FLESHING OUT THE CHARACTERS

I’m always careful when choosing my character colours. This film will require a lot more green screen than I’m used to so I made sure to avoid anything that would make keying a problem down the line. At the same time you can’t let function override form. Before working on the foam latex puppets I spend a lot of time experimenting with the rough liquid rubber puppet pulls, trying different colour combinations until I’m happy. They make for great stand-ins even if they can’t be posed.

JACK

While painting this puppet the character of Jack from American Werewolf popped into my mind. I quickly called up some pictures, and while they don’t look anything like each other, I really liked Jack’s paint job, so I kept the images handy as reference. After all, it’s Rick Baker, you really can’t go wrong.

BROKEN BONES

Today I completed the sixth and final armature for my next film. Trial and error are a major part of the armature building process as can be seen by my pile of discarded parts. There are a number of reasons a part might be unusable; they don’t track correctly, they’re too big, too small, too short, too long, or just a bad idea. Everything is a learning experience, no matter how many times you’ve done it.

DRY RUN

Before running any foam rubber I always pull a liquid rubber casting from all my molds. I use Monster Makers RD 407 Mask Latex. I build a basic wire armature which I wrap with some foam padding. Using the latex again, I glue the two halves together over the armature and do a really basic clean up of the seam. Next I will paint these rough versions until I’m happy with their final appearance. This way there’s no screw ups when it comes to the foam rubber puppets.

BRASS AND STEEL

I’ve machined about 40 to 50 armatures over the past 10 years.  Hack saws, metal files and a drill press are basically all I use. No lathe work.  And while they may not be the most polished when it comes to appearance, they have served me well. Once they are covered in foam rubber all that matters is that they move well.

SCULPTING

I’m not much for sketching out designs. I just pick up some clay, grab a couple of reference photos and have at it. After some trial and error I find that I reach a point where I know where I’m going and the final character starts to come together organically.

WRITING & SCULPTING

Sculpting characters and designing a film while simultaneously trying to lock down the story has proven to be a very productive approach. As I move back and forth between the practical aspects of design and crafting a script, I have found that each process is inspiring the other. I find it useful to not become rigid in my film making process regardless of how successful previous efforts may have been. Changing up your approach can lead to all kinds of interesting possibilities.