HOW THEY BROUGHT BEATRIX’S BEAUTIES TO LIFE
The melding of live action and computer images has come a long way since Dick Van Dyke danced with penguins in Mary Poppins, but combining humans with cartoons is still painstaking work. The Peter Rabbit actors had to play their roles alongside sticks, or ‘stuffies’, which were either furry animal representations, or cardboard cut-outs, of their co-stars. If there was any physical contact, stunt actors in blue Lycra suits filled in for the bunnies. For one scene in which he’s fighting the animals, Domhnall Gleeson was hit with sticks by four men in blue Lycra suits for ten hours. ‘There’s more to come to grips with than I’d imagined,’ admits the Dubliner. ‘When the script is so much fun you assume it’ll be fun to make. But a lot of work goes into making something fun.’ Working even harder than the stars are the animators who have to ensure the CGI matches perfectly with the humans. Video supervisor Will Reichelt measured out the distance a onefoot-tall animal can cover in a second. And as the human actors are doing their thing, hiding out of sight on the floor with a fishing line is a puppeteer ensuring the grass or leaves move at just the right time, in just the right spot. ‘As Peter runs along, not only do you need to see his shadow on the ground, but also anything he kicks up – dirt, dust, bits of grass,’ says Will. ‘This is vital to make him appear integrated into the world.’ Meanwhile, the expressions of the rabbits – who in real life don’t tend to smile, raise eyebrows or give sardonic looks – had to be experimented with on the screen so that they looked just realistic enough without overacting.