Over 130 lifelike gorilla movements, professionally performed and motion-captured.
About ActorCore
Reallusion ActorCore is a premium motion capture library designed for professional 3D production, offering over 4,700 high-quality animations spanning a wide range of themes, from everyday actions and conversations to combat, stunts, and paired performances. Constantly pushing creative boundaries, ActorCore holds a reputation for delivering mocap animations that are often difficult, time-consuming, or costly for studios to produce on their own, while making them accessible and affordable to everyone.
Gorilla Series
Following the acclaimed success of the Wire Stunts and Legendary Heroes series, Reallusion is now venturing beyond standard human motion with a new collection that explores primeval behaviors. Inspired by films such as Planet of the Apes, Tarzan, King Kong, and Warcraft, and supported by industry expertise and the production-scale resources of a major studio, this ambitious project captures authentic gorilla movements. While primate themes often appear on the big screen, this kind of motion data has been largely out of reach for 3D creators… until now.
In collaboration with Quantum Stage, a professional motion capture studio in Switzerland renowned for its directing expertise and stunt performers capable of simulating realistic primal behaviors, Reallusion creates the Gorilla Series—a distinctive collection of high-quality 3D animations available on the ActorCore 3D asset store. These animations authentically capture the strength, movement, and personality of hulking gorillas, making them perfect for wildlife documentaries, zoo simulations, or cinematic storytelling.
See how the Quantum Stage process and professional mocap acting replicate lifelike gorilla movement:
Research and Planning
To achieve natural movement, Reallusion and Quantum Stage conducted extensive research on gorilla behavior. The study organized actions into key categories: daily routines such as walking, running, crawling, and jumping; alert behaviors like scanning the environment and responding to threats; terrain navigation across different levels; and social interactions, including attacking, taunting, defending, and escaping. Together, the study has captured the full range of gorilla motion for use as a production reference.
Imitation of Gorilla Motion
Creating realistic gorilla animation involved two key steps. First, the mocap studio captured the human performer’s body and skeletal motion, much like a traditional motion capture session. The second step focused on accurately adapting these movements to a gorilla’s anatomy. Although gorillas share a similar skeletal structure with humans, their body proportions differ significantly: their hips, chest, and shoulders are much broader, their upper arms and forearms are considerably longer, and their legs are noticeably shorter. By carefully adjusting these proportions, the final animation preserves both anatomical accuracy and authentic primate movement.
“When we shot this animation we specifically observed gorilla motion and behavior from movies such as the King Kong series and Planet of the Apes, and also nature documentaries about how the primates behave with other animals and with each other. It is a very big part of the whole makeup of a gorilla and that shows in the performance. We tried to replicate these as closely as possible,”
Tobias Baumann, Founder, Quantum Stage
Preparing for Action
The most crucial element in capturing authentic gorilla motion is the performer. The actor must combine physical prowess with the creative ability to understand, visualize, and embody gorilla behavior and movement. With high-quality motion capture, every subtle emotion and intention of the performer is recorded, translating directly into the animated character’s movements and expressions.
For this project, the studio collaborated with Ophir Raray, a stunt actor and motion capture artist specializing in creature performances, wire stunts, and movement-based roles. With a background in gymnastics, capoeira, and military training, he brought both life and realism to the gorilla performance. The capture process was physically demanding and technically challenging, requiring the actor to maintain consistent energy, posture, and motion, so that all movements flowed naturally from a precise starting point.
“The preparation involves a lot of research, including researches of animals, apes, and gorillas, their movements, also their psychology, sounds and breath, which are some of the most important things for the performance, to give a life-like performance that the audience can really feel,”
Ophir Raray, creature performer and movement expert
The Right Tool for the Job
To ensure accurate kinesthetics, the team used arm extensions, allowing Raray to mimic the true skeletal proportions of a gorilla. This tool enabled him to move with the correct weight, rhythm, and balance, fully transforming his performance into that of a believable primate. These techniques and tools were essential in bridging human expression and performance with animal motion and behavior, ensuring that the animation captured not only anatomical accuracy but also conveyed personality and emotion.
“Using arm extensions is a very specialized skill, and it requires the body parts, muscles and movements that you normally don’t use. It’s a behavior that you as a human never really experience but the tools allow you to actually move like a gorilla and you can really feel that you are becoming a gorilla,”
Ophir Raray, creature performer and movement expert
Available Now on ActorCore
A product of hours of dedication and passion, the Gorilla Series is now available on ActorCore. The pack includes four motion categories: Routines, Locomotion, Aggression, and Evasion. The full collection features 131 mocap motions designed for jungle scenes, wildlife simulations, educational content, or any project that requires realistic gorilla movement and behavior.
Whether you’re creating games, cinematic animations, or storytelling sequences, this motion set provides the versatility needed to bring your scenes to life. The collection also includes core poses, instinctual reactions, expressive gestures, combat responses, and terrain-based movements. The Gorilla Series offers the perfect mocap content to bring wildlife adventures into your productions.
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