Animations Vs. Actors
By Dan Faupel

Long has there been talk of what is more important to dark attractions, animatronics or actors. In this day and age, even though they remain crowd favorites, people visit your attraction to see more than black mazes and chainsaws. They expect a horrific, fantastical, or entertaining realistic experience to justify spending that "wad" of hard earned dollars. How this is achieved varies greatly, largely determined by the size and style of attraction, target market, and budget.

You rarely hear of a dark walk-through trying to rely completely on animatronics to accomplish this. Though possible, you just don't see people try to do that very often aside from amusement parks, because of the required expense and time involved in equipment, set-up, programming, and fine-tuning. I feel that the interaction with a human being's wit, reflexes and timing are necessary at least here and there for a successful show recipe.

Drew Hunter, Design Director of Sally Corporation, sums it up well. "In a walk-through haunt environment, which features live performers and animatronic characters and/or effects, I don't consider the issue being "animatronics vs. actors". Rather I try to discover how animatronics and actors can compliment each other. It's safe to say, I believe, that nothing will ever replace the good timing, energy and attack that an expert haunt performer supplies. Yet the benefits of animatronics - no bathroom breaks, endless repetition and always being in their place when called upon - certainly yield positive results as well. Use animatronics wisely and creatively, just as you do live performers. Pace them throughout your show's context. Light them to show off their virtues, not their flaws. Generally, keep their performances brief for believability."

The word "animatronic" is a shortened form of "audio-animatronic", a word created by the original Disney imagineers for realistic three-dimensional moving characters or objects, which combined the use audio (sound), animation, and electronics. At some undocumented time, perhaps in the eighties, the word "animation" became the shortened industry buzzword. In the rest of the article, I'll be favoring the word animations because, quite frankly, it's easier to say and read!

A Little Animation History

The very first mechanical animations of all time (many of which still work to this day) are believed to be the 13th century "Jacquemarts". They were mechanical bronze men that rang clock tower bells in places such as Switzerland, France, and Italy.

In more semi-recent times, animations were introduced to the world of dark entertainment. The first talking gypsy-fortune teller machine had its patent registered in 1889.

The introduction of animations to dark attractions came in Harry Traver's 1930 patent. The dark ride featured a flat kicking mule, an alligator with moving jaws, and a statue that would topple over towards you as you rode past. This would become the now famous "Laff in the Dark" ride.

For the 1933 Chicago World's Fair-Century of progress Messmore and Damon developed an electric motor driven Torture Chamber exhibit, which used gears, cams and levers. The display had complex movements and the characters even boasted a realistic breathing motion. It was also the most synchronized motion to sound in animated characters to date, due to advancements in sound engineering.

From when Disneyland first opened in 1955, to the present, Disney's contributions to the animation industry have been countless. In the 1960's, "space age" technology led to advancements in Disney's ability to produce very lifelike motions in their characters. They started to incorporate hydraulics, pneumatics, electronics and computer controls into their shows and characters more through this era.

The latest generation of Disney animatronic technology is known as the "Compliance System" (or a "Sarcose figure", named after the valve manufacturer). Gene Poor, the owner of Lifeformations, states in his book "The Illusion of Life": "This became possible as an outgrowth of development on human prosthesis research at the University of Utah. Animate Systems Incorporated (ASI) builds them specifically for Disney. The compliance system provides a digital encoder at each end of the character's joints. These mechanical-position-to-decoder-encoding devices allow the computer to sense the character's moves and total pose 24 times a second. The compliance system allows an audio-animatronic programmer to program individual character moves that are very close to surrounding objects or to the character itself. For instance, two hands gesturing around each other, or even fingertips touching."

So, Why Animations? ... Why Actors?

The most amazing thing about animatronic characters is that they can perform tasks that can't be done by other methods or mediums. They can also perform in dangerous or unpleasant environments, and perform precisely over and over. Objects that are typically inanimate can be animatronically "brought to life"

So, with these points in mind, why do we bother to still work live actors into our shows? Ed Edmunds, owner of Distortions Unlimited, replies, "A good, scary, all-animatronic show is definitely possible, but could cost hundreds of thousands to millions. Disney pulls it off all the time. If someone told me that they wanted to spend $50,000 on animatronics so they wouldn't have to hire any actors, I would say that's probably not going to work. It's hard to beat a well-selected, well-trained actor for a good startle scare, but it's difficult in this day and age to not have any animations. Having run Brutal Planet for several years, animatronics served us well for the all-important word-of-mouth, as having lots of eye candy and being a high-tech show. Look at Disney's Haunted Mansion; if you took away all of the animations and replaced them with actors going boo, people wouldn't be talking about it."

