Mak Wilson (born 3 September 1957) is an English puppeteer, writer, CG animation director, and mocap artist. He is also known as Mac Wilson and Malcolm Wilson.

Early life and career

Wilson was born in Consett,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, but grew up in nearby

Stanley, County Durham Stanley is a former colliery town and civil parish in County Durham, North East England. Centred on a hilltop between Chester-le-Street and Consett, the town lies south west of Gateshead. Stanley was formerly divided into three distinct sett ...

. He began his professional career in 1973 at the age of 15, but his screen physical performer and puppeteering work started in 1981 with ''

The Dark Crystal ''The Dark Crystal'' is a 1982 dark fantasy film directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz. It stars the voices of Stephen Garlick, Lisa Maxwell, Billie Whitelaw, Percy Edwards, and Barry Dennen. The film was produced by ITC Entertainment and The ...

''. Wilson had previously toured on stage where he often did mime, mask and puppeteering. From 1990 he became head puppeteer and creative advisor for the London

Jim Henson's Creature Shop Jim Henson's Creature Shop is a special/visual effects company founded in 1979 by puppeteer Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets. The company is based out of Burbank, California, United States. History Jim Henson's Creature Shop was originally ...

, but when it closed down in 2005 Mak Wilson began freelancing and worked extensively with the BBC. He was forced to retire in 2014 after his longstanding M.E./C.F.S. became too severe for him to continue.

Filmography

Film

* ''

Muppets Most Wanted ''Muppets Most Wanted'' is a 2014 American musical crime comedy film and the eighth theatrical film featuring the Muppets. Directed by James Bobin and written by Bobin and Nicholas Stoller, the film is a sequel to ''The Muppets'' (2011) and sta ...

'' - UK principle puppeteer * ''

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' (sometimes referred to as ''HG2G'', ''HHGTTG'', ''H2G2'', or ''tHGttG'') is a comedy science fiction franchise created by Douglas Adams. Originally a 1978 radio comedy broadcast on BBC Radio 4, it ...

'' -

Vogon The Vogons are a fictional alien race from the planet Vogsphere in ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy''—initially a BBC Radio series by Douglas Adams—who are responsible for the destruction of the Earth, in order to facilitate an interga ...

Interpreter (voice) * '' Mee-Shee: The Water Giant'' - CGI animation director and CGI realtime puppeteer * '' Buddy'' - animatronic face puppeteer of Buddy * ''

Doctor Dolittle Doctor John Dolittle is the central character of a series of children's books by Hugh Lofting starting with the 1920 '' The Story of Doctor Dolittle''. He is a physician who shuns human patients in favour of animals, with whom he can speak in th ...

'' - animatronic puppetry advisor * ''

Lost In Space ''Lost in Space'' is an American science fiction television series, created and produced by Irwin Allen, which originally aired between 1965 and 1968 on CBS. The series was inspired by the 1812 novel ''The Swiss Family Robinson.'' The series fo ...

'' - CGI animation director and CGI realtime puppeteer * ''

Muppet Treasure Island ''Muppet Treasure Island'' is a 1996 American musical swashbuckler comedy film directed by Brian Henson. It is the fifth theatrical film in ''The Muppets'' franchise. Adapted from the 1883 novel ''Treasure Island'' by Robert Louis Stevenson, ...

'' - CGI realtime puppeteer and singer * ''

The Adventures of Pinocchio ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' ( ; it, Le avventure di Pinocchio ; commonly shortened to ''Pinocchio'') is a children's fantasy novel by Italian author Carlo Collodi. It is about the mischievous adventures of an animated marionette named Pi ...

'' - Lead animatronic puppeteer * ''

Loch Ness Loch Ness (; gd, Loch Nis ) is a large freshwater loch in the Scottish Highlands extending for approximately southwest of Inverness. It takes its name from the River Ness, which flows from the northern end. Loch Ness is best known for claim ...

'' - Animatronic and CGI realtime puppeteer * ''

Babe Babe or babes may refer to: * Babe, a term of endearment * A newborn baby * An attractive (especially female) person People Nickname * Babe Adams (1882–1968), American Major League Baseball pitcher * Babe Barna (1917–1972), American Maj ...

'' - Lead animatronic puppeteer and coordinator * ''

Who Framed Roger Rabbit ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'' is a 1988 American live-action/animated comedy mystery film directed by Robert Zemeckis, produced by Frank Marshall and Robert Watts, and loosely adapted by Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman from Gary K. Wolf's 19 ...

'' - FX puppeteer * '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze'' - Lead animatronic puppeteer of Michelangelo, coordinator and the Promoter's Aide * ''

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990 film) ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' is a 1990 American superhero film directed by Steve Barron from a screenplay by Todd W. Langen and Bobby Herbeck. It is the first film adaptation of the comic book characters created by Kevin Eastman and Peter ...

'' - Lead animatronic puppeteer of Michelangelo * '' The Bear'' - Lead animatronic puppeteer and coordinator * '' Little Shop of Horrors'' - Audrey II lipsync puppeteer and Little Audrey II's vocal effects * '' Santa Claus: The Movie'' - Lead animatronic puppeteer of Donna * ''

Labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth (, ) was an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by t ...

