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Paulina Olguin
Professor Miriam Salazar
Film and Lit I
10 October 2006
Animal Actors
Animals and film media hae been connected since the er! beginnings of film industr!" but #hat
is behind those loel! animal scenes is a sub$ect not man! %eo%le &no# about'
(he film industr! in the 1)20*s" called silent era because of the lac& of sound in moies at that
time" mainl! %roduced +in the ,SA- #esterns and biblical sagas" in #ich horses #ere the main .actors/
re0uired for the indian ersus co#bo!s scenes' Sadl!" in order to ma&e these scenes loo& real" horses
#ere badl! in$ured most of the times1 if the! #ere luc&! enough to surie the falls the! #ere force to %la!'
(he 1)2)*s 3ess! 3ames #estern moie" has been an infamous icon regarding unhumane
treatment to animals' One of the methods used to ma&e horses fall #as t!ing the horses forelegs #ith a
string or" %ulling a tri%#ire %ut beforehand on the floor to ma&e the blinded horse fall' ,nfortunatel!"
horses had to be shot after these outrageous tric&s because the! had either bro&en a leg or shattered
their bac&' It too& too man! not su%erised #esterns and other films to ma&e 4oll!#ood react on animal
behalf'
(he moie industr! has a strong and ugl! connection #ith illegal animal traffic' 4aing animals
acting in 4oll!#ood moies is an e5tremel! e5%ensie and hard tas& to achiee' 6en 7isne!*s moies"
#ith their animal loing messages hae made enormous mista&es onl! thin&ing in their incomes' For
e5am%le" if the! needed seeral lion cubs for a certain scene" the! #ould had to breed them on their o#n'
In that #a! the! #ould lo#er their costs' (his is the moment #hen certain men though about the %rofits
the! could earn b! %roiding 4oll!#ood #ith the animals the! #anted' Some animal trainers started their
o#n businness b! building #hat #e ma! call animal su%ermar&ets" in #ich the animals the! did not use
an!more #ere traded to circuses or fall in the #rong hands' Sometimes een ta5idermists #ere being
gien animals that could not longer be hired for moie %roductions' 8lac& mar&et #as the %erfect niche for
e5otic %ets loers" so !ou can ta&e !our o#n inferences in this icious circle'
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One %itiful e5am%le of an .animal su%ermar&et/ is .(he 4oll!#ild Animal Par&/" #hich %roudl!
sa!s the! hae sered as animal su%lier for .(he 9e# Adentures of Pi%%i Longstoc&ing/ and .Last of the
Mohicans/" among others' (his disgusting animal %ar& #as rated b! P6(A +Peo%le for the 6thical
(reatment of Animals- as unacce%table' It had bad conditions for animals" including1 failure to: dis%ose
e5%ired drugs" haing their animal chec&ed +dental health included-" %oor house;&ee%ing" %roide
eterinarian care and maintain records about the animals the! %urchased' Also the! #ere res%onsable for
the esca%e of animals causing damage to humans'
8ut animals #ere not defenseless an!more" since the A4A +American 4umane Association-
#as created' 8efore this %eriod" the e5isting 4a!s <ode #as the entit! that regulated the filming of
moies" and it had little lines about animal treatment on;set' =hen the 4a!s <ode #as abolished" in
1)6>" the A4A became the animals onl! %rotection" een though for a fe# !ears the A4A did not had
enough %o#er to ma&e sure no animals #ere being harmed in 4oll!#ood'
(he A4A has been #or&ing #ith %roducers and film;ma&ers since 1)?0' (hat !ear" the SA@
+Screen Actor*s @uild- " gae the A4A full on;set $urisdiction so that eer! film could be oerseen b! the
A4A re%resentaties' 6en though in its earl! stages A4A re%resentaties #ere at high ris& because of
the idiotic behaiour of some directors #ho did not #ant to collaborate #ith the %rocess" the A4A has
become a must for all moies that include animals' (he A4A has eoled dramaticall!" e5%anding their
&no#ledge and hel% not onl! to moies" but also teleision and commercials to name a fe#'
(he A4A is a non;%rofit organization that hel%s during the shooting of moies including animals"
b! haing their e5%erts on;set ma&ing sure no animal is harm during the filming' For this %ur%ose" A4A
%ublished (he American Humane Association's Guidelines for the Safe Use of Animals in Filmed
Media" #hich oer time has increased its number of %ages" from the sh! tri;fold .Safet! 8ulletin/ in 1988
to the s%iral;bound" hard;co%! editions free of charge the! distribute to %roductions" industr! %ersonnel
and members of the %ublic" #ho can do#nload it from their #eb;site'
9o#ada!s the guidelines sho# s%ecific data about a large ariet! of s%ecies" including in its
