Fact-Check: Animated Video of 'Rotor Challenge' Viral as Real Helicopter Stunt

This is an animated video and not a real stunt.

Fact-check: A video created using CGI showing a man spinning on a rotor of a helicopter is going viral as real.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

A video showing a man sitting on helicopter's rotor and spinning with it and then getting launched in the air is going viral on the internet to claim that this is real incident.

• The users sharing this claim are terming it as a 'rotor challenge'.

• At the end of the clip, the rotor can be seen detaching from the helicopter and launching high in the sky.

An archive can be seen here.

(Source: X/Screenshot)

(Archives of similar claims can be seen here and here.)

Is the video not real?: This is an animated video created using Computer-generated imagery (CGI).

How did we find out the truth? We noticed a logo and a watermark that read 'MBG Core' on the video.

A Logo and watermark that read 'MBG Core'

(Source: Altered by The Quint)

• Taking a cue, we performed a relevant keyword search that led us to an old video on Instagram.

• This video was uploaded by 'MBG CORE' on 24 October 2021.

• The account carried 'CGI and 3D Generalist' in the bio. A 3D Generalist is an expert in 3D computer graphics.

The post can be seen here.

(Source: IG/Screenshot)

• We also found another video uploaded by the same account on 22 November 2021, showing the breakdown of making the original video.

• The caption stated that this was created using CGI and VFX softwares like Cinema4D, Redshift and Marvelous designer.

We reached out to the creator: The admin of 'MBG CORE' page confirmed to The Quint that this is an animated video and not a real incident as it is being claimed.

Conclusion: A video created using CGI showing a man spinning on the rotor of a helicopter is going viral as real.

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