“We Dropped Different Numbers Of Balls At Different Rates, Different Heights. We Had A Ramp. The Ramps

“We dropped different numbers of balls at different rates, different heights. We had a ramp. The ramps were at different angles, trying to get the most out of the balls as they hit the actors. After doing the tests, we figured out 35 feet above the deck of the ship was the height we needed our nets. We had these three big nets that held almost 80,000 per net. The balls dropped 35 feet into ramps that projected them towards the stunt guys. It just knocked them over. It was pretty spectacular.”

-Mark Hawker, SFX Coordinator for Pirates of the Caribbean

“It’s amazing to see a bunch of 40 and 50-year-olds turn into three-year-olds all of a sudden. Everybody had to pick up blue balls, hit the other guy in the head. It was like, ’Is it time for the parents to come pick up the kids?’”

-George Marshall Ruge, Stunt Coordinator for Pirates of the Caribbean