Prometheus: Character footage, movement and characterisation. from Lily Greenhalgh on Vimeo.

On location, using our environment to create characterisation and emphasised movements. We also played with depth of field, and took advantage of the pillars and structure of the room in order to create this effect.

Final photos of mask and theatre realised Prometheus.

Here are a collection of my favourite shots from the photoshoot! I'm so pleased with how these have turned out, the lighting of the cathedral we were in only lent itself to the airy, spiritual vibe I wanted to create. In using a cathedral as a setting, it was mimicking and assisting the religious imagery that I was focussed on with this realisation of the character. Even though a lot of my work this during this assignment has been based around stop motion, my love for theatre, costumes and prop-costume such as masks meant that I didn't want to pigeon hole myself entirely, as I really enjoy camera work of all types. Whether it's stop motion, film making or getting stills like these, I really enjoy realising the character through other mediums; I feel that this way we can learn more about the character. Through this practise I was able to explore how the character moves, sits, holds themself etc.
The model is Jack Taylor. Assistant photographer was Yasmine Lahouag.

Costume variation: Photoshoot preparation and sourcing

In exploring the characterisation of Prometheus as well as showcase my work in another light, I wanted to work on modelling in the medium of costume as well as simultaneously working on the maquettes I've been focused on. I feel this could add to the characterisation of the fox-spirit as well as give me an opportunity to work with camera; both in moving image and stills, which I think was one of my strong points in previous projects. I was lucky enough to have two models to choose from! I got all the outfits I had sourced and had them both wear them in order to see which I though suited the character better. Although I prefer the height of the model on the left, I think the tattoos and aesthetic of the model on the left work better with the themes and visuals I've been working on for this character! 

Ears: Worbla thermoplastic experiments

1) Taking the original foam template and decreasing it in size slightly.
2) The new foam cut out sizing in comparison to the original.
3) The foam piece is sandwiched between two sheets of Worbla thermoplastic.
4) I glued the foam down to stop it from sliding about, then used a heat gun to soften the thermoplastic. I then pressed the edges together forming a seam that fused together.

Here shows the ears against the mask so far; the mask was being sanded down at the time.

Prometheus model: detailing

Close up images of the kinds of materials and textures I'm working with. I decided on mixed media in order to portray a patchwork and pieced together kind of disguise that the character made themselves. I almost wanted it to look as if it had movement running through it, but equally wanted the viewer or observer to want to reach out and touch all the different textures, fabrics and patterns.

Update: Prometheus model

Inspecting the silhouette:
I'm not going to simply stick this sheet to the model, it's just to check how the final silhouette and colour choices will appear alongside the overall shape.
The second image shows the model almost covered in a variation of fabrics. All were hot glued into place, and I placed them in such a way that flowed with the form of the plaster bandages, e.g. small clustered swirls in the dips, and long stretched pieces of leather on the flatter planes.

Foam ear experiment

Whilst sculpting the clay ears I was realising more and more how heavy they were getting. The thickness around the bottoms of the ears was also building up, so it would be impossible to stick the ears to the mask while still being about to see through it. Even though I've spent a lot of time sculpting and figuring out techniques and materials, I feel like I may have to give up on that process. Instead I've started looking at a lighter, quicker and more flexible method. Above shows the experimentation using scrap foam sheets; here I was figuring out the pattern and shape that I wanted the ear to be. 

Mask Fabrication: Sanding and filling

1) The covered ear beginning to be sanded smooth.
2) The difference between a sanded and un-sanded surface. The light and dark patches show where the dips and lumps are, so can guide you were needs filling.
3) Stage one of sanding complete! One of the ears was more cracked than the other so needed extra support on the inside.

Mask Fabrication: Ears

After sculpting an ear out using air dry clay and chicken wire for support, I decided to attempt using these as the final things. Speaking to a technician, Emma suggested that I use the milliput to coat the ears in, in order to stop them from cracking, meaning I wouldn't have to re-sculpt something I was already happy with too.

