~ Stop Motion Puppets ~
Stop Motion puppet building is one of my favourite activities because it involves many different crafting techniques such as for example, moulding, casting, metal, wood and plastic manipulation, but also working with fabrics, hairs, plasticine and much more. Here are some pictures of the creative process of my most recent puppets from the animated short film "The Promise", made in Summer 2018.
Metal Rig
- example of an articulating puppet skeleton -
The Stop Motion puppet skeletons can vary in how complex they are. Big studios like Laika, for example, have extremely intricate rigs. Since I was working alone on this project, I decided to create puppet rigs which were fairly simple but sturdy at the same time.
Bodies and clothes
- example of the manufacturing of the body volumes and clothes -
The bodies of the puppets in this case were created by covering the metal skeleton with foam rubber, so they would be light and at the same time easy to pose. It is important to make sure the metal bindings are secured and easy to access if need be during the shooting of the movie.
Creating clothes for the puppets follows the same exact process that fashion designers use to create garments and clothing for people. First sketching the design on paper, then taking measurements of the puppet's body and then sewing the different pieces of cloth together.
Since I decided not to make moulds for the bodies of the puppets, I still needed to cover the foam rubber with something that would mimic skin. I decided to use silicone, painting it into sheets and then sewing itThis process was done only to cover specific areas such as the arms and neck.
Heads
- example of the manufacturing of the head -
The heads of the puppets are, in my opinion, the most fun to create but also the most complex.
In this case, the heads have a removable face with magnets. The base of the face is made out of hard plastic (3D printed) and then later the features of the face were added with air drying plasticine.
back of the head
eyes
face before being painted
head joint
The back of the head is made out of light plasticine, so that it is possible to create the volume of the head but without creating too much weight. It is cut in half and the head joint is then glued between the two halves of the back of the head. Small magnets are then glued on the back of the head so that the face is able to be attached to the back of the head.
The two separate parts of the head, before being painted. The volume of the head (painted in black) is then covered with more plasticine, creating the holes where to insert the hair strands and the ears.
Here pictured is the back of the head, before and after being painted.
The face in the process of being painted. Once it is completed, the eyebrows are created by using dark brown plasticine which does not air dry, That allows the animator to easily modify them and change them to any expression.
face of the puppet with the metal wire for the sideburns
Black hay-like material, but softer, glued over the metal wire.
Brush with boar hair, glued over the black-hay material.
The hair was quite a challenge to complete. I am a Laika films enthusiast, therefore I thought to do some research about how they create hair for their puppets.
I watched a video on youtube showing the making process of Paranorman's hair and tried to recreate the same hair, with the same procedure.
Here is the head of my puppet after being painted and his hair is in the process of being attached. Every hole in his scalp represent a chunk of hair which is going to be glued into. Every chunk of hair has a metal wire in them so that they can be later animated. It is important to specify that the three components of every chunk of hair are glued together with a very soft and easily bendable glue in order to animate them.
Final Result
- final look of the puppets -
see more on Vimeo! message me for the film link & password.