sub;categories1 felines" canines" birds" re%tils and #ildlife among others' (his s%ecifications are incredible
useful and regulate animal treatment for all s%ecies' From a common fl! or fish to huge African
mammels' (here are s%ecial recommendations and safet! tools #hen trans%orting animals" feeding and
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the amount of hours the! are allo#ed to #or&' Accidents inoling animals hae declined since the
a%%earing of A4A*s @uidelines' A fact that deseres great admiration" considering the! get no mone! for
their amazing humanitarian action'
(he A4A re%resentaties on;set hae been trained for the A4A" %assing a lot of testing before
being able to actuall! monitore a set' (he! are or hae been eterinarian or %eo%le #ho hae #or&ed in
animal shelters or animal #elfare organizations'
(he end;credit .9o Animals #ere 4armed/" #hich became a trademar& for the A4A onl!" is one
of the tools the A4A uses to call 7irectors attention to#ards this organization and to create a concious
mind among the audience and the industr! of film;ma&ing' (his end;credit is gien to all %roductions that
a%%roe #ith good 0ualifications the A4A standars for animal treatment on;set' If the! do not follo#
strictil! the s%ecifications of the A4A*s @uidelines" moie %roductions ma! receie a monitored:
Acce%table" ,nacce%table" 8eliee Acce%table or sim%l! 9ot;Monitored'
Another im%ortant reason for calling the A4A to su%erise a moie is that in case of an accident"
the! are the onl! acreditaded entit! that can assure to audiencesthat it #as in fact an accident due to
s%ecial circumstances and not unhumane treatment to animals'
Salma 4a!e& #as attac&ed on;set b! a ca%uchinno mon&e! that #as su%%osed to %la! her
com%anion %et on the moie: .Frida/' (he in$ures #ere so serious that she suffered nere and ligament
damage' (his is $ust one e5am%le that sho#s the dangers that carries haing animals interacting #ith
actors' Animals are used li&e %rom%ts on a moie and een if" in fact film %roducers are a#are of the right
%rocess the! should follo#" accidents can still ha%%en' (hat is #h! the role of the A4A is e5tremel!
im%ortant for the 4oll!#ood industr! and animals" of course'
(he moie .Free =ill!/ +1))2-" #as seen b! millions of children all oer the #orld and though it
had a %ositie message" it also sho#ed us the sad stor! of Aei&o +=ill! in the moie-' .Free =ill!/ sho#ed
ho# a little bo! hel%ed an orca; #hale being released free onto the ocean' Aei&o in fact" #as a ca%tie
#hale and throughout the #orld the #ord s%read about releasing free the real #hale' (his cam%aign #as
succesful' (hrough man! months Aei&o #as %re%ared to get bac& to the ocean and start liing life as the
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#ild mammel he once #as' Orcas need their families' (he! lie in large grou%s' Aei&o #as ta&en a#a!
from his famil! #hen he #as t#o !ears old' Aei&o slo#l!" #ith the hel% of the 9or#egian goernment"
returned to his life in the ocean and started to eat fish b! himself' Although man! efforts #ere made b!
the s%ecialists" Aei&o died in 2002 due to %neumonia'
(echnolog! is the best friend animals can hae' It can re%lace them and no harm them at all'
Li&e circuses that sho# %eo%le acting out as acrobats instead of animals" the moie industr! and
animals can no# rel! on technolog! so that eer!one can achiee their goal' Animal #elfare
organizations on one hand" hae one great argument and an alternatie to gie to the industr! and it
costs less for film ma&ers" to hae digital animation instead of real;life animals on the set'
(he constant adances in technolog! hae been amazing' In some scenes !ou cannot tell #hich
animal is real and #hich one is not' (he digital animation as also been of great hel% to animals' Animation
moies hae re%lace real;life animals' In .@arfield/ +2006- #e see a mi5 of animatronic characters and
real;life animals" along #ith digital animation altogether' (his &ind of #or& gies s%lendid results and is a
great e5am%le of ho# #ith a litlle bit of imagination and ho%e !ou can hae the same results and een
lo#er the costs of a %roduction b! haing a ariet! of techni0ues used in sets'
Aein <ostner*s 7ance #ith =oles featured t#ent!;three animatronic buffalos to assure no
animals #ere being $eo%ardize in the filming of the great buffalo hunt scene' As technolog! eoles" more
and more scenes no# can be done through animatronics and s%ecial effects'
(he moie <ats and 7ogs +2001- has some of the finest s%ecial effects in industr!' (heir most
challeging $ob #as tr!ing to ma&e the fur on the %u%%ets loo& real' (he! achieed this tas& b!
