The first glimpse of Newt reminded me of Wall-E, but this guy is different. Cuteness aside, the trash-collecting robot was a computer-generated character for the Pixar movie; Newt, on the other hand, is a companion built on demand from scratch. It is created and built by YouTuber Davis Dewitt of Backhaul Studios for the upcoming family-friendly, sci-fi movie The Lightning Code.
Slated to be theatrically released on May 9, 2025, the film revolves around a teenage inventor who has unlocked the secret to limitless energy, which he loses to the evils of the industry. In the high-stakes battle, he must fight alongside his friends and a plucky sidekick (a robot) to regain control of his discovery before it’s turned into a weapon.
Designer:
Director Kali Bailey saw this sidekick robot as a practical creation instead of just a CGI rendition. She wanted to ensure genuine interactions on set and, in pursuit, reached out to Backhaul Studios, who took the opportunity to build a robot that would star in a Hollywood movie with both hands. Since the character of Newt is integral to the storyline, there were many requirements for how and what the robot should be. And it all then began with collaborative brainstorming sessions, trailed by concept sketches, to foresee what Newt would be.
It was now time for DeWit to return from the drawing board to design 3D CAD models. After a few back and forth, the model of how the robot would look, with a projector head, was ready. Now was the time to build it. The YouTube video (embedded above) titled “How I Built a Real Movie Star Robot,” DeWitt walks us through how he 3D printed the robot components, hand-sanded them to fine smoothness, before spraying primer base and painting each part by hand. The achieved cinematic finish should have been good for the others, but DeWitt applied weathering techniques to achieve an appearance that’s more natural and feels part of the real world.
Enough for the outside, it was now time to fill the innards, and get this guy functioning to the movie’s requirements. The main component here is the Arduino Nano that powers the robot and its antics. Newt features a RadioLink AT10ii transmitter, bright projector light, L298N motor, voltage converter, and a rechargeable LiPo battery pack to power the entire thing. Controlled by a COTS airplane R/C controller, Newt can operate in real-time with movements and authenticity to star in the movie. The most difficult part, DeWitt says, wasn’t building Newt, but its stunt double! Yes, DeWitt also built an exact replica, less feature-packed robot – that would take all the manhandling in the film. For a more in-depth look at Newt, his creation and story, watch the full video above.
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