In an unprecedented feat of filmmaking, Beast Games, the high-stakes competition show featuring 1,000 contestants vying for a $5 million prize, pushed the boundaries of editing and production. In a recent interview with FilmmakerU, editor and co-creator Mack Hopkins shared jaw-dropping insights into the technical and creative challenges of bringing this massive project to life. Hosted by Chad Anderson, the conversation revealed the sheer scale of the production, the psychological intensity of the show, and the innovative editing processes required to craft a compelling narrative from an overwhelming amount of footage.

A Technical Marvel: Editing 1,100 Cameras

The first episode of Beast Games alone posed a herculean challenge. With more than eleven hundred cameras simultaneously recording for days, the raw footage in the first episode would take two years to watch in its entirety. Hopkins described the edit as “by technicality, one of the most advanced edits humankind has ever attempted.” The team relied on Adobe Premiere Pro to handle the colossal volume of data. “We had a thousand audio tracks to listen to,” Hopkins explained and the sheer scale made it impossible to review every frame. Instead, editors scanned for key moments, like audio spikes from crowd reactions, to build the story.

The technical complexity didn’t end there. As the number of contestants dwindled, crafting coherent narratives became trickier. Hopkins and his team had to ensure emotional reactions and game intensity translated to the audience, even when contestants grew desensitized to the high-pressure environment by later episodes.

A Sandbox of Humanity: Crafting the Narrative

Beast Games wasn’t just a technical undertaking; it was a psychological and narrative experiment. With no script—unlike comparisons to Squid Game—the show captured raw, unfiltered human behavior. Hopkins, who also served as a co-host, producer, and game creator, described the set as a “sandbox” where 1,000 contestants made unpredictable decisions. “If you reset it, it would not happen the same way again,” he said, emphasizing the organic chaos that shaped the show’s commentary on human nature.

The narrative arc was carefully constructed, despite the unpredictability. Knowing the winner from the start allowed Hopkins to plant seeds of his likability early on, portraying him as a heroic figure without making his victory too obvious. Meanwhile, the runner-up was crafted as a pseudo-protagonist while her integrity and strength made her a fan favorite.

The sheer number of contestants provided a “massive sandbox” of content, allowing editors to find almost any soundbite or reaction needed to shape the story. However, as the contestant pool shrank, maintaining authenticity was critical. Hopkins emphasized the strict compliance rules due to the $5 million prize, ensuring no lines or jokes were fed to contestants. “We got lucky,” he said, praising the vibrant personalities of the contestants that naturally enriched the edit.

The Coin Flip: A Visual Effects Triumph

One of the show’s standout moments was the coin toss montage in the final episode, where a contestant risked elimination to double the prize pool from $5 million to $10 million. Hopkins called this a “rare opportunity as an editor to just go all out.” Collaborating with 3D artist Desert Stage, the team created a visually stunning sequence using Houdini for sandstorm effects, Blender for crowd simulations, and After Effects for intricate layering. The coin’s ridges doubled as a “projector reel” showcasing key moments from the season, with particle effects and double-exposure techniques inspired by True Detective’s opening.

The graphic was so complex it couldn’t be easily revised, pushing against tight deadlines. “Amazon Prime Video was calling me, like, ‘What is this?’” Hopkins recalled, sharing how he convinced them to trust the vision. The result was a cinematic, symbolic summation of the show’s themes, which Hopkins proudly considers his favorite moment in the series.

A Personal Touch: Hopkins’ Creative Process

Beyond the technical and narrative challenges, Hopkins shared a glimpse into his personal inspirations. He said he revisits films like War of the Worlds (2005), Predator, Terminator 2, and works by Christopher Nolan and Quentin Tarantino to unwind. These aren’t just guilty pleasures, he says, but a “library of scenes” he uses to as reference to  communicate with his team, helping him enter a “meditative creative state.”