Work is slow today so while at my desk I drafted a potential new header for the blog; one that reflects both the counseling side of things, as well as the puppet side. Ultimately, I wanted to also capture the general geekiness of myself, so I thought, “why not give the ultimate homage to Henson… and Muppetize myself?” Someday i would like to build a puppet caricature of myself, or at least something that can become my puppet ‘old faithful.’ Whether that’s a caricature of myself or a puppet that is a personal favorite of mine remains to be seen. Henson did many voices, many puppets, but Kermit was uniquely his… and I think that’s kind of what I’m looking for too. I just haven’t built that puppet yet!
I'm thinking ofdoing an abstract background - something tasteful and subtle but that flows with the theme of the blog and MBP...
My Mockingbird Puppets domain is due to expire in a couple of months – I purchased it through Godaddy and built it on Wix. While it’s aesthetically very pleasing, I haven’t been good about updating it, keeping it current, etc., so I don’t think I’m going to shell out the hundred dollars to keep the domain. I’ve been relatively faithful posting to my wordpress blog, so I think I’m just going to diversify and start taking advantage of what the free stuff offers! So, for your consideration, I have the following new additions to the blog:
Menus:
If you look at the top of the page, there’s now a “Mockingbird Puppets” and a “Mockingbird Puppets Pic” menu.” If all you want is to read the MBP stuff, click that link and it will pull up all the posts tagged with that category. The pictures link takes you to a flickr account I set up and will eventually get all of my pictures posted to it! (which reminds me that I really need to build a light box so that I can do some nice display photos of what I make…)
Header:
Okay, I don’t have that yet, but I’m going to be making a new header that reflects the MPB/Personal blog mash-up.
… and that’s about it. I thought I had more than that, but I guess not! The whole “adding menus” thing seemed like a pretty big accomplishment at the moment!
The following is a video of Freud that I made while trying to learn how to use a monitor… they’re tricky things, which is why Freud doesn’t seem so fluid – it’s not stage fright, it’s just the man downstairs trying to make sure Freud doesn’t veer off into the distance while going through the song!
It’s been a fall-long project, but the effort was worth the wait, I’d say! The Sigmund Freud puppet has finally been completed; and not only that but he’s since completed a secret operation (Codename: Avengers Initiative). Actually, I’m really excited to be able to disclose what all the fuss was about!
Freud's shark hat that we used in a bit!
Completed Freud
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Dr. P, my advisor, had written a textbook and was approached by the publishing company to do a DVD/Video companion piece that would help guide students through the text. He then recruited his research group (we’re called the Avengers, hence the project codename) to tap our inner drama geeks and act in the project! Actually he allowed us to make it into this great collaborative effort where we could brainstorm sketch ideas, discuss script issues, etc. Our bimonthly lab meetings became part research, part screenwriting – and it was awesome! When I was in high school, a secret part of me always wanted to be in the school plays, but I was too chicken to try out for them (plus they ate up a lot of your time and really, I was more interested in being at the school library.) Dr. P didn’t want this video to be like your standard textbook accompaniment – dry and tedious. Instead, we wanted to make it a bit more like Alton Brown’s Good Eats, entertaining but informative. We joked around about how having Freud be in the video would be hilarious, and it was at that point that I mentioned how I kind of make puppets in my spare time. The Avengers loved the idea, and from there, the Freud build began.
Dr. P & M. practice a scene between takes (Courtesy of emilyaugust.com)
We shot the video on Thursday – it was an all day event! Actually, it was an all day Wednesday and Thursday event, but Thursday was just the bits with we Avengers in it. We were nervous, but excited, and I got to experience probably the closest thing ever to being on a real film set! While I did get to be silly and act in some sketches, my favorite part of the day was when we filmed the puppet scenes. Freud and my rat-friend, Fluffy had their debuts, and I had my first real, legitimate puppeteering experience. It was everything and nothing like what I expected!
