Dapper Cadaver provided 25 stunt dummies for the Crimean war battlefield scene in Guillermo Del Toro's Frankenstein.
The Crimean war was one of the first wars to be photographed and treating the wounded during this war inspired the creation of the Red Cross. We looked at war photography as inspiration for hair, beards and wounding. Many of the soliders grew beards for warmth on the battlefield and we made sure to reflect that.
We provided a mix of stunt dummies with polyurethane rubber heads and hands attached to poseable canvas bodies and stunt figures with polyurethane foam rubber heads and hands attached to poseable foam mannequin bodies. The canvas stunt dummies were shorter than our standard male dummies to fit into period uniforms. We made these dummies in the dead of winter as the production shot this scene on a snowy field for authenticity.
We are grateful to Prop Master Chris Geggie for bringing us on to contribute to this production. We are grateful that Guillermo Del Toro and Netflix remain committed to practical effects in filmmaking. BJ and Eileen were lucky enough to catch Frankenstein at Flix Brewhouse theater in Madison WI, which was amazing to appreciate the artistry that went into every step of this production. We are grateful for our talented crew that worked hard on every step of this project.
Dapper Cadaver would like to congratulate the Production Design, Costume & Makeup departments on Frankenstein on their 2026 Critics Choice Awards. We are in awe of the work that Mike Hill and his team did on this film. The Set Decorator's Society of America, which we're a member of, has recently nominated the Set Decorators & Production Designer of Frankenstein for Best Achievement in Decor / Design of a Fantasy or Science Fiction Feature Film. We're sure the award season will lead to more accolades for this film.
Frankenstein and the behind the scenes documentary Frankenstein: The Anatomy Lesson are streaming on Netflix. The behind the scenes book Frankenstein: Written and Directed by Guillermo del Toro is also available in bookstores.
