Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes (2014)

All horseback riders were stunt riders or experienced actors who were skilled at riding, mounting and dismounting. All running/galloping scenes were well choreographed, and actors used caution while on and near animals. The horse(s) rearing was a trained behavior. Whenever horses were seen tied to posts/fences, they were attached to lead ropes tied to posts.

Each day the horses were dotted with visual effects markers which will be used in post to make it look as if the apes were riding bareback, although the actors standing in for the apes were using saddles to ride the horses. For all the scenes involving apes riding the horses, production used visual effects, motion picture technology and blue screen.

In the scene where Koba and two cohorts are riding horses towards the human colony, galloping through the woods, the horses were ridden by stunt jockeys and paced by a camera vehicle. The path was cleared by trainers. There was plenty of room for the horses to ride through.

In the scenes where the apes ride the horses on concrete in the human colony, all horses were shod with rubber shoes to work on pavement.

In the scene where Koba rides his horse towards the colony and jumps over an explosion, horse/rider was filmed separately from any firing tank, gunfire, flames or explosions. Horses were never near any loud gunfire or explosions. After the horse/rider practiced jumping a bar that was placed low to the ground, the bar was removed and replaced with a bar with flickering lights on it to simulate flames. The final shot will appear as if the horse jumped over fire and that an actor/ape was mounted. The jump was approximately 1′ high.

Every animal used in the film was computer generated with the exception of the horse.