Archive · 29 Aug 2026
Filmmakers Blend Puppetry and CGI for More Tangible Magic
Many filmmakers are using real puppets and creatures again instead of relying only on computers.
Computers can make characters move in almost any way, but physical puppets have limits.
Those limits can make performances feel more natural and funny.
Actors can look at, touch and react to something that is really there.
Real creatures also create actual shadows, reflections and lighting on a film set.
Star Wars used this approach for Yoda and Grogu.
Other examples include Jurassic Park, Pinocchio and Five Nights at Freddy’s.
In a world filled with digital images and artificial effects, handmade characters can feel more special because viewers can see the work and imperfections behind them.
Major film and television franchises are reviving practical puppets, animatronics and physical creatures alongside CGI.
Star Wars used puppetry for Yoda and later brought Grogu to life with a practical puppet enhanced by digital effects.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds made puppet limitations part of the humor in its puppet-focused episode.
Jurassic Park combined Stan Winston’s practical dinosaurs with CGI from Industrial Light & Magic.
Handmade and animatronic characters give performers physical things to react to and create real light, shadows and reflections.
- Who
- Filmmakers, puppeteers, actors and visual-effects artists, including Frank Oz, Stan Winston, George Lucas and Guillermo del Toro.
- What
- A revival of practical puppets, animatronics, stop-motion puppets and physical creatures used together with CGI.
- When
- The trend is described as continuing from earlier productions into current films and television shows.
- Where
- In major film and television productions, including Star Wars, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Jurassic Park.
- Why
- Physical characters give performers and cinematographers something real to work with, while handmade imperfections can make digital-age entertainment feel more human.
- Core technique
- Practical effects are increasingly being combined with CGI rather than replaced by it.
- Star Wars examples
- Yoda began as a puppet in The Empire Strikes Back, while Grogu was created as an elaborate practical puppet with digital enhancements.
- Television example
- Star Trek: Strange New Worlds used puppets in the episode Level-Five Transporter Accident.
- Jurassic Park
- Stan Winston built large practical creatures, while Industrial Light & Magic created CGI for shots physical models could not achieve.
- Stop-motion example
- Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio used handmade puppets moved frame by frame, supported by digital effects.
- Animatronic example
- Five Nights at Freddy’s used physical animatronic creatures created with help from Jim Henson’s Creature Shop.
- Practical advantage
- Physical characters provide real objects, lighting, reflections, shadows and physical space for productions.