How many props has Adam Savage inspected very closely in his career? Tens of thousands? How many props has the man built? Also probably some huge number. So when the former Mythbuster and master of the one-day build says that Major’s robot skeleton from the upcoming live-action version of Ghost in the Shell is a “masterpiece,” it’s probably worth perusing.
The Major’s assembly (birth?) sequence is an iconic part of the original 1995 film in which machine becomes man, so it makes sense that the filmmakers behind the live-action version—out March 31—would want to make something truly stunning for a prop skeleton. Weta Workshop, a company whose special effects and props have appeared in a huge number of blockbuster films, took on this task, and as Savage’s palpable excitement verifies, they did an amazing job.
Savage, who’s recently looked at other insane Ghost in the Shell props, notes at the beginning of the video that Major’s endoskeleton is “one of the loveliest props that [he’s] ever seen up close” and once he actually lays eyes on it he gives it something truly special: a double-holy moly.
Jared Haley, the man across from Savage in the video with the delightful accent, is a technician at Weta, and he gives a rundown of how the endoskeleton was made: utilizing 300-400 separate 3-D printed components, hundreds of hours of 3-D printing, and about a month’s worth of work all in.
Perhaps the most notable aspect of a prop like this is the fact that Weta had to one-up any possible CGI version of the endoskeleton, meaning they had to bring a real physical object to life just as intricate and polished as the virtual one. The effort clearly paid off, with Savage noting that “it doesn’t matter how close you get to [the endoskeleton], the beauty of the fine detail is extant at every scale.”
What do you think about this “masterpiece” endoskeleton? Let us know in the comments below!
Images: Tested
