, the world of stunt doubles is not all excitement and world records. It's a dangerous -- and sometimes deadly -- business. Russian actor and director Andrei Rostotsky, well-known for always performing his own stunts in the over 40 films he made, died on May 5 in Sochi when he fell from a cliff while shooting his latest film. While festival organizers say they plan no formal memorial to Rostotsky, he will likely be on the minds of many.

And what's an action film without a soundtrack? In addition to plenty of daredevilry, the festival will feature daily live rock performances. Featured artists include B-2, Tantsy Minus and Mikhei i Dzhumandzhi. A show by festival headliners Muse closes the festival on May 26.

The Krylatskoye Sports Complex is located at 10 Krylatskaya Ulitsa. Metro Molodyozhnaya. To order tickets (note that tickets are sold individually for each day and range in price from 250 to 300 rubles), call 200-6585. See this week's events calendar for a full schedule of festival concerts.

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