 Dominique Swains cameo in the film was originally shot for a short  film titled "Gils Bad Day," which acted as director Daniel Lees  puppeteering audition for the Jim Henson Company. He didnt get the  job, but because the short film went on to work as a puppeteer on  several independent films, and on stage, where he studied under  master puppeteer Bob Baker (Mary Poppins, Close Encounters of the  Third Kind).