Dark attractions, which are open only for the Halloween season, have traditionally used costumed actors primarily, typically outweighing the number of animations. The modular nature of most modern temporary attractions can sometimes discourage very elaborate animated displays because of the time involved in set up, break down and storage. Budget size can also be a concern. Over the years, however, more temporary attractions have increased the amount of animations to help give them more of an "amusement park level" look and feel. Year round dark attractions, both amusement park and stand-alone attractions, tend to lean heavier towards animations with little to no live actors for many reasons.

Rick Davis, president of the Dark ride and Funhouse Enthusiasts (DAFE) says, "I think that full time amusement park attractions rely on animations rather than actors for several reasons. Animations work without taking breaks, not to mention the monetary cost of employing actors. Whereas a person will become bored with the repetition of the constant parade of people day in and day out, animated figures can do the same thing over and over again, ensuring that the experience is always the same. The safety of a live actor inside of a dark ride is also an issue. Possibly, tradition may enter into it as well, a carry over from the early days of dark rides with their simple two-dimensional animations."

When asked about shows that have no animations or have no actors, Drew Hunter replies, "Both are challenges. If you have no animatronics, train several performers to act like animatronics - then make the scare. It gets them every time! If you have a show full of animatronics, include several simple figures with subtle movements, which guests perceive to be performers. It'll keep them on guard all the way through the experience."

Ben Armstrong, owner of Netherworld, gives a couple of thoughts on actors and animations. "Animations should do the things that are too repetitive, impossible or dangerous for actors to do. Animations can get that quick startle scare, like a cat jumping into the frame in a horror movie. But it takes great actors to really scare people. Animations are another important tool in the haunter's arsenal, like artillery is to the military. But you cannot win the war without the troops... the actors."

Jim Warfield, owner of The Raven's Grin, adds, "Basically, I believe that the human being relates to other humans better than any robotic device, and that many of us seek this and feel better about a tour experience if there was a living, breathing human connected fairly solidly with the experience." He continues, "I was sort of mystified many years ago when I heard a speaker at Transworld lament that robotic displays don't really scare anyone. Mine did. Maybe mine seemed to elicit more fearful reactions from my customers because they are sort of unusual, or because they didn't expect the type of movement from them that happened, maybe in part because of my remote rural setting, they didn't expect such mechanical friskiness!"

Evolution of Animations in the Dark Attraction Industry

From the early days of moving funhouse floors and animated plywood cutouts, to Distortions' famous electric chair, animations in the dark amusement industry and the businesses that fabricate them have evolved greatly. In the last ten to fifteen years, the industry has seen many fabricators try their hand at making props that move. Some are still around, and many have slowly disappeared. Some upstart animation vendors will offer "too good to be true" prices in an attempt to lure customers. Many times this results in poor construction methods and materials. This usually creates an unreliable animation that can sometimes even be unsafe. I have personally seen many animations built so poorly that besides the fact that there will be no bearings at a pivot point, but there will not even be a bronze bushing or nylon washer!..Just a bolt rammed through some square tube for a pivot point, with direct metal rubbing on metal contact. This practice has led a lot of haunt buyers to assume that all animations should be inexpensive.

Rich Strelak, owner of RJ Productions, states, "Ours is one of a few industries where practically anyone can "hang a shingle"! One minute they are an enthusiast and their next claim is that of a "major" haunt or prop designer!" Larry Kirchner, owner of Halloween Productions/Dark Rider adds, "I don't think I've ever bought an animation from anyone that didn't have problems at one time or another. When you build animations to go off over and over again, and do things to scare people, without bearings and high-end controls, they're going to break a lot. But our industry has set a price point that doesn't allow for the highest quality, which is what it is. We used to build animations with pillow blocks, high-end controls, and more, but it costs too much more than what a haunter is willing to pay for them."

Fortunately, recent times seem to show a reverse in this trend. Many buyers, having been burned on cheap animations already, are more now more educated on what to look for with their animation purchases. It only makes sense to want your animation investment to be entertaining or scaring crowds for as long as possible.

