Animal Makers, Inc - 805-527-6200

The realistic turkey puppet in this clip was created right here in the Animal Makers shop for the television show "According to Jim".

Behind the Scenes
A look at an animatronic alligator that was created by Animal Makers. We have been creating these gators since 1980 for a wide variety of movies, television shows and commercials.

Behind the Scenes
Check out this bear suit that was created by Animal Makers for "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" Hummer commercials.

This animatronic realistic eagle puppet was created right here in the Animal Makers, Inc shop for the movie 'Almost Heroes' with Chris Farley and Matthew Parry. They are stealing eagle eggs when the eagle attacks and flies off with Chris Farley.

These animatronic eagles were created for Anheuser Busch (Budweiser) for their "Save the Habitat" campaign.

Only two weeks or so into the build, Animal Makers already had the basic moves down. This rehearsal was shot to see what moves were working on the male eagle puppet. The female wasn't performed (much) for this video. Shot in our Newbury Park location during 2000.

Behind the Scenes
Here is the first of two videos that show some footage on how we made the animatronic bats for the TV movie "Vampire Bats" with Lucy Lawless.

Behind the Scenes
Here is the second of two videos that show some footage on how we made the animatronic bats for the TV movie "Vampire Bats" with Lucy Lawless.

An animatronic capuchin puppet is tested on a willing production assistant. We were going for the "monkey on your back" saying. One of the puppeteers (in this case, it's Jim Boulden) is behind the subject with the rod (for the body moves) and another (Dave Kindlan) is operating the monkey's head and face with a radio control unit. There are two sets of arms/hands for this rig. One rig has fully articulated fingers! They can manipulate very tiny things with those hands. The other set are "loose linked" to move as the body moves. This is a traditional "Jim Henson" type puppet set-up.

A 2001 Interview with a Jules Unlimited (A Holland Company)

Check out the latest spokes-animal from Animal Makers! Yes, it's a ferret. It also stands in for a weasel. That's right! It's a ferret or it's a weasel. We know there are small differences between the actual species, but this is Hollywood! Check out "Dr. Doolittle" and see the ferrets working as weasels!

Anyway, this little fellow is looking for another role. The facial animation is wonderful, and can easily be enhanced in programs like "Elastic Reality". Originally created in mid 2007 for Doner, an advertising agency located in Michigan. They directed this little fellow for one of their clients, Online Vehicle Exchange.

See Animal Makers frogs at work!

This 12' tall giant animatronic rooster was designed for the Las Vegas Hotels & Casinos (Year of the Rooster)

Interview With a Cat: Episode 1
Cat Walking
Ever wonder what your cat is thinking? We have interviewed this cat to help answer your questions.

Interview With a Cat: Episode 2
Peeping Tom
Ever wonder what your cat is thinking? We have interviewed this cat to help answer your questions.

This mole suit was created for Okocim Mocne (a Polish Beer Company). This video shows the suit tryouts.

Here is the mechanic, Dave Kindlon, standing in and getting "bugged" by the animatronic capuchin on his back (performed by Jim Boulden). Jim is controlling the body and arms and Doug Hudson is controlling the animatronic facial expressions and head movements.

This is an example of a classic radio controlled rod puppet. This is the same type of monkey featured in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" series for Disney. Animal Makers supplied the capuchin monkey puppets for three of these films so far.

Come see this pirate skull verbally defend his treasure. The skull and treasure chest was created right here in the Animal Makers shop in Simi Valley, CA for use in the Las Vegas Fun Show.

This red macaw just loves to talk. Listen in as it talks about its favorite home away from home. Animal Makers, Inc created this lovely realistic animatronic macaw.

This rooster suit was created for Okocim Mocne (a Polish Beer Company). This video shows the suit tryouts.

This swan suit was created for Okocim Mocne (a Polish Beer Company). This video shows the suit tryouts.

This animatronic turtle movement test shows a turtle fetching a newspaper.

Anheuser Busch, the Conservation Fund and the National Wildlife Federation came together to help the American Bald Eagle's nesting grounds. Animal Makers worked with Rhythm & Hues (Directed by Clark Anderson) to create these public service announcements.

The most time consuming part of the shoot was the live eagle's entrance. The fly-in is the only shot with a live eagle. Getting the eagle to land on the branch was a tough order. When released by the falconer, the eagle would fly and land in the grip stands, or up in the cat walks. Finally, it came in for a landing next to the female eagle. The rest of the shoot was puppeteered with two animatronic eagle puppets.

One of our favorite shows ever! A classic mix of live, trained animals, plus animatronic puppetry, finished off with a little Flame!

This video shows one of our alligator rigs as part of two low cost dealer spots for BMW of the Southeast. This spot was shot in two days on digi-beta by Bould Productions. The total cost for everything including stage, car lighting, grip, electric, director of photography, and director was under $50,000 USD. This included just the raw footage, which the agency took with them at the end of shooting. No graphics or editing were included in that.

The original spots were envisioned with simple white backdrops, but were enhanced by the production company to look richer. The animatronic animals were \'off the shelf\' at Animal Makers. From receipt of storyboards until agency producers flew out of LAX (tape in hand) was just about two weeks.

