Here's how a videographer reimagines Hollywood blockbusters as cat videos

Here's how a videographer reimagines Hollywood blockbusters as cat videos

Transcript¹

Titanic² had Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio. Jurassic Park had Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum. Home Alone had Macaulay Culkin. But for one videographer, all these movies were missing something important – a four-legged feline³ lead. That's right, they needed a cat.

Rest assured that Tibo Charroppin is working to change that, with the help of his cat Lizzy.

Charroppin is a French-born videographer who lives in Portland, Ore., where he works as a senior video editor for the ACLU. It's also where he creates movie and TV show spoofs⁴ with the help of the fluffy⁵ black cat who goes by the stage name OwlKitty.

"I had a green screen and I had a really cute cat and I wanted to combine the two somehow," Charroppin said. "And I wanted it to be big-budget and like some that looks expensive even though it's done in our kitchen because that's where we have the best light."

Then, Charroppin said the idea came to him to use existing footage of something and put Lizzy in it. It was a no-brainer.

Lizzy and Charroppin have created their own renditions of many classic films, including Titanic, Jaws⁶, The Matrix, Pulp⁷ Fiction, and Jurassic Park – just to name a few. Of course, some of the videos have updated titles like Purranormal Activity.

In Jurassic Park, Lizzy replaces the Tyrannosaurus rex. Charroppin decided⁸ to recreate the scene where the T. Rex is coming out of the enclosure, walking around and smelling the cars as the humans sit petrified⁹ inside.

"That scene in and of itself would be really funny with a cat," he said.

And to make it even more relatable for his fellow cat lovers, Charroppin tied together the daily feeding time ritual.

"In my version of the video, you see Lizzy, who is now 30 feet tall, walking around the cars," he said. "Then one of the kid's characters, the little girl in the back of the car, I have her open a can of tuna and it makes this sound and all the sudden that's when Lizzy sees it and goes and tries to attack them and her head bursts through the roof of the car."

"It's a really silly moment which plays out really well with a cat surprisingly. It doesn't feel as threatening or anything, it's just funny."

Production time for the videos varies on how involved Charroppin wants it to be, but he said the Jurassic Park and Titanic videos each took about two to three months to produce.

"The hardest [part] of it, funny enough, is not adding Lizzy – it's removing the elements I want to remove seamlessly," he said. "It's trying to remove Kate Winslet, who takes up half the screen because she's the second lead."

He has to trace the characters he's removing frame by frame before recreating the background that would be behind them if they weren't in the frame. That alone takes up three-fourths of the time to produce a video, he added.

Then comes the fun part — recording¹⁰ Lizzy in front of the green screen. Treats and toys are essential to getting the star actor into character. Charroppin said Lizzy can be a bit of a diva.

"It has to be the perfect storm of her not too hungry, but not just eaten and not too tired but also well-rested," he said. "And once you have that down – which is maybe one hour in a day – that's the perfect time."

In addition to the featured presentation videos, Charroppin also shares behind-the-scenes looks at how he puts everything together with the help of his wife Olivia Boone and the couple's other cat, a 10-year-old tabby named Juliette.

Charroppin said Lizzy's life as a house cat is going to remain pretty much the same despite her growing fame, with millions of followers¹¹ across social media. And ultimately, the family wants to use her channels to promote pet adoption¹² over buying from breeders. Lizzy was adopted from the Cat Adoption Team five years ago.

"If there was one reason to do all of this is to mostly raise awareness¹³ that adopting cats is way better than going to get the full breed cats," Charroppin said. "Anything that we can do to help makes it all worth it."

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 titanic   

adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的

参考例句：

• We have been making titanic effort to achieve our purpose.我们一直在作极大的努力，以达到我们的目的。
• The island was created by titanic powers and they are still at work today.台湾岛是由一个至今仍然在运作的巨大力量塑造出来的。

3 feline   

adj.猫科的

参考例句：

• As a result,humans have learned to respect feline independence.结果是人们已经学会尊重猫的独立性。
• The awakening was almost feline in its stealthiness.这种醒觉，简直和猫的脚步一样地轻悄。

4 spoofs   

n.（进行）滑稽的模仿( spoof的名词复数 )；哄骗；戏弄；讽刺

参考例句：

• Nobody likes those clumsy spoofs of yours. 谁都不喜欢你那拙笨的玩笑。 来自辞典例句
• The show successfully spoofs the TV programs and commercials. 这场表演通过模仿成功地讽刺了那些电视节目和商业广告。 来自互联网

5 fluffy   

adj.有绒毛的，空洞的

参考例句：

• Newly hatched chicks are like fluffy balls.刚孵出的小鸡像绒毛球。
• The steamed bread is very fluffy.馒头很暄。

6 jaws   

n.口部；嘴

参考例句：

• The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。
• The scored jaws of a vise help it bite the work. 台钳上有刻痕的虎钳牙帮助它紧咬住工件。

7 pulp   

n.果肉，纸浆；v.化成纸浆，除去...果肉，制成纸浆

参考例句：

• The pulp of this watermelon is too spongy.这西瓜瓤儿太肉了。
• The company manufactures pulp and paper products.这个公司制造纸浆和纸产品。

8 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

9 petrified   

adj.惊呆的；目瞪口呆的v.使吓呆，使惊呆；变僵硬；使石化(petrify的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• I'm petrified of snakes. 我特别怕蛇。
• The poor child was petrified with fear. 这可怜的孩子被吓呆了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

11 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

12 adoption   

n.采用，采纳，通过；收养

参考例句：

• An adoption agency had sent the boys to two different families.一个收养机构把他们送给两个不同的家庭。
• The adoption of this policy would relieve them of a tremendous burden.采取这一政策会给他们解除一个巨大的负担。

13 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。