How Steven Spielberg Used a Guitar String to Create One of Jurassic Park’s Most Iconic Moments

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You may find yourself nostalgic as “Jurassic World Rebirth” continues to rule the worldwide box office, perhaps causing you to reflect on the movie that kickstarted the enduring dinosaur franchise.

List down ten (or even five) standout shots from Steven Spielberg‘s Jurassic Park, currently streaming on Peacock, and it’s highly likely that you will include the chilling shot of a glass of water trembling subtly, reacting to the distant thunderous footsteps as the Tyrannosaurus rex draws near.

This shot is so well-known and often referenced in other works that you might recognize it even if you’ve never watched Jurassic Park. It’s a subtle yet powerful warning of the impending danger and the immense power of these ancient creatures. However, to create this effect, Spielberg and his team didn’t use a real dinosaur; instead, they utilized something significantly smaller: a guitar string.

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How a guitar string made a key Jurassic Park T. rex scene work

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In an interview for the behind-the-scenes documentary of the Jurassic Park Ultimate Trilogy Blu-ray release, special effects supervisor Michael Lantieri shared that the idea for the rippling water sequence originated from a call by director Steven Spielberg. Inspired by the bass in Earth, Wind & Fire’s music, which made his car mirrors shake while he was driving, Spielberg suggested using this effect to signify the arrival of a massive dinosaur on set, and asked Lantieri to make it happen.

Moving a car side-view mirror could be accomplished quite effortlessly using a tiny motor, however, causing the water inside the mirror to undulate without disturbing the whole setup, which included the camera, proved to be a completely different challenge. Ultimately, Lantieri discovered an unconventional solution for this problem.

It was easy to make a car’s side-view mirror move with a small motor, but keeping the water inside it rippling without affecting the entire setup (including the camera) was difficult. In the end, Lantieri discovered an unexpected solution to this challenge.

Lantieri reminisced about a challenging task. ‘It seemed impossible,’ he said. ‘Despite everyone’s efforts, we couldn’t crack it. One evening, playing around with a guitar, I placed a glass on its surface and started striking notes. Eventually, I found the right pitch or note that made it behave exactly as I desired.’

To achieve the desired impact in the film, Lantieri creatively strung a guitar wire within the vehicle. This setup allowed vibrations from the string’s frequencies to travel towards the glass. A hidden crew member would repeatedly pluck the string to produce the effect. As reported by experts at Guitar World, this technique is quite challenging due to the variable frequency needed to cause water ripples, which depends on factors like the amount of water and weight of the glass. Through trial and error, Lantieri successfully pulled it off, resulting in one of Jurassic Park’s most memorable scenes.

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2025-07-08 20:46