researching a series of mathematical com%utations in the com%uter that made 1? million hairs moe in
unison and indiiduall!' Man! %u%%eters #ere em%lo!ed during the shooting of this film' Mr' (#in&les
onl!" the #hite cat that had bad tem%er and lied in the mansion" needed four %u%%eters in order to moe
as re0uired'
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Animal actors #or& seeral hours;a;da! $ust li&e normal humans actors do' (he! hae to be
s%eciall! trained and the best #a! to get them to do a s%ecific tas& is to gie them a %ositie
reinforcement1 food' 6er! animal has its faourite treat and trainers are a#are of their animals
%references' (he! can be sim%le to!s sometimes or sim%l! cheese' Some animals can een be famous
and hae their o#n manager' Animal handlers can earn millions of dollars $ust b! haing a great animal
actor' (o be &no#n and be in a 7irector*s mind for a %ro$ect" an animal actor needs to be friendl! #ith
their co;#or&ersand" #hether the! are human or not" and be er! fle5ible" because sometimes a 7irector
can changed his mind oer a scene and the animal actor has to be read! for this &ind of changes' (he
most e5%ensie animal to hae on;set is the grizzl! bear" that can cost u% to B20"000 %er da!C
(here are a lot of animal actor agencies that can teach animals to act and ma&e them famous'
9o#ada!s this agencies are full! a#are of the treatment animals hae to receie so there are %racticall!
no re%orts of un%ro%er treatment to animals' (he %rofits the! made out of the animals the! trained are
huge'
7ogs" &no#n as the men*s best friend" hae been the most outstanding stars in moie industr!'
Some of these dogs hae been in the minds of %eo%le for oer ?0 !ears" and are hard to forget' Animals
are s%ecial" the! can trasmit %ossitie messages and educate a #hole generation through the moies
the! act in' =e should not forget the effort made b! A4A" because if it #ere not for their endless efforts
and &indness" %erha%s #e #ould not hae that man! amazing films featuring animals' It is im%ortant to
&no# that animals in the film industr! hae their o#n .bod!guard/" in #ich #e can rel! on and be sure
that #hile #e are being entertained animals are not being harmed' A fact that should not been ta&e
slightl! #hen #e thin& that most animal inoling moies are #atched b! children'
(he most famous dog in film histor! is Din (in (in' (his german she%erd dog has a fantastic
arrial stor! to 4oll!#ood' 4e #as found b! <or%oral Lee 7ucan #hen he insisted in chec&ing the
suriors of a bomb dro%%ed in France" during =orld =ar I' (he onl! suriing %u%%! #as Din (in (in"
and so" it #as brought to the ,S" #here at a dog sho# he #as discoered and listed to start ma&ing
moies' (he loe of 7uncan to#ards animals is an e5am%le of ho# !ou can treat animals #ith res%ect
and ho# affectionate treatment can teach" a sim%le dog to act' (he moies of Din (in (in constitute an
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e5ce%tion because Din (in (in did all of his tric&s and did not hae stunts dogs behind them li&e most
animal actors hae no#ada!s' 4e #as an intelligent dog that continued amusing the famil! than&s to the
breeding %rogram created b! 7uncan" that #as follo#ed" een after his dead and continues u% to toda!'
Another im%ortant celebrit! dog is =izard of Oz*s (oto" #ho in the moie is refered as a he" but
#as in fact a female' (oto along #ith Lassie" #ho is the res%onsable for ma&ing the <ollie breed &no#n
all oer the #orld" #ere e5tremel! releant animal actors and #ere o#ned b! the same famil!" so !ou can
imagine the mone! these dogs #ere gien to their o#ners' (he animal bussinness has changed a lot
since those earl! !ears' Academies and schools for animal actors hae boomed all around the globe'
Purchasing a lion is a lot more easier no# than thirt! !ears ago' (he agencies can su%l! from insects to
dangerous felines #ithout an! trouble' All of this adances hae a had a huge im%act in ma&ing easier to
hae an animal cre# on the set'
(he 1)61 teleision series .6d/ had a horse as the star of its sho#' (he horse #as in fact a zebra
that had been trained in the %o%ular .animal su%ermar&et/1 3ungleland' (he zebra fulfilled the
re0uirements li&e1 o%ening and closing its mouth and &ic&ing the ground #ith its leg' Of course the
audience did not notice this change of characters because teleision #as blac& and #hite onl! at that
time'
(he 2001 .7r' 7olittle 2/" sho#ed great techni0ues regardind the shooting of scenes #here
different s%ecies needed to be on camera all together' (he! used a techni0ue called motion control #hich
insisted in %lacing the animal one b! one and then" in the editing %rocess it #ould a%%ear as if it #as shot