Ed Edmunds says, "People now want animations that are more user-friendly, and most importantly, solidly built, even though they can be heavier and cost more to produce."

Mark McDonough, owner of Creative Visions agrees, "Ten years ago, people would have bought animations from just about anyone, but now attraction producers are more educated. They're looking for animations that are well built, easy to maintain, and user-friendly. When we sell animatronics, we find that customers appreciate a design, which incorporates low maintenance, and easy access for when maintenance actually is needed. Nobody wants to have to tear an animation apart or damage an expensive character to get to a broken part."

Bob Crane, Vice Pres. of Operations of Advanced Animations adds, "There is a huge price range in animations from hundreds to thousands. The big difference in these is in the construction and the "after the sale" support. You want to buy from a company that has been around for awhile and seems that they will still be around for the next ten years. If you are going to use animatronics, you need to consider that it's going to cost more than just the original price tag. You need to consider the costs of installation, compressed air system, maintenance, etc. Owning a well made animatronic can easily pay for its own difference in price with what it can save you in maintenance costs alone."

Proper Usage and Applications of Animations

Generally speaking, smaller attractions tend to rely less on animatronics and more on live actors, and vice versa (with larger venues relying less on actors and more on an animated show). Obviously no attraction is the same, and everyone's needs are different. But whether it's a simple rotating "possessed" picture on the wall, or a huge eye grabbing animatronic monster on your roof, most mid to large haunted attractions have some sort of animatronic need.

Drew Hunter states, "In a well balanced haunt production, animatronics serve several important needs:

Nicole Leipski, HR/PR person and actor for The Fear at Alpine Valley says, "The big shows that I've seen that have a perfect mix, like Netherworld and Dungeon of Doom, really found a great balance - their actors/characters are so amazing and balanced out perfectly with the animatronics, you don't know what is coming at you or from where. You think something is animatronic, then you find out it's chasing you down a hallway. Being an actor, I'll always be an advocate for us, but it's nice to have some well placed quality animatronics to confuse, amuse and behoove our victims! That level of uncertainty (if something is "alive" or not) is another way to get the customers feeling uneasy."

Rich Hanf, author of the "Haunted Attraction Employee Handbook" and owner of House of the Living Dead adds, "The question of animatronics vs. actors can be summed up in two words... proper usage! Obviously, any haunt that relies solely on animatronics is doomed to failure. That said, there are some amazingly good looking and remarkably effective animatronics out there... Too many animatronics cheats the customer out of the kind of scare that only a live person can deliver with the proper energy and timing, while a haunt with no animatronics denies their customers the chance to enjoy the state of the art technology that some of these animatronics provide."

Rhee LaFountain, owner of Tilted Tombstone Productions states, "I prefer actor oriented haunts, because they're more interactive, but realize that animatronics have a place. I've always used animations for the "downs", the areas where I want people to relax before hitting them with a major startle/scare. I design my haunts like roller coasters, tension building "uphills and drops", and then level sections to catch your breath."

Rich Strelak says, "I personally feel that animation does set you apart from the amateur level and is somewhat expected by your audience. The key is to find a happy medium. Animation should be used to accomplish something an actor can't do because of the space, the action, or the physicality of the effect. When possible I try and have the animation activated by an actor. The biggest complaint about the use of animation is that they don't know when to scare like an actor does. Actor activated animations solve that and are the best of both worlds."

Bo Bruns, owner of Unit 70 Studios adds, "The idea is to make the animations compliment the actors and vice versa. Animations can draw a patron's attention into a scene, allowing an actor to deliver a perfectly timed second scare. Large animations set up outside an attraction have an amazing attention getting effect that can draw patrons in."

The Ten Laws of Animatronics

The following "Ten Laws" have been paraphrased from Gene Poor's book "Animatronics: A Designer's Resource Guide". Combine laws for dynamic results!

We've been studying what works and what doesn't work in animatronics for over 25 years. What we have found is that the animatronic characters that perform successfully are almost always in alignment with some fundamental notions. After years of studying and analyzing applications and characteristics, we have assembled our findings into ten basic laws that govern animatronic success and failure in the entertainment and educational arenas.

1) The law of distance

The greater the distance between the audience and an animatronic character, the more you can get away with in terms of believability. Distance will determine everything from the quality of skin and hair, to how many character movements are necessary to make the character believable.