'' - Animatronic face puppeteer of Hoggle, Brickkeeper, Riding Goblin, Shaft of Hands, Goblins * '' Return to Oz'' - Performer of Billina the chicken * '' Greystoke'' - Performer of the ape Figs and vocals of the mother ape Karla * ''

'' - Stand-in performer of Scribe the Mystic

Television

* ''

The Furchester Hotel ''The Furchester Hotel'' is a puppet series that aired on CBeebies (the BBC's preschool network). It is the second British-American spin-off of ''Sesame Street'' that the BBC have made after '' Sesame Tree'' 6 years before. The show ran on CBeeb ...

'' - Harvey P. Dull, Guest characters and Puppeteer Captain - CBeebies/Sesame Street production * ''Mr. Bloom's Nursery'' - Colin the runner bean and Tom the potato * ''CBBC presentation guests'' - puppeteer of a mad rabbit, a wacky octopus and reindeer * ''ABC Bear'' - The Bear and puppet choreographer - Austria * '' Mongrels'' - Guest characters * '' Dr. Who'' - Movement choreographer for Helen McCrory * ''X-Factor with The Muppets'' - puppet choreographer and puppeteer * '' 2007 Brit Awards'' - Opening of the event with the Scissor Sisters - puppet choreographer * '' 2005 Brit Awards'' - Opening of the event with the Scissor Sisters - puppet choreographer * '' Fur TV'' - puppeteer of Lapeno * ''Jack and the Beanstalk-the True Story'' - animatronic puppeteer and CGI animation director * '' Farscape'' - animatronic puppetry teacher * '' Saturday Night Takeaway'' - puppeteer assistant to Kermit the Frog * ''

Fungus the Bogeyman ''Fungus the Bogeyman'' is a 1977 children's picture book by British artist Raymond Briggs. It follows one day in the life of the title character, a working class Bogeyman with the mundane job of scaring human beings. The character and all relate ...

'' - Fungus (through MoCap) * ''

The Hoobs ''The Hoobs'' is a live-action/animated children's television series created and produced by The Jim Henson Company and Decode Entertainment for Channel Four. Five series of 52 episodes were produced. Concept Channel 4 announced in November ...

'' - consultant, OB director, puppet choreographer, puppeteer * '' Mopatop's Shop'' - Mopatop (1999-2001) * " Bits and Bobs" - Developer, Puppet Director * ''

Construction Site Construction is a general term meaning the art and science to form objects, systems, or organizations,"Construction" def. 1.a. 1.b. and 1.c. ''Oxford English Dictionary'' Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) Oxford University Press 2009 and co ...

'' - Lug the Dump Truck, Scooch the Dump Truck - Director and co producer * '' Dinosaurs'' - Face/Head Operation of Earl Sinclair (Seasons 2-4) * '' Jim Henson's Animal Show'' - Yves St. La Roache (1994), Achilles the Shark, Billy Bob the Lemur, Bosko the Baboon, Chauncey the Sea Turtle, Chaz the Chameleon, Chuck the Lion, Clive the Kiwi, Cool the Kangaroo Rat, Dooley the Armadillo, Flora the Koala, Fluke the Dolphin, Harry the Rhinoceros, Leapovitch the Frog, Morton the Beaver, Nippy the Tiger Beetle, Plunk the Sea Otter, Ringo the Elephant, Robert the Red Deer, Sean the Rabbit, Swifty the Cheetah, Victor the Rattlesnake * '' Jim Henson's Mother Goose Stories'' - Various * '' The Ghost of Faffner Hall'' - Farkus Faffner * '' The Storyteller'' - Various Creature Performances

Listed as ‘Crew’ but actually puppeteer

* '' Buddy'' - Animatronic puppeteer and Puppetry Coordinator * ''

'' - Lead Puppeteer * ''

Dr. Dolittle Doctor John Dolittle is the central character of a series of children's books by Hugh Lofting starting with the 1920 ''The Story of Doctor Dolittle''. He is a physician who shuns human patients in favour of animals, with whom he can speak in the ...

'' - Animatronic puppetry teacher * '' Fur TV'' - Puppeteer * '' Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story'' - Lead Puppeteer * '' Jim Henson's Mother Goose Stories'' - Puppet Coordinator * ''

'' - Goblin Performer, Puppeteer * '' Little Shop of Horrors'' - Principal Puppeteer * ''

'' - Lead Puppeteer * ''

Lost in Space ''Lost in Space'' is an American science fiction television series, created and produced by Irwin Allen, which originally aired between 1965 and 1968 on CBS. The series was inspired by the 1812 novel ''The Swiss Family Robinson.'' The series fo ...

'' - "Blawp" animation supervisor * '' Mee-Shee: The Water Giant'' - Animation Director, CGI Puppeteer * '' Mongrels'' - Puppeteer * '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze'' - Face Operation of Michelangelo * ''

'' - Lead Puppeteer * '' The Bear'' - Lead Puppeteer * ''

'' - Part-Time Puppeteer on the Mystics * ''

'' - Puppeteer * ''

'' - Creative Consultant

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Mak British puppeteers 1957 births Living people Muppet performers