Industry veterans Chuck Fawcett and Steve Andersen have just launched their new company, FGR8, the next level of animatronics.
A legacy of magic
Built on a 30+ year legacy of innovation, invention, and magic, FGR8 designs, builds, and delivers detailed animatronic characters, bringing IP and beloved characters and stories to life for the biggest brands in the world. Their work has brought beloved characters to life for major brands and theme parks such as Disney, Universal Studios, DreamWorks, Nickelodeon, Warner Bros., Sesame Workshop, and many more.
“We don’t just create the most realistic and believable animatronics on earth,” says Fawcett, FGR8’s President and Chief Creative Officer, “we create the impossible. FGR8 is not just about carrying on the work we started; it’s about reimagining the potential of animatronics, blending the timeless magic of puppetry with tomorrow’s technology. It’s the Art of Animatronics.”
Fawcett has been making characters look and act real since he was 12 years old. Crafting beloved Sesame Street characters as a young teenager in the early ‘80s, Fawcett continued to bring to life character animatronics for the major studios in theme parks around the world, from big birds to talking mice, wizarding worlds, Jurassic dinos, and more.
Fawcett founded Animax Designs in the ‘80s as a senior in university and quickly turned it into an industry powerhouse.
It’s time for the next level
In this next chapter, Fawcett and his partner Andersen, former EVP and head of operations of Animax, are out to go even further, pushing organically driven animation solutions and soft robotics to their limits. They’re exploring how emerging technologies, like AI, can enhance character interactivity and bring next-level thinking to animatronics design, creation, and control. Fawcett proclaims, “It’s why we came back.”
Andersen, FGR8’s Chief Executive Officer, is by his side, taking customers’ dreams and making them real. “We specialize in the seamless integration of internal robotic systems with external soft figure finish in animatronic characters,” says Andersen. The focus, he says, is on the often-underestimated connective tissue in physical character design, emphasizing the critical relationship between engineered mechanical components and flexible materials.
FGR8 employs advanced design principles and weight optimization techniques to enhance movement and realism, ensuring that the integration process produces characters that exhibit fluidity and authenticity in their actions and interactions. Quips Andersen, “We go ridiculously far to make it real.”
“It’s hard to imagine the groundbreaking innovations that FGR8 will bring to life in the coming years,” says Richard Taylor, Co-CEO and Chief Creative Officer at Wētā Workshop. “With Chuck at the helm, and a formidable team around him, the next chapter in their animatronics journey will be nothing short of extraordinary.”
What makes FGR8 special
FGR8’s solutions lead the industry with advanced puppetry-inspired animatronics and proprietary software with plug-and-play control to create fully authentic and completely lifelike characters with AI and technology-driven interactivity, autonomy, and mobility.
“Our innovative character animation and control software is a modular, scalable system that offers the ultimate flexibility and control others can only dream of,” says Andersen. Their zero-effort control systems integrate lifelike figure control with audio, video, lighting, and projection. No shake, no jitter, fully controlled motion both slow and fast with full dynamic range.
But it’s not just about the technology for FGR8. Fawcett explains, “We make characters that look, move, and feel real, interacting, talking, playing. But ultimately, we make magic. The magic of a little girl looking up and seeing her hero or secret friend standing right there. Alive. Talking to her. Holding her hand. We create characters that can’t exist in our physical reality, it’s impossible. And yet there they are, right in front of you.”
A welcome return
“The achievements of Chuck and the FGR8 team in the field of puppetry and animatronics are nothing short of revolutionary,” says Jeff Conover, Creative Director at Walt Disney Imagineering. “They have mastered the art of character creation, blending design, movement, and emotional depth in their work.”
Fawcett and Andersen aren’t out to create the world’s biggest animatronics company – in fact, they like to refer to FGR8 as a “boutique” offering, working with select top-tier customers seeking the next level of character animatronics. “We’re not going to make the most,” says Andersen, “but you can bet your life we’re going to make the best!”
“And we’re just getting started,” says Fawcett. “We’re taking everything we’ve learned and created, and applying new technologies, new ways of thinking, and new ways to generate truly authentic experiences and characters, pushing the envelope every time. At FGR8, we’re truly bringing impossible to life.”