Great shoot and the agency delivered big time to their clients!

Animal Makers Helps Promote Evolution!
AMIs latest project for the DEVO band member, Jerry Casale. His hip, quirky view puts our work on edge. In this 30 sec promotion for the series, "Evolution", the question posed is: "Why should we care when a species dies?". Illustrating the point is one of AMI's puppets, the Flea. The spot is performed in another language, in another place, creating an aura of mystery. The puppet was controlled by two puppeteers (Jim Greenall and Doug Hudson) using blue-screen rods.

Behind the Scenes
Here is a look at what it takes to make molds at Animal Makers, Inc.

Behind the Scenes
Motion control is an exciting new way for animatronic characters to interact with guests! Sophisticated new computer software and hardware coupled with the latest in robotic servos delivers a truly immersive experience. Control can be mixed with stored behaviors added to live performance.

This video helps to show how using a laptop and a few connectors, Animal Makers technicians are able to program intricate movements into this toucan model.

Here is a greyhound puppet movement test we did for Bould Productions.

Motion control is an exciting new way for animatronic characters to interact with guests! Sophisticated new computer software and hardware coupled with the latest in robotic servos delivers a truly immersive experience. Control can be mixed with stored behaviors added to live performance.

This video helps to show how using a laptop and a few connectors, Animal Makers technicians are able to program intricate movements into this toucan model.

This dinosaur was created for Choice Hotels to be used in this commercial.

This sheep was created for Coca Cola to be used in this commercial.

These gophers were created for Divotmat to be used in this commercial.

Behind the Scenes
Here is a look at the creating of the heron for an Entergy commercial.

This baboon was created for Esso to be used in this commercial.

Behind the Scenes
Here is a look at the creating of the dog for a Geico commercial.

Good Day L.A. interviews Animal Makers in 2005.

These bears were created for Grape Nuts to be used in this commercial.

The commercial is followed by a small clip from the "Making of a Bear Suit" video.

This bear was created for Guardian to be used in this commercial.

Designed & built with over 5000 miles between the creative team (Osaka Japan) and the construction team (Hollywood, California), this animatronic wolf head worked perfectly for what the client wanted to do. Wes Caefer and his wife Aida traveled the long journey to puppeteer and tech the rig. Jared Cook (Producer) helped out with translation and guide duties as well as a bit of puppetry!

Those peacocks in the rear sure like what they see! Tyra Banks shows us how it's done. Shot as one animatronic bird, stepped and repeated in post.

Wow! The first Emmy ever awarded to a commercial! Joe really knows how to shoot 'em! Working with the incredible creative team at BBDO/NY, AMI created the batch of apes that adorn the tree in the final shot.

These 3 bears suits were created to be used in the Hummer "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" commercials.

See the commercial for yourself.

This cat was created to be used in a Little Caesars commercial.

See the commercial for yourself.

We created a polar bear for use in the 2004 season opener of "LOST" and again in a 2005 episode.

This alligator was created to be used in a Lubriderm commercial.

See the commercial for yourself.

One of Animal Makers' early triumphs. A $50,000 commercial spot that earned the client over $25,000,000! Now that's what we call R.O.I.!

See the commercial for yourself.

This clip is from an advertisment for the Palm Beach Kennel club. The puppets were created and performed by Animal Makers, Inc.

These bear suit were created for a Pepsi Superbowl commercial in 2004.

See the commercial for yourself.

This dog was created to be used in a Pepsi commercial.

See the commercial for yourself.

This tortoise was created to be used in a Pepsi commercial.

See the commercial for yourself.

This fun little film was created for Perdue Farms and featured Jim Perdue himself. Animal Makers created two animatronic, swimming ducks to react to the chicken in the lake. The film was done at a very small lake in Southern California, and the chicken was handled with care by the animal trainers. Lewis Advertising currently handles the Perdue account. The animatronic ducks actually performed at the end of a support rig. The heads could turn and lift up and down. The animatronics were designed to not be detected by the viewing audience.

These chickens were created to be used in a Pilgrim's Pride commercial.

See the commercial for yourself.

Enjoy viewing an short film for Pop Tarts which features a mermaid & dracula. This ad is for kids, so the mermaid costume was created not as a "two piece", but as a "one piece" costume. Created from silicone, it was fit for the actress. Each scale was sculpted in clay, then molds made. The silicone takes almost 24 hours to set up. It is waterproof and the color is iridescent.

Special effects suits are a specialty here at Animal Makers. This entire project was done in less than two weeks. Besides this mermaid, Animal Makers created a "50's style" robot and a Hollywood mummy.

Enjoy viewing an short film for Pop Tarts which features a robot and a mummy. This ad is for kids, so the robot costume was created as a multiple piece costume.

Special effects suits are a specialty here at Animal Makers. This entire project was done in less than two weeks. Besides this "50's style" robot and Hollywood mummy, Animal Makers created a mermaid and a vampire costume.

This alligator was created to be used in a Pringles commercial.

See the commercial for yourself.

