Making a Xenomorph Drone for Aliens (1986)
In this never before seen image behind the scenes of the Aliens movie, creature creator Stan Winston and his lead FX mechanic, Richard Landon, prepare the hero Alien Drone puppet for its debut on set at Pinewood Studios.
To make the cable-actuated xenomorph puppet more maneuverable, the SWS crew loaded the cables & controllers onto a wagon so they could quickly reposition the cable-controlled Alien to perform wherever director James Cameron wanted it to.
Unlike the slow-moving horror of the original Alien creature as established by Ridley Scott, James Cameron created a film in which the xenomorphs would be fast, active and dynamic.
To achieve the range of action & mobility required by Cameron's vision, the Stan Winston Studio team created many different versions of the Aliens depending on whatever the shot called for: hero insert puppets with articulated upper torso, mechanical lips, tongue, and jaw for closeups; lightweight black "Alien" leotards covered in polyfoam for stunt performers to wear in action shots; and poseable alien warrior figures for blowing up, setting on fire, running over & for stunts too dangerous for stuntmen to perform.
In the final Aliens film, even though Stan Winston and his team only built 12 alien suits, James Cameron managed to create the illusion of an entire alien army and make FX history by using every trick in the book.
(Stan Winston and Richard Landon prepare the hero Alien Drone puppet for its debut on set at Pinewood Studios.)