The third witch is supposed to look as if she’s made of stone. I began with blue foam and roughed it out as if I were actually carving stone. The clay on the face is to give an example of what she would look like if she were wearing a mud mask as a disguise. […]
Last night a group of us went to see the midnight showing of the Dark Crystal. This is the first time I’ve seen it projected since its original appearance in 1982. What amazed me was how well the puppetry stands up. The other special effects? Not so much. I’m not sure if I should chalk
For the fog witch, I start with roughing out the form in styrofoam and clay. You can see that I have it on a simple stand. Here’s the basic sculpture, without the ears, and the drawing Michael Schupbach, the designer, gave me. I’m pretty pleased by the resemblance to the drawing. I’ve added in the
Sculpting the fog witch, take one Read More »
If you are feeling a little adventurous, you could try making this paper marionette from Raven’s Blight. The instructions look pretty easy. Mind you, the control is fairly rudimentary, but for Halloween it should be plenty of fun.
Dancing Paper Skeleton marionette Read More »
These puppets at their base, are rod puppets, mostly with internal rods. What you’re looking at here is the grip and shoulder bar of the fog witch. The grip is the bit that looks like a ray gun. Now, normally, I wouldn’t have the shoulders above the grip, but in her case, her head is
Fog witch grip, shoulders and elbows Read More »
So here’s what I did yesterday. The concept for this build is that each of the three witches has created her corporeal form out of things she’s found in the woods. So one is made of stone, one of sticks and the other of mist. I’m starting with the stone witch because she will be
MacBeth build: the stone witch, day one Read More »
Ooo! The Dark Crystal has midnight screenings on October 10th and 11th. Yes, I secured my tickets before telling you. It’s been years since I’ve seen it projected. Edited to add: Here’s a making of video.
Dark Crystal screening! Read More »
Goblin Art Studio is offering three-day maskmaking workshops this October. I met the instructor, Monica Roxburgh, when she interned with my puppet theater lo these many years ago. I remember looking at her mask portfolio and thinking she was overqualified for the internship because, dang, she was really good. I’m glad to see her teaching.
Maskmaking workshop this October by GoblinArts studio Read More »
A red-tailed hawk, apparently confused by a puppet shaped like a bird, swooped into a Midtown Atlanta parking lot Friday sending two workers ducking for cover. Jeff Domke and Alan Louis, employees at the Center for Puppetry Arts, were in the facility’s parking lot at 1404 Spring Street taking pictures of a puppet designed to
Hawk Attacks Puppetry Center Employees Read More »
The producer and the director of “There Will Come Soft Rains” — which you should go see — asked me to build a new head for the dog in the show. We discussed budget and at one point the producer asked if I needed money up front for materials. I laughed. “There is no materials
Dog head for “There Will Come Soft Rains” Read More »
This is my least favorite part of the process. It is the very definition of the word tedious. It’s so dull, I don’t even want to write a post about it, but here I go. Because the dog is supposed to be a springer spaniel, it calls for two colors of fur, each of which
Hair of the spaniel Read More »
We’re so used to American style hand and rod video puppetry, like the Muppets, that it’s easy to forget that there are whole other traditions out there. Check this out and brace yourself for awesome. Kevin Kao pointed this out. He’s got a nice breakdown on his blog about what must have gone into making
Beautiful Chinese video puppetry Read More »
Originally, I had planned on ordering a woodcock for the play and calling it good. I spent an amused day calling around asking for flying mount woodcocks before learning that they are migratory birds and illegal to sell. Great. So, that brought me to buying a grouse pelt and woodcock taxidermy parts. Now I ask
I have come to the conclusion that I will never, ever finish putting all the hair on this dog. It’s 2:30 a.m. I have to go back tomorrow to put more on. I’ll show you photos later, if I don’t go insane first.
The spaniel’s name, by the way, is Lady. I use quarter inch “crap” foam to put muscle on her skull. We call it crap foam to distinguish it from reticulated foam, which is strong and durable. Crap foam tears easily, oxidizes quickly, but is very lightweight and cheap. It’s also fairly stretchy. Lady doesn’t need
Muscle and skin for the spaniel Read More »