in one ta&e' Eou could not notice the difference' (he blue;screen techni0ue also made it %ossible to shot
scenes #here animals seemed to be in danger' A bait stic& #ith food #as used to get the bears to loo& or
moe in a certain direction' =hen it a%%ears as if Mur%h! and the bear are on screen together it #as
actuall! filmed as s%lit screen F for the safet! of all inoled' S%lit screens are often used #hen the
7irector needs a shoot in #hich normall!" animals #ould fight or could be in$ured'
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8abe" the moie that told the stor! of a little %igg! liing in a farm and interacting #ith animals"
used nine hundred and seent! animals and most of the scenes #ere shot in cuts' (his techni0ue allo#s
to deelo% incredible scenes and ma&es them loo& real for ie#ers'
(he Fort! !ear old Girgin +200H-: (his moie #as rated Monitored ,nacce%table due to an
accident in a scene #here e5otic fish #ere needed' (he fish remained in the tan& after the %roduction left
and hae shut off the electricit! so the tan& #as not getting %ro%er aeration and the fish #ere found dead
the ne5t morning'
3uman$i +1))H-" a moie that featured dozens of animal action scenes" in realit! used onl! t#o
lie horses and a dog' (he rest of the moie #as made either b! using animatronics or com%uter
generated images'
=hen !ou go see a moie" #hether is at the theatre or at home" !ou do not instantl! thin& about
ho# the scenes #ere shot' Sometimes to ma&e a t#ent!;seconds scene the trainers need a #ee&*s $ob to
finish those short t#ent! seconds'
Moie ma&ers that do not as& for the A4A*s hel% are fe#' <ouncious among the film industr! has
s%read" and een if the %roductions are filmed abroad" some smart %roducers still call the A4A to hel%
them in scenes inoling animals'
I loe #acthing moies #ere animals actuall! act' I found it amazing ho# the trainers and animal
handlers can ma&e them act $ust li&e humans and sometimes" een doing a better $ob because luc&il!"
animals do not forget their linesC
,nhumane animal treatment in entertainment is a #ide sub$ect' Most of the different to%ics are
connected1 circuses %oor conditions" illegal mar&et of e5otic %ets and so on' (he fact that shoc&ed me the
most" #as reading about #ildlife %ar&s that li&e to be refered as .Sanctuaries/" #hen in fact all the! do is
breeding s%ecies that the! &no# in a fe# months #ould not longer be used' I thin& 4oll!#ood has not
been a hel%ful enironment for animals' In order to entertain audiences and onl! thin&ing in their incomes
and being a bo5 office boom" the! hae been gien the #rong message to the audiences that reall! care
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about the animals used in film %roduction' It is eas! to get the animals the! #ant and %a! the trainers to
do their $ob" and een reall! ma&e sure that the animals the! are using in their %roductions are being
%ro%erl! fed and hae all their basic needs and more coered' 8ut that is not the end of the %roduction"
that is $ust the beginning of the endless road animals go through #hen a moie ends'
=ildlife %ar&s that su%%l! 4oll!#ood #ith animals are not being highl! monitored' (his
organizations hide behind the #ords .%ar&/" .%reseration %rograms/ and some other terms that are far
a#a! from being truthful to their actiities' Animals &e%t in cages for amusement of isitors are er! much
unacce%table' (hese %ar&s act li&e zoos in order to ma&e mone! to &ee% the animals needs coered'
A%%arentl! the mone! the! made is not enough" and it is no #onder" since animals are e5%ensie to
&ee%" s%eciall! if the! are e5otic s%ecies or eat large amounts of food" li&e most animal actors are'
It is sad to see that %eo%le do not get the sense that animal &ingdom #as here on earth een
before us' (he! are born to be free" not &e%t in small cages #al&ing around in their o#n organic
%roduction'
I am glad that there are some %eo%le that are interested in the #elfare of animals" s%eciall! in
moie %roduction' =hen I started loo&ing for data I #as sur%rised to see that the ,S had an s%ecific
organization to monitore animals on;set'
It is a great e5am%le of humanit! that should be co%ied #orl#ide'
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8ibliogra%h!
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htt%:II###'%a#s#eb'orgIsiteIresourcesIfactsheetJmoiesJt'htm
htt%:IIt#mag'comI#esternsI#estern;animalsJharmedJ02J06'htm
###'aha'com
htt%:II###'d%i'ic'go'auId%iInreninf'nsfILin&Gie#IH012026?)F0A8)H><A2H6<1)0006F8F1F00
L7H71AL6<66>F?A2H676A002LAL20
htt%:II###'#ildlife%im%s'comI4=AP'%df
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