Jurassic Park's "Velociraptors in the Kitchen" sequence terrified audiences with its prehistoric twist on a cat-and-mouse game. The scene remains a cinema classic, featuring a groundbreaking blend of Stan Winston Studio's practical creature effects, men in suits, puppetry & Industrial Light & Magic's CGI, combined with Steven Spielberg's directorial skills at his tension-building finest.
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The sequence took about two weeks to shoot, with Stan Winston Studio artists John Rosengrant and Mark 'Crash' McCreery performing in the Raptor suits they helped to create.
In this on-set rehearsal footage, you can see the walking Raptor leg rig test for the kitchen Raptor scene with John Rosengrant in the suit:
Performing Inside the Suit
The artists and technicians who often spend weeks or months designing and building a character ultimately rely on the suit performer to bring that character to life.
"All of their work can be for nothing if you can't bring that character to life inside the suit," John Rosengrant noted. "In the past, there have been times when a character we put a lot of care into was not as good as it could have been because the performance wasn't there. That's why people who do this work are so often driven to perform in the suits themselves. It is a way to maintain control over what you've created. Being in those suits is so difficult and is such a pain in the ass; you have to be motivated to do it. You have to have a vested interest in the character, and no one has more of a vested interest than the people who created it. Performers who aren't that motivated will get fed up with physical discomfort, heat, and inability to breathe. They will likely say: 'Get me out of this stupid thing. It's not working.' Of course, it could work — you have to have someone more committed to making it work."
(John Rosengrant, with the help of Jeff Edwards, Karen Mason, Patrick Shearn, and Marilyn Dozer Chaney, suits up for the walking Raptor leg rig test at Stan Winston Studio.)
Filming the Kitchen Scene for Jurassic Park
The first scene filmed with John Rosengrant in the suit involved a Raptor entering the Visitors Center's kitchen doorway where John Hammond's grandchildren, Alexa (Ariana Richards) and her brother Tim (Joseph Mazzello), are hiding. The Raptor stands in the door, raises up on its hind legs, looks around, and hoots.
(John Rosengrant, with the help of Rich Haugen and Jeff Edwards, rehearses wearing the walking Raptor leg rig.)
"That was my first big scene, and as I was getting ready to do it, it occurred to me that it was a big deal. I didn't have stage fright because I had rehearsed that moment repeatedly. I'd practiced so much and could have done it in my sleep. But suddenly, as I was about to do the scene, I realized I had to be prepared to do whatever Steven asked of me, not just those specific moves. Fortunately, it all worked out fine. That was my big starring moment — my fifteen seconds of fame!"
(Under Stan Winston's supervision, John Rosengrant tests the walking Raptor leg rig with the help of SWS crew members, including Shane Mahan, Patrick Shearn, and Rich Haugen.)
(Rehearsing the walking Raptor leg rig at Stan Winston Studio for use in the Jurassic Park kitchen scene.)
(Stan Winston evaluates the Raptor legs during a walking Raptor leg rig test.)
How to Make a Raptor Suit
The kitchen Raptor attack scene used a number of Raptor puppets and rigs. Some shots featured John Rosengrant and Mark 'Crash' McCreery in the Raptor suits. For other shots, a Raptor puppet was attached to a rod through a slot in the floor and moved on a dolly below the kitchen set. Sometimes, when kitchen countertops hid parts of the Raptor from the frame, the crew used the Raptor insert heads or half-puppets mounted to dollies.
Watch how the Raptor suits were created for Jurassic Park, including the 'kitchen scene" here:
For more, WATCH Jurassic Party Part 1: Jurassic Park Dinosaur Crew Reunion here:
Blog assembled by Adrienn Lingurár with selections from The Winston Effect: The Art and History of Stan Winston Studio by Jody Duncan
Courses with the Creators of Jurassic Park
- Hybrid Characters: Blending Practical & Digital FX with John Rosengrant
- Hybrid Character Design: Practical To Digital with Christopher Swift
- Special Effects Sequence Design with Shane Mahan
- Oversized Eyes Part 2: Molding & Casting with Rob Hinderstein
- Oversized Eyes Part 3: Paint Layering & Finishing with Rob Hinderstein
- Animatronics Design Basics with Richard Landon
- Cable Mechanism Basics - Tentacles with Richard Landon
- Animation For Animatronics Part 1: Intro To Pololu, Maya & AnimServo with Craig Caton-Largent
- How To Build An Animatronic Head Part 1 - Creating Mechanical Underskull with Craig Caton-Largent
- Mastering Effects Disasters - Explode A Head with Andy Schoneberg
- Remote Makeup Application Part 1: Prosthetic & Kit Preparation with Andy Schoneberg
- Garage Monsters - How To Make Creature FX On A Budget with Shannon Shea
- The Business Of Making Monsters - Part 1 with Shannon Shea
TO CREATE YOUR OWN DINOSAUR, CHECK OUT THESE COURSES:
- How To Sculpt A Dinosaur Part 1 - Armature Building & Sculpting Primary Forms
- How To Sculpt A Dinosaur Part 2 - Secondary Forms & Finishing Techniques
- How To Make A Dinosaur - Part One: Design, Foam Carving & Fabrication
- How To Make A Dinosaur – Part Two: Carving Teeth, Adding Detail & Texture
- How To Make A Dinosaur - Part Three: Painting & Finishing