Break Down Ahead
Probable the biggest difference between foam latex puppets and those now being made with silicone is break down.
I remember all the way back on 'Nightmare' when Master Animator John Berg (remember the chess scene in Star Wars - John and Phil Tippet - or the Ton-tons in 'Return Of The Jedi'?) was substituting as Head of Fabrication for a couple of blissful, bitch free weeks, he brought in the ORIGINAL cave creature from 'KING KONG' for us to see and touch gently. The old foam latex had hardened and shrunk to inflexibility of ... well a rock!
Just look at the condition of Spittle & Fudd:
Next incarnation of the Boys will be in silicone as long as we can prefect the flexibility of the facial.
And if you have any doubt of the staying power of silicone - simply test out that white silicone caulk you shower by each morning...or if you are a computer animator each week...I'm KIDDING!!!... Jeez
I remember all the way back on 'Nightmare' when Master Animator John Berg (remember the chess scene in Star Wars - John and Phil Tippet - or the Ton-tons in 'Return Of The Jedi'?) was substituting as Head of Fabrication for a couple of blissful, bitch free weeks, he brought in the ORIGINAL cave creature from 'KING KONG' for us to see and touch gently. The old foam latex had hardened and shrunk to inflexibility of ... well a rock!
Just look at the condition of Spittle & Fudd:
Next incarnation of the Boys will be in silicone as long as we can prefect the flexibility of the facial.
And if you have any doubt of the staying power of silicone - simply test out that white silicone caulk you shower by each morning...or if you are a computer animator each week...I'm KIDDING!!!... Jeez
posted by Tennessee Reid at 6:08 AM
3 Comments:
Hey T-
What's crazy is that foam puppets that are painted with PAX paint (acrylic mixed with a flexible Prosaide adhesive) seem to last indefinately. My first casting of Chemical Kid which was done eight years ago is still in really nice shape- the wire armature gave out before the foam!
I may be wrong but the problem with that painting is you cant thin paint to airbrush for fine detail and shading. And I have to paoint out that the puppets we are using for the political cartoon were originally painted with this technique and have not weathered well in a couple of years. Perhaps also it is because of the size of the chemical kid? Or is it just his daddy's soft caressing hands?
My favorite paint was turned onto me by Sir Foamy Jones himself Rob Ronning. Its called Foam Latex Paint and is a special formula of ballon latex and titnt. It can be thined and airbrushed as well as seamed with...as it is the same basic material that you cast the puppet in ...tinted.
When you are a stop motion animator making a film (all alone) time goes by. You start, a year goes by, you build a set and puppet, some props, years go by. You start to shoot and life rears it's ugly head, you need to pay bills, and years go by. Every thing crumbles. Epoxy props that Tim Hittle showed me for some water FX on Picture 3 turned yellow. FRED's eyes are yellow now too.
This is why we need to leap frog and all collaborate. One person can not sustain and do it all! Unless you are Nick Hilligoss.
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