Completed Second Puppet

This is my final puppet with a revised version of the head. I became inspired to change the look of it as well as the size after researching salamanders, frogs and other amphibians as the layout of their head (wide set beaded eyes and wide mouth) transfers well onto a toy or model that is designed to be appealing. It is touched upon in "Manwatching" by Desmond Morris that humans are attracted to dilated pupils (signals of attraction) and wide set eyes in females is particularly appealing to males. I have also noticed that many poluar animated and cartoon characters (such as "Toothless" from "How To Train Your Dragon"- based off a salamander) have this same head shape and follow these same codes of attraction.

The new head was made with polymer clay and sanded down to achieve an even finish. All details were hand sculpted before attachment to the body.

Storyboard Slideshow

Alice by Jan Svankmajer

Jan Svankmajer - Meat Love (1989)

Storyboard

I began storyboarding my animation to visual the appropriate camera angles to use and approximate times for each scene. I condensed my storyboard into a slideshow so i could approximate how long each scene would last and get a general idea of how long a shot would last. Visualizing my storyboard has helped me to clarify the meaning of my animation (language convergence and body language) and steering it away from becoming too "narrative" and becoming too disconnected or irrelevant from my initial learning agreement.

Conceptual Storyboard

Revised Character concepts

I did some drawings of my boyfriend's axolotl as a starting point to generate ideas for my second puppet. These drawings were a starting block to research other reptiles and amphibians. The resulting sketches inspired me to try drawing frogs and lizards. I found creatures such as salamanders had interesting head shapes, textures and features that could translate well into a puppet.
I found a very interesting website while research on endangered reptile and amphibian species, including the giant salamander, which can grow up to 6ft long (!!!!!!!)

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/edge-amphibians870.html#cr

Puppet problems

As I made the puppet's head and feet first, I encountered a problem when putting the model together. I made the puppets body pattern from scratch, and out of a stretch material, which resulted in the body being much larger in proportion the the head. As a result I removed the head and decided to re-design it, as it was also too heavy for the skeleton running through the puppet, and would not have animated well. I also wasn't happy with the outcome of the puppet, and felt the head wasn't quite how I had envisioned the character to look. I am currently re-designing the head and strengthening the armature. As it stands, I am considering moving away from the reptile/dragon influence and creating something a little stranger.

Construction 3

Second puppet construction 2

Second puppet construction

Second puppet concept sketches

I started brainstorming idea for another puppet in my animation. I wanted to make something reptillian and appealing in contrast to the first model. I looked at images of creatures such as axolotls, lizards and frogs to get an idea for the shape of the body and head, as well as adopting ideas from mythology.

"Uncanny"

Materials used-
scrap calico fabric
polymer clay
tin foil
wire
cotton thread
acrylics