Behind the Scenes
This video features views of the creation and performance of an animatronic cat and some cat stuffies for sequences in the movie, "Scary Movie 2".

This is the last of the Scary Movie series to be shot in California. Director, Keenan Ivory Wayans and Cinematographer Steven Bernstein are shown supervising the rigging of a "boxing cat". They wanted to shoot a live performance, instead of compositing various elements together in post production. Art Director Cat Smith and Production Designer Cynthia Charette designed the set to accommodate a multiple camera angle fight sequence between Anna Faris and a black cat.

The black cat (played by Puppeteers Jim Greenall, Doug Hudson and Jim Boulden) performed in various places on the lifted stage. Jim Boulden sketched a floor plan of the action.

Behind the Scenes
Animal Makers created the scary skeleton sequence. This sequence was originally slated for Doug Beswick and Ray McIntyre's visual effects department. The vfx plate was already pretty full with hundreds of shots added since the beginning of production. They asked if we could handle a chase scene with Anna Faris and Regina Hall. Animal Makers built the animatronic skeleton puppet in very short time, and had it working on the set.

One of the interesting rigs used is the "Creature Boom Arm Rig". This rig allows for counter-weighting the figure and controlling height, spin, and moving along a distance (by being built for a common doorway dolly). The creature has several mounts and very smooth action that allows a human sized figure to take direction without seeming "clunky".

This one of a kind Japanese Monster Suit (Snickerzilla) was created to be used in a Snickers commercial.

See the commercial for yourself.

This bear suit was created to be used in a Sony Camcorder commercial.

Click the image to see the first of 2 commercials that were made.

This bear suit was created to be used in a Sony Camcorder commercial.

Click the image to see the second of 2 commercials that were made.

Behind the Scenes
This video shows footage of the television show "Sabrina the Teenage Witch". See clips from the show as well as some behind the scenes footage.

This particular commercial shoot was very interesting. Michael Schrom and Jim Boulden worked out a shooting scheme with an animatronic alligator. Can you tell how this was shot? If you guessed that the camera was shooting straight down at a suspended alligator model that was puppeteered from two sides, you would be right! An interesting, and cost saving method of shooting! Shown below, you will find some of the prep shots that will give you an idea of how this was rigged.

This is a fun spot. It's time to wash the ol' mascot, and that means lots of shampoo! Created for Target stores in 2003.

See the commercial for yourself.

AMI created and performed these three animatronic macaw puppets for director/cameraman Mikael Soloman. The director first worked with Animal Makers when he was shooting (as Director of Photography) the Ron Howard film, "Far and Away". When Texaco wanted great working models of their corporate colors in the form of these Macaws, there was one place Mikael turned to.

This dolphin was created to be used in a Tyson Foods commercial shot in spanish.

See the commercial for yourself.

The lifelike pomeranian and rottweiler replicas were created for the movie "White Chicks".

Click the image to see the video clip of the eagle and bull we creatged for the television show "Xena Warrior Princess"

This goose was created to be used in 3 AT&T Alascom commercials.

See the commercials for yourself.

Behind the Scenes
See the animatronic baby dinosaur hatch right before you eyes. This dinosaur and egg was created by Animal Makers, inc and this film was produced by Bould Productions.

Behind the Scenes
Animatronic lobster runs where you want him. Claws move independently. Completely radio controlled! Very Realistic!

Behind the Scenes
Animal Makers, Inc created this rhino suit that was used extensively in a UK circus. Currently it is being used at the Royal Court Theatre in London, England. This suit takes 2 people to operate it. This video shows just one test being done.

Behind the Scenes
Watch this demo of a sea urchin we created for Sea World.

Behind the Scenes
Here is the first of 3 movement test we did for this animatronic sheep.

Behind the Scenes
Here is the second of 3 movement test we did for this animatronic sheep.

Behind the Scenes
Here is the third of 3 movement test we did for this animatronic sheep.

This wolf skin was created to be used in an Anderson's Consulting commercial.

See the commercial for yourself.

This rhino was created to be used in an Armstrong Tires commercial.

See the commercial for yourself.

Here is an example of our peacock in action as shown in this Chrysler Grand Caravan commercial.

See the commercial for yourself.

Here is an example of our peacock in action as shown in this Pledge Furniture Polish commercial.

See the commercial for yourself.

This chickenbear suit was created for the television show "The Norm Show" (Season3: Episode 12). See the clip right here.

This cat was created for the pilot episode of the television show "Joe" with Andy McDowell. The show never aired, but it was still fun to do.

See this clip from the show.

This horse was created for the pilot episode of the television show "Joe" with Andy McDowell. The show never aired, but it was still fun to do.

See this clip from the show.

This tiger prop was created for the pilot episode of the television show "Joe" with Andy McDowell. The show never aired, but it was still fun to do.

See this clip from the show.

These wildebeest suits was created for a San Diego Wild Animal Park commercial.

See this clip from the show.

CNN interviews Animal Makers in 2005 and almost gets eaten by a gator.

Here is a promo video shows a good amount of products created right here in the AMI shop.