From urban buildering to building jumping, Parkour and free running have increasingly hit the big time, being featured in action-packed mainstream movies and prime-time commercial spots. Still, it’s important to remember that these amazing arts of urban building jumping, climbing and running originated in offbeat locations and abandoned buildings. These videos feature some of the more raw and original free runners who made this extreme urban sport what it is today. Scroll to the end for some awesome medleys and remixes!
This Latvian Parkour video features a truly great rough-and-ragged multi-story abandonment. It is well-scripted and timed – each sequence was clearly planned out in advance. The camera pans cleanly to follow the action as this free runner braves precarious building edges and makes amazing jumps. As the video progresses and the music changes the focus shifts from daring to stylish about midway through.
This Russian free runner would do Spider-Man proud. He brings an excellent blend of power, speed and style and pulls off some amazing tricks. Best of all: he makes it look easy, starting off with a mind-blowing flip-spin. Sometimes the camera has a hard time keeping up and you get the feeling you’re missing some of the best parts. All the same this is one free running video definitely worth watching.
These Toronto free runners are almost like urban ninjas complete with flying kicks off of various urban furniture. One of the nifty aspects of this particular video is that they do a lot of tricks in close sequence leaving the viewer wondering what would happen if one guy screwed up a jump in front of another. All in all the splicing is a bit too forced but there are certainly some good tricks in here. There are some rather ‘cute’ tricks too like jumping and floating back down with an umbrella.
While there are definitely a few extreme building-to-building jumps the emphasis in the above Parkour video is definitely style above all else. There are a number of simple mid-air tricks that don’t even involve buildings as well as some high leaps to the ground involving awesome twists and spins. However, there are some good buildering and free climbing shots here as well.
If the video prior to the one above focuses on style then the above one is definitely about height, distance and control. There is a lot to be learned here about landing and rolling out of a jump correctly in order to avoid serious pain and possible personal injury.
Some free runners find wonderful out-of-the-way parks, playgrounds and deserted buildings but this guy takes on the urban environment head on from statues and cars to bus stops. The onlookers are clearly a bit shocked to see him running and climbing around but largely don’t mind.
Parkour is traditionally a fairly male-dominated sport but there are some female free runners out there including this one. Her tricks aren’t particularly outstanding but she has a good grasp on the basics and is worth including in this collection simply for the novelty and gender variety.
This video has a lot of stardard Parkour tricks caught on a conventional and shaky hand-held camera. Still, there is one in particular that is worth watching for: a hand-hop across a picnic table. One has to wonder: is this guy completely unafraid of getting the world’s deepest worst sliver?
The above Parkour medley video splices together some great scenes from a variety of free running videos from around the world (including a few shown above). By editing the speed and splicing in repeated frames you get a good taste of the range of styles out there in a few short minutes.
This medley really spans the spectrum of free running and Parkour approaches, styles and moves. There is some distance jumping, some complex tricking and a lot of high-up on-building action. Some scenes are slowed down, others are sped up and they range from individuals to sizable jumper groups.
