Jeff Mulvin
- Stunts
- Actor
- Additional Crew
Jeff Mulvin was born in Santa Monica, California, and grew up in the
beach community of Venice. His interest in a film career started in
1973 after watching Bruce Lee's
Enter the Dragon (1973) ,
deciding right then he wanted to perform martial arts fight scenes on
film. He started by mimicking Lee's punching and kicking moves in front
of all his less than slightly amused friends, but at the same time
realizing he actually needed some realistic training to actually defend
himself, and become a legitimate fighter. He started his Stunt/Acting
career in 1980 portraying a prison guard in the martial art's movie
"Force Five". Trained by Legendary World Kickboxing Champion and Stunt
Coordinator 'Benny "The Jet' Urquidez'. He worked for the next ten
years in various acting and stunt roles, while making his way up as a
Boxing-Martial Arts Technical Advisor for prime time television and
feature films. He became a member of
'The Jet's" first professional "Jetaway" Stunt Team in 1988, and in 1990 While working as an assistant to Stunt Coordinator Jimmy Nickerson
_Raging Bull_(1980)_, he received his break to become eligible to join The Screen Actors Guild and portray a corner-man for the movie Kickboxer 2: The Road Back (1991),
due to his special ability as a real professional kick-boxing trainer
and corner-man. The Jet's stunt team received their big Hollywood break
with a stand out performance in Tim Burton's 1992 Movie
Batman Returns (1992). The 10
member team played the Penguin's elite martial art's "Red Triangle
Circus Gang" for the film's big fight finale vs. Batman
Michael Keaton. In 1996 He was taken
under Urquidez' wing as an Assistant Fight-Stunt Coordinator in the
Movie Sequel
The Crow: City of Angels (1996),
where his first task was helping Urquidez train the star of the film
for yet another big finale fight scene. His final test to become a full
fledged stunt coordinator came in 1999, when he was hired as fight
trainer on the ALMA Award winning Jimmy Smits boxing movie
Price of Glory (2000). He alone
with Urquidez, trained, choreographed ,and staged the fight scenes for
14 actors ranging from age 7 through adult. In 2000 he again teamed up
with Urquidez to train and stage the fights for the Fox T.V.'s Muhammad
Ali Biography Movie ,
Ali: An American Hero (2000),
and in Urquidez' latest "Defense Tactics" video series, and the online
kick-boxing instructional courses for the Benny The Jet.Com website. He
has worked on daytime T.V. as fight and stunt coordinator on the Soap
Operas
The Young and the Restless (1973)
and General Hospital (1963),
and acted in multiple episodes on several reality shows, a national
commercial for Panasonic , and Modeled For Harley Davidson's
International Clothing Catalog.He recently teamed up with Martial Arts
History Hall of Fame Stunt Coordinator/Author
John Kreng (Fight Choreography: The Art of
Non-Verbal Dialogue) on the Film Festival Award Winning Student Boxing
Film, "The Haymaker" (2010)_.His Martial Arts career began in 1973 at
the age of 14 studying Tae Kwon Do at Marina Del Rey Karate under
Master Ki Chung Han, then after reading about his future mentor in
karate magazines for several years, and deciding that Benny Urquidez &
Family's approach to training was as realistic as it could get! Through
a strange twist of fate, he was finally introduced to Benny Urquidez
and joined the Urquidez Brothers Gym at the North Valley YMCA in 1979.
There he studied, Hawaiian Kenpo, Shotokan, Judo, Aikido, Ju-Jitsu,
Boxing, Kickboxing, Muay Thai, and White Krane Kung-Fu, which was the
beginning Evolution of Benny The Jet's Ukidokan Martial Art's System.
He had an amateur kick-boxing career starting in 1980 where he beat the
Thai National Kickboxing Featherweight Champion in his first fight,
after only 8 months of joining The Urquidez Gym,(This after watching
Muay Thai on television and telling friends that "Not in a million
years would he ever get me into the ring to fight guy's like that"). In
1981 he Joined the AAU National Kickboxing Team, Ranking as the #1
Featherweight, and winning 5 weight division California State
Championships ,including medals in international competition. Due to
the Presidential Boycott of the Summer Olympic Games, he and his USA
Teamates missed their opportunity to represent their country and
compete in Kickboxing for the first time as a demonstration sport, so
he competed for the next four years as an amateur in hopes of
qualifying for the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, but Tae
Kwon Do got the spot that year, and he turned Professional in 1985 , at
the same time working as assistant trainer to Benny's brother Ruben
while rising in the ranks to compete against the top contenders in the
Professional Ranks.In 1987 became the WKA #1 British Commonwealth
Welterweight Contender, and was even offered a shot at the WKA World
Middleweight Championship. In 1988 he decided to pursue his coaching
career full time, and apprenticed for 2 more years before being
promoted to General Manager and Head Trainer at the World Famous "Jet
Center" Martial Art's Gym , working until the gym changed location in
1994.He went on to become Floor Manager and continue training fighters
and teaching at "The Jet's Gym through 2007.He has trained and cornered
some of the most legendary World Kickboxing Champions of the era,
including his mentor Benny "The Jet" Urquidez,Peter "Sugarfoot"
Cunningham, Don "The Dragon" Wilson, Bill "Superfoot Wallace, just to
name a few and, he also remained active fighting in kickboxing
exhibition matches against World Class Fighters until 2003 at the age
of 44, including a last minute unscheduled 4 round match in 1992
against his own fighter,World Welterweight Champion-Pete Cunningham.He
is one of the world's winning-est kick-boxing coaches, with a 25-0
record run in World Championship Fights, and an unprecedented 44-2
overall record in World Championship Title fights and defenses. He has
been a licensed Amateur Boxing Coach with the United States Amateur
Boxing Federation and the California State Athletic Commission as a
Professional Boxing - Kickboxing Coach for last 29 years. He is
currently one of Five Highest Ranking Kickboxing Instructors in the
world, in The Ukidokan Martial Art's System as a Level 7 Kickboxing
Black Belt & a Level 1 Black Belt in Traditional Ukidokan Karate.He is
a Board Member of the Ukidokan Martial Art's Association, and currently
The Senior Instructor at Benny "The Jet's" Academy of Stunt Actors
School of Stage Combat. He also works as a Licensed Professional
Security Agent for various Hollywood Entertainment and Business
Executives, and various Movie and T.V. Stars, Pro Ball Players from the
NBA, NFL, MLB, and has toured the world several times as a Security
Director for a World Famous Rock & Roll Band.He is still a working
Actor, Stuntman, and Fight/Stunt Coordinator, and is currently pursuing
an education as a professional voiceover artist.