Freud and Dr. P!
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I knew that puppeteers are often called to be contortionists for the sake of a good shot (I read a lot of blogs, watch a lot of puppetry documentaries) so I was bracing for having to twist and squirm a bit. In actuality, I had to twist and squirm a LOT! Professional puppeteers must be pros at Pilates, because you basically contort into a pretzel and then HOLD. I was positioned behind a kitchen island, sat on my hip, extended my right arm up with the puppets, my left arm worked the rods, I used my head and neck as leverage against the counter to get the puppet up and keep my arm high, and sort of sprawled out my legs in a kind of “ballet meets yoga” sort of position.
Running through my lines with Freud... (Courtesy of emilyaugust.com)
The other thing that I expected was a monitor. See, professional puppeteers, in order to make sure that their puppets are making appropriate eye contact with the camera and are in frame, use television monitors to ensure they’re doing their job well. I figured there would be something of that sort, so I practiced at home for a few days with my laptop connected to my TV to get ready. Now, this sounds easy, but it’s not, because the monitor is essentially a mirror-image of what you’re doing; you go left, the puppet goes right. You look right, the puppet looks left. It’s incredibly disorienting and VERY difficult to adjust to if you’ve never done it before! (I made a music video with Freud to practice, which is why in it, he’s kind of stiff).
Turns out, I didn’t need to practice with the monitor because the film crew had me flying blind – no monitors, nothing – just me, a counter and a general sense that I needed to be looking in… that direction. I was incredibly nervous. The last thing I wanted was for Freud and the rat to be looking off into the distance the whole shoot and ruin the scenes. Miraculously, it worked out pretty well in spite of the flying blind thing… I did a lot of looking up at the puppets from behind the counter and I think that helped a fair bit. At any rate, I’ve sprinkled some photos (some courtesy of emilyaugust.com to give you an idea of what working with Freud was like!)
And that's a wrap! The Avengers have a go at a goofy shot, and all of the ladies are too classy to do it... (Courtesy of emilyaugust.com)
Here’s my latest; a little guy for the same top-secret project I’m building Freud for. I needed a break from the guy… he was getting me too nervous, so taking the weekend to build my little lab rat friend was a nice break, while still being productive. That being said, I think I’ve been stressing myself out too much with everything I feel like I need to do… I had to stay home from church today because I may or may not have strep throat… I’m hoping not, but the clinic will have the final say tomorrow… Anyways, without further ado, “The Rat!”
EDIT: I feel like I need to give credit where credit is due; I’ve gotten an overwhelmingly positive response from this little guy, which is crazy because he is one of my least thought out puppets in years. The pattern needs to be credited to Pasha Romanowski, of Project Puppet and Puppetsmith fame – it’s his Glorified Sock Puppet pattern that I edited into a droopier snout. Pasha’s patterns are what started me down the track towards more finessed outcomes, and his tips on design are what (I think) makes this rat a big success. So, thanks again, Pasha!
I am now putting the body of Freud together and will be spending the next two weeks making Freudian hands/arm rods and a nice Victorian era suit. I am a little nervous about the suit (I’m a puppet maker, not a tailor) but I am determined to succeed! Anyhow, here is the completed head of Freud! Now I just need to attach him to a body and we’ll be 100% ready to go!
The Freud puppet is reaching new and exciting heights. I won’t post pictures until I’m a bit farther along, but I’m at the point where I can begin to practice my “Freud voice.” I found this youtube video of Freud giving a speech and to be honest, it wasn’t what I expected. Take a listen!
Earlier on in the semester I was approached by my old bosses in the student retention center to give a talk on puppets to our students in the living learning communities. The living learning communities are for freshmen exploring different interests at FAU, so you would have a science LLC, a nursing LLC, there’s a peace LLC and even one for psychology (which someone I know may be heading up next fall *cough*). Apparently each fall they hold these interest sessions for faculty and staff to share with the students some of their passions, hobbies, and tips for being successful in college.
