Memorial Day Monday - Puppet Desk

I didn't finish the puppet hair yet.

However, I did visit my grandparents yesterday, and look at what my grandfather had for me:


The female puppet's desk. :)
(sans paint--working on that)

This desk is largely a model of the desk I used all through high school. It was sturdy, big, and bulky. It was the kind of piece that stayed around for years, bearing the etchings of its various owners in its decade-old varnish. As everything in Ultima's (female puppet) room is slightly out-of-date, it seemed appropriate.

The male puppet's desk, which is much more sleek and modern, needs three remaining pieces before I can assemble it. After that, I have only to make the chairs, computers, a bulletin board, and two puppet cores (inner torsos, that is).

It's getting very close to film time.

Memorial Day Weekend

I'm not fond of holiday weekends. They're like line-cutters who jump in and screw up the assigned order.

Nonetheless, they come whether I like them or not, and I try to make the best of them.

This Memorial Day Sunday, I've been twisting yards of wire to make my male puppet's hair:

It's rather dull work. The thought that keeps me twisting is that if I finish it today, I can move on to something more interesting (assembling a minature desk) tomorrow. Sadly, this is the part of puppet films I don't like: puppet construction. In high school, the biggest reason I pulled away from becoming a theatre costume technician was because I hated sitting for hours on end pulling strands of faux hair through wig fabric.

I have a hard time sitting still, even at the computer. I am fidgiting and looking for distractions right now.

If the studio ever has money someday, I will hire an artisan to construct my puppets for me (after hiring a real photographer, that is).

Current Project - Ultima Esperanza

My current (non-commercial) project is a fan-film for The Dresden Dolls' "Ultima Esperanza" (see a few pictures of the pre-production process here).

I decided to start the studio off with a fan-film to prevent any wide-eyed aspirations of earning money off of indie, stop-motion puppet films. My only goal with this is to produce a really cool music video. No profit, no losses, nothing in it for me but the satisfaction of seeing my work. Besides, the idea wouldn't leave me alone.

The start of filming will have to wait until after graduation (only a few days away), and the excitement of moving fully into the production stage is starting to get to me. I've been chewing / filing my nails to the quick as I sit around at the computer tweaking the weareseven.com website. My cats are wondering why I stay up at my desk so late at night instead of going to bed.

Sorry, kitties. No rest for the mentally itchy.