BLOG 6
Inspired by wine corks
or:
Why I carried a little puppet hand in my pocket…
In March 2016 I (successfully) entered my Bitz and Hairwoof puppets (and animations) into ‘The Waterside Open’. The Open is a biennial exhibition at Waterside Arts in Sale, where I live. It was here, 3 months earlier, that I saw the Puppet Masters conference and exhibition, so to have my work shown in the same venue was really pleasing. The quality and variety of the work on show in the Open is staggering and I was grateful to be part of it.
‘This national exhibiting opportunity showcases a wide range of high quality and contemporary art, craft and design from established and emerging artists, designers and makers from the North West and across the UK’ Waterside Open.
I really enjoyed the whole event but was a bit embarrassed of my work. We had a nice time at the opening and I remember having a puppet hand I had designed in my pocket ready to show to anyone I spoke to. I wanted to use the hand to show that I was working on something new, something bigger & better, and not to judge me on this previous work. The little hand stayed in my pocket… obviously… because showing a little puppet hand to strangers is a weird thing to do. But the hand still represented big ideas to me.
So, I continued work on a new third puppet. As mentioned previously, I really wanted to use this character to make a short film to enter into the 2016 Manchester Animation Festival (the deadline was in 3 months) so, I needed an interesting, achievable story; simple, no dialogue, one puppet, one set. The story I chose to tell was called ‘Paper Airman’. The basic premise was a homeless ex-serviceman who makes a paper flying suit from old newspapers. I refined his story alongside designing the puppet, drawing some storyboards etc.
I decided to use the restricted materials ‘gimmick’ of old wine corks to make the old man puppet. I also used beads, bamboo and various other found objects for his clothes, props and set.. I learnt from my previous puppets to make a lightweight yet solid design, but I continued to challenge myself by trying something totally new too. I remember seeing his face emerge from the pieces of cork needed for his eye, mouth and forehead movements. At that point I knew exactly who he was and what he would look like. Inevitably this puppet would have as many issues as my previous two as I had never made or animated a human before. I was again naively entering the unknown, without the right skills or experience. However, I had a deadline of 3 months and whatever happened, there would be some kind of film at the end….
Then, in May, just after I finished making Corky (the Paper Airman puppet) I received an email from MacKinnon and Saunders… That’s right, THE Mackinnon and Saunders. The legendary puppet builders for film and TV invited me to visit them to ‘chat and show some of my work, as we have some work coming up that may be suited to your skills…’ I’m not sure how they saw what I was up to but it was probably one of my unsolicited emails/cards that I gave out after I started the Bitz project. I was shook.
Find out more about their world class work here!
So I borrowed back the Bitz and Hairwoof puppets from their exhibition, made a carrying box for Corky and drove to down the road to MacKinnon and Saunders workshop and studio. It was only 10 mins away in an unassuming building but if felt like entering another world. I met with Kevin, the workshop supervisor who kindly welcomed me in and gave me a tour of the departments; the design & sculpt room, armature fabrication, paint shop… all the tools, machinery and equipment needed to make the highest quality puppets for hollywood movies… They were even working on production of Isle of Dogs during my visit. I kept my cool as best I could.
Examples of all their amazing work was everywhere, in cases, shelves and in frames and the staff graciously chatted to me as I walked around. In particular Richard showed me loads of behind the scenes things from current productions, plus some secret in-development work. Grae kindly showed me prototypes and chatted about the development of some of the armatures and the problem solving element of his job. I loved the vibe of workshop space, it was relaxed but confident in it’s working practice. It felt like a hive of innovation and professionalism. This is a nice video about their work on 2005’s Corpse Bride.
I then had a meeting with Ian MACKINNON and Peter SAUNDERS. They were the nicest guys but I was secretly embarrassed and I wanted to apologise for my work (I didn’t). They asked about my puppet designs and I told them about my experimental approach and what I wanted to achieve with my projects. They told me about how they work at M&S, how they hire freelancers and what projects might be coming up. I’m sure they were humouring me but it never came across. It was a great meeting and It was kind of them to give up their time.
As Kevin finished the tour of the production studios we chatted candidly. I told him how I love my day job at Venture Arts. I know the a few people in the film and animation industry so I know it’s project based - hiring freelancers for intense full-time but temporary periods. Kevin told me how some people want to work in animation so much they quit their job only to find that the work dries up. He also talked about a large production process and how each person usually works in one area, working on one element of the project.
Kevin and I later emailed about my work schedule and opportunities at MacKinnon and Saunders and I felt incredibly grateful to everyone there. However, It wasn’t meant to be and knew it was right for me to continue to find a way to make my own work in my own weird way - I love my day job, and happily have lots of commitments there. And I love having hobby where I can have a go at lots of different parts of the animation process. So I took Corky out his box and set about making my creation come alive…
Join me for my next blog where I will talk about making a studio in my spare room, making a short film… basically making it up as I went along.
Thanks for reading
Best wishes
James
CURRENT WORK
*Model Making* Although I have not been working on it much, I have been thinking about the Itzy (the mini whibbit) model, how to develop it’s design, how to potentially make resin replicas and how these would look. I have made silicone moulds and resin casts for other projects, but this is a complex model and would need to be cast in several parts…. It’ll be tricky but a fun experiment when I get time to try it (and making some affordable whibbit ‘toys’ would be nice). I would also like to animate Itzy one day too, but the model will need a lot more work before that can happen… For now it is just something else to think about.
*Film Production* Mory’s movie is still moving forward and I have done all the water, cloth and light tests… well as much as I can do. A lot will need to be morked out as I go along. This week I need to tidy the studio, replace the paper on the filming stage, repair my camera mounts and check the joints on the model. Hopefully filming will start on Friday 20th…. Wish me luck!
A section of the animatic. This has notes, and sometimes diagrams to help with timings.
A couple of the notes about each water movement. I have these shapes ready made, the notes and diagrams should help me use them in the right way.
*Merchandise* I sent the design for the Connie badge to the factory, and the design is now approved and in-production! Estimated delivery (to me) is the first week of January and I will get them out to customers asap. I am also getting a backing card printed that will hold the full set of badges (plus a space for a future badge, yet to be made) that I will send out with the Connie badge.
Baking card for the badges