Have you been following along with the Country Bears movie story? If you are catching this one in the middle, I suggest that you take a moment to review Part One and Part Two first.  Now, on with the show . . .

The Country Bears was now in full production. All of the performers were rehearsing full swing. Programming was going well and Big Al finally got his brows working.

For Big Al, my partner and I ran into a couple of problems. The suit weighed quite a bit but the main challenge was the head. Big Al’s head weighed about 80 pounds and sat in front of the performer, professional suit performer John Alexander.

In order for John to work at all, bungee cords had to be attached to his back to balance the weight of the head. He could only stay in the suit for about 30 minutes at a time. The suit was so bulky that we had to devise a way for Big Al to move. That’s the main purpose of rehearsal.

I encourage you to go back and watch the film.  Here are a few tidbits for you to consider.

• Each team for Ted, Tennessee, Fred and all the other bears had to devise the movements for each character. Every movement is worked out and polished.

• For example, Fred bear’s legs are short and hit the actual performer at the knees. This means that Keifan, the performer, had to work out the walk by moving only his legs below the knee.

In my case, Big Al was so large and heavy that John and I came up with a shuffle much like a Japanese Geisha. It turned out to be very funny. But, it was the only way that John could move under the tremendous weight of this suit.

Terri poses between programming Big Al head.
Terri poses between programming Big Al head.

 

Big Al was big and cumbersome.
Big Al was big and cumbersome.

We worked a lot with Christopher Walken. He chuckled and asked if that was as fast as we were going to walk, and Big Al replied, “What are you talking about?”

Everyone laughed.

Christopher Walken rehearses with Big Al.
Christopher Walken rehearses with Big Al.

• In the scene where Beary Bear runs home through the field, the performer Misty couldn’t see.

The puppeteers all had to work out a way control the animatronic bear heads so the performers in the suits could see through the mouths of the figure. But to just leave the mouth wide open would look weird.

For Beary to run in that field, spotters were hidden along the path in key positions to keep Misty safe. Misty ran full tilt through the entire length of over half a football field practically blind. It’s really an amazing performance.

I promised to discuss the singing in this film. As you may remember, Tennessee finds his beloved Trixie singing in a hotel lounge. Trixie is doing her best to achieve her dream but no one is really listening as she finishes her tune.

The idea behind this scene in the script was that once Tennessee sees Trixie and they sing their duet the film would cut to a montage of the two of them jumping in slow motion holding hands, him giving her flowers and a bunch of cheesy stuff like that.

I hated that part of the script. Luckily for me, so did team Tennessee. As a group we vowed to practice hard and really do the best job we could with the song, hoping they would keep it without a cheesy cut-away.

As you know if you’ve seen the film, we were successful. Yes, we did it, but it was anything but easy.

Tennessee and Trixie’s teams were given the track of the song, sung by Bonnie Raitt and Don Henley. We practiced and practiced with the performers out of suit, but once the suits went on the performers, Trixie had a few challenges.

Imagine a singer on the stage. She takes the microphone in her hand and brings it to her lips and begins her song. For Trixie Bear, this became a huge challenge as the performer inside the suit needs to see in order to pick up the microphone and the puppet performer needs Trixie to look natural when she does this.

In rehearsal, I left Trixie’s mouth hanging wide open so that Denise could practice grabbing the microphone and bringing it to her lips.

Here is a way you can see what this looks like. Hold your mouth open wide and pretend a performer is looking out from your mouth. Now tilt your head in every direction trying to see the microphone with your limited view.

Trixie’s head flopped all over the place as Denise tried to locate the microphone. We had to work over and over and over to get this part to look natural. So when you watch the film look at that very carefully. You’ll see that in order for Denise to see the microphone, I make Trixie take a little breath with her mouth so that Denise gets a quick glimpse of her goal, then we just go for it.

Also, when we were singing the song, my control system began to disintegrate right under my hands. I worked hard to keep going but finally had to yell “cut.”

Terri at her control center for The Country Bears.
Terri at her control center for The Country Bears.

The Jim Henson Creature Shop and the performers had code words that we’d say over the intercom when a problem arose. This is to protect the powers that be as they might panic or get upset if they knew what was really happening.

So, when my control fell apart, I used the code word “Jeff to puppeteer station.”

The director came on the intercom and asked me what was going on, and I told him I just needed Jeff and to please stand by.

As with any film, the response that came back from on high was that we needed to get going again right away.

When Jeff came back and saw the condition of my control system he shook his head and smiled. My system was a mess. He got on the intercom and reported that he needed five minutes. Production responded with a “copy that,” and Jeff thanked me for using the code.

As you know, we got the shot and it looked so good that production scrapped the montage. I tend to cry every time I watch that scene, as Trixie and Tennessee look so good and really look in love.

We got to meet Bonnie and Don, they both came back to the puppet station to see us and tell us that we were amazing. It was a great feeling.

I could tell you so much more about the Country Bears film, but I’d like to conclude with this. We got to film at the Disney Ranch. Many of my friends got in touch with me as they had heard about this and wanted to know if there was any way they could get on the set to not only see the film but to see the ranch as well.

