James Gunn Shares New Video Of Reference Moves For Baby Groot Dance

Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 featured a number of memorable moments, one of which was the opening credits sequence where Baby Groot danced to Electric Light Orchestra’s “Mr. Blue Sky” while his friends battled an inter-dimensional beast. Last week, director James Gunn shared footage of the dance he performed that would later be used as reference for Baby Groot’s moves and now the filmmaker has shared a new video featuring more footage of him doing the motion reference work.

James Gunn also shared behind-the-scenes details on the motion reference work, revealing that he performed three different versions of the dance during various stages of the films production.

“Believe it or not, I actually did three different versions of this dance at three different times. The first time was when I first wrote the scene, in my office st home, recorded by @simonlikes on his iPhone. That one was mostly so that I could remember the camera angles and camera movements I had in my head while writing than it did the actual dance. The second time was on set in Atlanta with a single camera and our visual effects team. That time it was doing the dance full out – there were some bits and pieces we used – but because Groot is moving and the camera was stable I was only able to travel for very short periods. And so we did it again, this time in Los Angeles, with many cameras lined down a long space so that I could actually do all the long walks and jumps Groot was doing. That’s when this is from.”

You can check out the video and read James Gunn’s full post below!

Ah yes, another video of me doing the motion reference work for #BabyGroot. Believe it or not, I actually did three different versions of this dance at three different times. The first time was when I first wrote the scene, in my office st home, recorded by @simonlikes on his iPhone. That one was mostly so that I could remember the camera angles and camera movements I had in my head while writing than it did the actual dance. The second time was on set in Atlanta with a single camera and our visual effects team. That time it was doing the dance full out – there were some bits and pieces we used – but because Groot is moving and the camera was stable I was only able to travel for very short periods. And so we did it again, this time in Los Angeles, with many cameras lined down a long space so that I could actually do all the long walks and jumps Groot was doing. That’s when this is from. For those of you who’ve asked, bits of the dance were ideas of things I had in my head, or things designed for the already planned camera movies, but most of it was free form made up on the spot. The other question I’ve gotten asked a lot is whether or not I was just doing my regular dancing or was it in character. The answer is of course in character – I think you can see clearly in this video I’m trying to move my body that works for a little tree more than what I’d be dancing like in a nightclub in L.A. This is of course all courtesy of the visual effects company @framestore who turned this stuff into something magical, creating one of the most impressive single shots ever. #GuardiansoftheGalaxyVol2 is still out in theaters so go see it again this weekend! #gotgvol2 #GotGPicoftheDay #fbf #flashbackfriday #friday #instagood #filmmaking #movie #movies #dancing #love

A post shared by James Gunn (@jamesgunn) on Jun 9, 2017 at 10:07am PDT

Did you enjoy Baby Groot’s dance number in the opening credits scene? Share your thoughts below!

Set to the backdrop of ‘Awesome Mixtape #2,’ Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 continues the team’s adventures as they traverse the outer reaches of the cosmos. The Guardians must fight to keep their newfound family together as they unravel the mysteries of Peter Quill’s true parentage. Old foes become new allies and fan-favorite characters from the classic comics will come to our heroes’ aid as the Marvel cinematic universe continues to expand.

Directed by James Gunn, the film stars Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan, Glenn Close, Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki and Kurt Russell.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is now playing in theaters!

Source: Instagram