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TECHNIQUES The concept was conceived by ''Equilibrium'' writer/director Kurt Wimmer and developed by Fight Choreographer Jim Vickers . It involves the use of firearms (generally Pistol s) against nearby opponents, resulting in an athletic and visually engaging form of combat. The character 'DuPont' in ''Equilibrium'' describes the concept thusly: "Through analysis of thousands of recorded gunfights, the Cleric has determined that the geometric distribution of antagonists in any gun battle is a statistically-predictable element. The Gun Kata treats the gun as a total weapon, each fluid position representing a maximum kill zone, inflicting maximum damage on the maximum number of opponents, while keeping the defender clear of the statistically-traditional trajectories of return fire. By the rote mastery of this art, your firing efficiency will rise by no less than 120%. The difference of a 63% increased lethal proficiency makes the master of the Gun Katas an adversary not to be taken lightly." Gun Kata, as a martial art, places emphasis on two tenets: shooting the enemy as efficiently as possible, and avoiding return fire. Hitting targets is a matter of knowing where enemy fighters are likely to be located in relation to the user, which removes the problem of aiming (especially at close ranges), not to mention allowing the user to defeat foes with pre-emptive fire before they can present a true threat. Avoiding return fire is also a matter of statistical probability, as Gun Kata users do not rely on Bullet Time -style evasions, but rather on avoiding the enemy's most likely lines of fire. In short, Gun Kata is the art of shooting where the enemy should be, while not being where the enemy should shoot. It is effective enough that the protagonist of ''Equilibrium'', Grammaton Cleric First Class John Preston, is able to defeat more than 30 enemy Stormtrooper s in under a minute. It should be noted, however, that this was an exceptional feat even by the standards of Gun Kata, since Preston himself expressed some doubt as to whether he could manage it, and as a First Class Cleric, Preston was a master of Gun Kata. In '' Ultraviolet '', a further, more aggressive development of this technique is seen displayed by ''Violet Song jat Shariff'' (portrayed by Milla Jovovich ). When unarmed and surrounded by multiple firearm-wielding opponents, Violet's movements allow her to avoid the shots fired at her and simultaneously make the enemies shoot each other instead. This could be compared to another famous fictional martial art - Lightsaber Combat , where the ''Form III'' only concentrates on deflecting the incoming Blaster bolts with one's Lightsaber , whereas the ''Form V'' allows one to send them back in the direction of the opposing gunners. Another, less commonly seen technique of Gun Kata involves dealing with a single opponent at a very close range. This often includes Melee Combat with both opponents trying to point a gun at the other and pull the trigger, while at the same time, preventing the enemy from doing the same thing. This technique is only used if both adversaries are skilled in it. The most striking difference of such duels to the rest of hand-to-hand martial arts is that an enemy shot cannot be Block ed or Parried as in Unarmed Combat and Fencing and can thusly be only avoided by constantly knocking off the enemy's aim and leaving him or her no time to shoot in your direction. And yet another technique involves using a pistol as a normal Melee Weapon to hit the close range opponents without wasting ammunition. Since the technique is frequently used against multiple enemies equipped with firearms, the basic rules of avoiding their most likely shooting Trajectories also apply. POSSIBLE INSPIRATIONS " Kata ," known in some martial arts as "forms," are pre-determined routines of attacks, blocks and movements that simulate a many-on-one engagement; kata are more of a ritualized dance, as opposed to the open improvisation of " Kumite " (sparring). As such, the use of the word "kata" is somewhat imprecise in the description of a martial art, though it is certainly applicable to the choreographed fight routines actors and stuntmen must learn. These are paralleled in " Bunkai ," in which a central martial artist performs the kata, while training partners take the role of the attackers. Gun Kata is a type of "fake fu," since some moves closely resemble Kung Fu and also Japanese kata-based martial arts. The combat in ''Equilibrium'' in general has been compared to '' The Matrix ''. Wimmer had supposedly intended a softer, more fluid Wushu style for ''Equilibrium'', but was overruled by fight choreographer Vickers, whose experience lay primarily in the harder, jerkier Karate line, and by the movie's limited budget. Wimmer realized his vision of a fluid Gun Kata in '' Ultraviolet ''. SIMILAR TECHNIQUES Other works of fiction since 2002 also feature techniques very similar to Gun Kata:
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