The only way anyone got to see the Disney Ranch at that time was to shoot there. As you look at the film and watch the final scene when Country Bear Hall is saved, you may recognize a few faces in the crowd. The production needed extras. Extras are a group of people who help fill out a scene as background crowds. They create the background for the main actors to act in front of, but aren’t main performers or speaking roles.

Many extras don’t really like being extras as they are hopeful actors who really just want lines to speak. This was the case with the Country Bears. Many just hated to be there and the director was getting discouraged.

I suggested that I could get a huge group of extras that would not only love to be there but be enthusiastic about being there as well. I put out an email, spoke to some Disney collector groups as well as posted on Facebook letting everyone know we needed extras for the final scene in the film. So many applied and they came from all over. Look carefully and you may see some folks you know. The director was so please, and he just loved the enthusiasm so much that he gave many of them a close-up shot.

Best of all, the extras got paid. The director got a kick to hear that most were happy just to be there and to walk the Ranch where Spin and Marty was filmed. Many of my friends who got in as extras didn’t want to cash the check as it had a picture of Mickey Mouse on it. I suggested they take a color photocopy first and then cash the check.

And there you have it, a look behind the camera at the filming of The Country Bears.

The cast and crew of the Country Bears, with Terri upfront and center.
The cast and crew of the Country Bears, with Terri upfront and center.

 

Let me know if you have a burning desire to hear a particular story in the coming weeks.

FEEDBACK

There were a few comments for the last article. Again I say thanks for taking the time.

To all of you , Yes, I do encourage you to take a look at the film again and let me know your thoughts after you have.

For Dusty Sage, I’m sure you saw the picture this week I found of me at the controls.

Enjoy and see you all Next Year!

PERSONAL UPDATE

Ready or not, HERE comes the NEW YEAR!

I sure hope you had a lovely Christmas. Mine was short, sweet and simple, just the way I like it. I baked. Christmas is the one time that all bets are off and I bake cookies with sugar, cream, and butter. Nothing says the Holidays better then the smell of cookies, cakes and candies being created in the kitchen. Yum!

No one enjoyed Christmas more then my little Bulldog Tillie.

Here’s Tillie playing with her gift from Santa.
Here’s Tillie playing with her gift from Santa.

Today is New Years Eve and All I can think of is WOW! The year sure did fly by fast. Are you thinking the same?

This day also signifies the time of resolutions and declarations. And just like you, I have a few on my list. Okay, Okay, this day also means a truly kicking party at Disneyland. No one does New Years Eve like Disneyland.

I know they say that resolutions are made to be broken, but why should we conform to the norm? I mean, since when is normal so fun anyway?

When you speak what you would like, even if you have no idea how you may achieve it, amazing things can happen. For example, ever since I was a kid, I’ve wanted to ride the Goodyear Blimp. I knew the only way I could ride it was by invite-only and I had NO idea how I was going to get to do it. And then, as if by magic, it happened.

Terri as she is about to ride the Goodyear Blimp.
Terri as she is about to ride the Goodyear Blimp.

If I can do it so can you.

Stand tall and speak out loud that which you wish to achieve in the New Year, you can do whatever you set your mind on doing.

For my first resolution, I will focus on getting more of my sculptures available for all of you who have been so kind to ask me. Thanks for that. It’s been a battle to get some of the people in key positions to listen to me, but I vow to continue to fight the good fight and get some pieces out there for you to collect.

My second resolution is to inspire as many as I can to rise above adversity and strive for their dreams. Strive for your dreams and don’t allow the negative to defeat you.

I just ran the Dopey race at Walt Disney World and now I’m about to go do it again. So many told me that I was too old or that it was too late, but I listened to the people who gave me positive support. That’s how I achieved this goal. Plus, this year I have the pleasure of inspiring others to come out and run with me.

I recently took my lovely husband on a train trip. If you love trains this trip doesn’t cost much and is great fun.

Here’s the Surfliner an amazing Amtrak train to San Diego that rides along the coast of California.
Here’s the Surfliner, an amazing Amtrak train to San Diego that rides along the coast of California.

My husband loves trains. So we decided to buzz down to San Diego from Los Angeles. We mainly wanted to ride the train up and back. But we did stay for a couple of days.

Because we love Space, we decided to go to the Air and Space Museum in Balboa Park. I would’ve been an astronaut if I didn’t get so motion sick. So we did the next best thing.

Terri at the Air and Space Museum San Diego, she’s such a space squid.
Terri at the Air and Space Museum San Diego, she’s such a space squid.

I hope that you have had a wonderful holiday and a great new year! Thank you for making time for me in 2014, I really look forward to being here with you again in 2015. Let’s make it an amazing year!

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Terri Hardin Jackson
Terri Hardin has designed attractions as a Disney Imagineer from 1987-1997. She's also a Jim Henson Puppeteer and has worked on over 42 film and TV projects including Ghostbusters & Captain EO. She currently creates Disney collectables and plays a Foster Farms Chicken.