VFX supervisor Sheldon Stopsack and animation supervisor Kevin Estey shared that while Wētā only handled the initial stages of the jockey’s development— “our department was involved in the character design for most characters, the chicken jockey included,” explained Stopsack— they attended the motion-capture sessions at Wētā. It was there that Hess collaborated with actors who were body-doubling for digital characters. Both supervisors found these sessions incredibly entertaining to watch.
“We were lucky to be part of a small group observing the motion capture process on our mocap stage,” Estey mentioned. “There was a lot of laughter as Jared coordinated with stunt performers and actors about the digital component of that sequence. They had filmed the live-action scenes with Black and Momoa just weeks earlier.”
Estey described how the baby zombie’s actions were performed by “one of our smaller-statured stunt performers,” who rode “essentially a seesaw horse with wheels” around the stage. “It was cushioned to ensure safety during performances like jumping off the back, crashing into the front, or executing head-butts,” Estey added. “It was delightful to watch them execute it. A particularly amusing part that didn’t make it into the film involved Jared envisioning the baby zombie up on the ropes, doing a big dance routine.”
“Part of the motion capture process embodied the movie’s theme—there was a lot of improvisation and idea exploration,” shared Stopsack. “We had the baby zombie energizing the crowd and interacting with the music—lots of playful elements that were really enjoyable because the crew and we were having fun exploring ideas. Although only some segments ended up in the movie, this reflected the film’s essence: enjoying and exploring fun ideas.”
“Additionally, seeing how Jared preferred to work as a director was insightful,” Estey noted. “Being able to apply that approach to all sequences was refreshing, offering us insight into his directorial style, creative preferences, and humor. It effectively set the tone for us.”
Consequently, there is likely behind-the-scenes footage featuring the chicken jockey actor riding a toy horse and dancing on ropes. With any luck, we might get to see this raw footage when A Minecraft Movie makes its digital debut.
