Long overlooked for his contributions to the craft of creating the digital character of Jar Jar Binks, Ahmed Best broke so much ground while working on The Phantom Menace it’s almost laughable, and here he chats with StarWars.com about the process of bringing the hapless Gungan hero to life as we continue to celebrate 25 years of Episode I.
On the day he screen-tested for Jar Jar Binks, Ahmed Best didn’t expect to meet George Lucas. Arriving at Industrial Light & Magic’s (ILM) facility in San Rafael, California, Best was greeted in the main lobby by statues of Han Solo in carbonite and the Energizer Bunny (for which ILM produced commercials). “Everyone knew it was a visual effects house, but I didn’t know how many things were done there,” he tells StarWars.com. “ILM runs that gamut. You can be the Energizer Bunny or Han Solo and everything in between. I was really excited walking through there and thinking, this is a place of infinite possibilities and creativity.”
Best’s next surprise was the format in which his screen test would be shot. A soundstage that looked more like an average warehouse had been converted into a motion-capture volume, technology that was brand new to filmmaking. “They pull out this LYCRA cat suit and say, ‘Put this on,’” Best recalls. “I was like, ‘What is actually going on in here? What am I going to be doing?’ [laughs] They gave me the cat suit and six-inch platform shoes and a headband. They had all of what we now know as targets on them. They were huge. Targets now are really tiny. At the time they were like golf balls.”
It’s a full and fascinating interview conducted by Lucas Seastrom, well worth taking some time to dive into.