2) The law of time

The shorter the time a character is viewed, the less sophisticated an animatronic needs to be. Consider a typical animatronic darkride application. If the audience is traveling in a moving car at a fairly rapid rate of speed, eye blinks and eye turns would not be a character requirement. Those kinds of movements would never be seen, appreciated, nor add to the experience. On the other hand, the longer a character is seen by an audience, the more sophisticated it needs to be. If the audience is watching a historic figure tell a two-minute story, the audience is going to notice if the eyes do not blink or the arms never move.

3) The law of numbers

The more characters performing and/or the more movements each character has will increase the total audience "attention" holding time. A single character can only hold an audience for a short period of time unless it continues to reveal new movements throughout the show (surprises). However, multiple characters allow interaction, and the variety of personalities generally increases the effective performance time.

4) The law of non-human

Non-human animatronic characters are not judged as critically as human life-like ones. No one really knows what a talking beverage bottle, animated garbage can, or singing chicken is supposed to look like. Hence your audience does not judge their movements as critically. You can get away with fewer movements and take some risks with what they do and say!

Revealing surprises helps keep an audience's attention. Those surprises can be additional character moves, special effects, or just some unusual animatronic acts.

6) The law of singing

Audiences are addicted to animatronic characters that sing. There is something mesmerizing about things that sing but are not human.

7) The law of personality

Scripting, voice talent, and personality are critical to character believability. All of these components go hand-in-hand to form a character's soul. We urge clients to think first in terms of distinguishable personality when conceiving an animatronic character. If the personality is not given an inherent quality, we urge them to think in terms of famous personalities to reference. We often ask, "If your character could be a film or television star, who would it be?" That identification generally helps set the character design process in motion and makes both the scripting and voice talent selection easier. Be sure to use a scriptwriter who understands the animatronic medium and a voice talent that can bring life and personality to the narration.

8) The law of brevity

Brevity in performances is your best friend - leave audiences wanting more. We encourage clients to limit any presentation to a minute or less per character. This law is simply the most difficult for clients to understand. They typically have an hour of content to share. We constantly remind clients that audiences do not remember much. The secret to being a bore is to tell everything. The law of brevity may be broken by carefully and skillfully incorporating laws 4, 5, 6, and 7. Remember - if the audience stays around for an additional performance, you have just received the equivalent of an Academy Award for Animatronics Performances.

9) The law of size

Changing the size and proportions of things helps create audience interest and grabs their attention. For instance, make things that are small, bigger. A gigantic animated squid was built for a Disney attraction in Tokyo. This character very well may be the largest animated character ever built. Conversely, make things that are big smaller.

10) The law of the edge

If it's appropriate and possible, go over the top with your character - push the edge. The beauty of animatronic characters is their ability to do things that other media cannot and repeat that ability over and over flawlessly. We encourage clients to push their limits. Show people something they have never seen. Be audacious! Have the spirit of P.T. Barnum! It's show business. Make it funny. Make it crazy. Get their attention! Deliver the message! Risk nothing - gain nothing! Throw caution to the wind, improvise impulsively, and go for the high note!

The Conclusion

So there it is: the pros and the cons, the good and the bad, the history and the rules; everything perfectly in place except for one little piece of information; one answer that has not been revealed as of yet. In typical American form, we want to know...who won? Which is better, animations or actors? And the answer.... as you may have guessed is that it is a draw. Sucks doesn't it? You made it all the way to the end of the article...and there's no payoff!

"When you look at the advantages of both sides and where technology is right now, it's really of just a matter of the best tool for the job." Mark McDonough continues, "There are times when animatronics will do the job better and there are times when you simply need a human presence to pull it off."

So there it is. The conclusion. For now, you organic humans have nothing to fear... I mean, um technology is moving fast and there are amazing advances being made in robotics, so who knows what the future will hold.

About the Author

Dan Faupel is the Production Designer, and also directs the team of talented craftsmen, at Creative Visions. They specialize in the fabrication of animated characters and themed environments for dark attractions and amusement parks worldwide. See more of his work at www.CreativeVisionsOnline.com .

Some of the historical data was compiled with the help of the Darkride and Funhouse Enthusiasts (DAFE). Learn more about the forerunners and possible future of our industry at www.dafe.org .

Permission has been obtained for all quotes in the above article.