I admit I was a little nervous – mine was the only session involving something completely removed from academics! Most people had sessions on critical thinking, studying abroad, marketing, finding yourself, etc. My session, “Puppets, Foam, and Fleece” definitely seemed like it was coming out of left field in comparison with the other topics! Nevertheless, when I was approached about the opportunity, I jumped at it! I had gotten the chance to talk to a group of students at a performing arts high school about puppetry and it was a lot of fun then… I could only hope that this time would go as well; and it did!
Sometimes being “that guy that makes puppets” makes you the oddball. Sometimes, being the oddball feels amazing – getting to talk about puppets and have people respond positively to you is very validating. I also love the idea that out of that group of students there just might be one or two who are toying (pardon the pun) with the idea of trying their hand (again, pun) at puppetry.
During the presentation, I gave my “origins” story, talked design, building, and performance. I also talked about some of the life lessons I’d taken away from puppetry that I thought were applicable to academic success. All in all I had fun, and I think the students did as well! Either way, I got to spend an hour of my workday playing with puppets – who could ask for more??
Know that if someone is flashing you the "contempt smile" you may not be at the top of their regard at the moment...
In reading one of my Ekman books I stumbled across something that really struck me. While learning about the emotion of disgust, I was surprised to see that contempt is considered a variant of disgust (the feeling of escaping or turning away from something).
Consider this quote from Ekman & Friesen’s Unmasking the Face:
Contempt is a close relative of disgust, but it differs in some ways. Contempt is only experienced about people or the actions of people, but not about tastes, smells, or touches. Stepping onto dog droppings might call forth disgust, but never contempt. You might, however, feel contemptuous about people who eat such things, for in contempt, there is an element of condescension toward the object of contempt. Disdainful in disliking the persons or their actions, you feel superior (usually morally) to them…
As I read this I remembered something one of my professors said in class a while back. He mentioned “Sarcasm is essentially just contempt plus humor.” It made me think about all the times I’ve ever used sarcasm as an effort to sound witty or be funny. It made me think of how many people I know that are incredibly skilled at sarcasm and use it as a social vehicle. We need to be careful that our communication and our language towards each other – even if veiled in humor, doesn’t say “You disgust me.”
(serious stuff)
Jesus
Sara
My family
Counseling
Puppets
(silly stuff)
Chuck Taylors
funny accents
pretending to dance badly when I’m in the kitchen
corny jokes
geekery
coffee
Doctor Who
i-products (geekery)
Disney
singing
ferns
the colors orange and green
Don’t ask me why I wrote this. It was a total impulse post.
I was surfing the net, trying to find some revolutionary techniques or inspiration for how I can make my puppets better, when I stumbled across an old puppet forum I’d joined back in 2006 when I started making puppets. To my surprise, there were some old photos I had posted up of my first puppets!
When I first started out, I had no idea how to make a puppet, or what to make it from, nor even how to make look nice. Understandably then, out of my inexperience and impatience, my early puppets looked… different.
Anyway a short while later I’d found Project Puppet, and with some patterns and good instructions, my characters were looking more like what I had in my head. It’s neat to see how the design and quality has changed over the years, and how now I’m making puppets that look like what was in my head – well, for the most part anyways… there’s always that shoe that drops…
Here’s a visual timeline:
Frank, the first puppet. Bigger than my head, he was basically a ... disembodied head.
I don't remember what this dog's name was, but he was the second or the third puppet, and was later "put down" if you know what I mean...
This was Goober, my first "full body" puppet, meaning a puppet with a torso. Notice the pom-poms instead of feet...
Then I discovered Project Puppet's patterns...
And I got a little more ambitious...
And then I got even MORE ambitious...
Fast forward a few years and I'm making puppets on my own now, except they're looking much more like what I had in my head, and they're a quality I feel pretty happy with!