I began this process by mixing up equal amounts of the two part epoxy putty, then squishing small, thin circles together, blending them together to create a thin layer about a millimeter thick over the whole sculpt.

Mask Fabrication: Progress

I've now re-sculpted in the details that were lost in the process of vac-forming. Once these have dried, I'll sand them smooth, then prime the whole thing. Several coats of primer paint and a few sessions of sanding and filling may be necessary to get the mask flush and smooth at every 'seam'.

The edges of the mask were hand sanded, and the eyes cut out with a sharp pair of tin snips, then hand sanded and filed back. They still need some re-shaping done at this point though so ensure safety of the wearer, good vision and clean edges.

Mask Fabrication: Post-vac-forming

At first, one of the technicians attempted cutting the sculpt out of the plastic, but when I realised that the clay would have dried and cracked, it also meant that this 'cast' was going to be the only shot without having to sculpt it all over again. This is why the plastic was in a bit of a state.

The air-dry clay crumbled very easily out of the plastic, so it would've been impossible to cast from this sculpt again. After cutting it out of the leftover plastic, the edges were a bit chewed up. I'll be able to fix this with some simple re-shaping and sanding though. I could either do this using a course sandpaper and do it by hand, or possibly use a dremel. A belt-sander would be way too aggressive for this though. The last image shows the current sizing and overall shape of the mask. I can't say I'm not disappointed with how the mask turned out, as I was really happy with the sculpt, so for it to mess up at the final stage is a little annoying to say the least. It also means I have to put a lot of restorative work into it now, whereas if it had taken properly then I could be onto the painting stages by now. 

Vac-forming process

Vac-forming process from Lily Greenhalgh on Vimeo.


Unfortunately something went wrong with the vac-forming process! You can see at about 00:10 the details start to come through, but at 00:11 there's a small pop and the details are lost. Seeing as the heat from the vac-former will have dried the clay, we only really had one shot at vac-forming the mask. This means a little extra work, and some problem solving.
My current options are:
1) Sculpt and vac-form the mask all over again.
2) Add details to this vac-formed version.
3) Try and get the clay out and attempting to vac form it again.
The most time, material and cost efficient option was 2); Essentially I have to use some epoxy putty to sculpt the missing features onto the mask. This does mean quite a bit more time will be spent on this mask than I had initially planned, throwing my time schedule out slightly, so I'll have to compensate by putting more hours into the mask, staying later or working faster to keep up to date. These things are sent to try us!

Mask Fabrication: Vac-forming

The mask had to sit lifted from resting on the vac-former, as air had to get underneath it in order for the process to work; we used two little pieces of wood to lift it up. The mask had to have a few little repairs again before it was vac-formed, but the whole thing was dry enough to be used.

Mask Fabrication: Ears

After prototyping a quick ear sculpted in air dry clay (for sizing and shape reference) I decided to experiment making the ears with the same material, only this time I gave it an inner-structure of chicken wire to support it and potentially help with the inevitable crumbling. This was simply to experiment with the material and different ways of working with it further.
In the first image you can see me checking the wire against the mask sculpt to make sure it wasn't too big or small.
The second image shows beginning to pad the clay around the wire, beginning to see the shape.
The third image shows the rough sculpt with details. It was hard to hide the wire without the sculpt becoming too thick, but I liked the overall look of it.

Mask Fabrication: Small repairs

Before vac-forming, there were a few minor repairs I had to make simply by blending some clay into the cracks that had appeared. This tends to happen naturally as the clay dries and the water evaporates out of it, so unfortunately it can't really be avoided. This is why I prefer sculpting in other materials if air-dry clay can be avoided, but seeing as I wanted to vac-form this mask due to time restraints and budget, air dry clay was the way to go! A small hurdle, but very easily fixed.
The cracks can be seen around the eyes and the top of the forehead; this also indicates where weaker points may be, so are often in corners or detailed areas.

Bird mask: Painting and sealing

After priming the mask with a dark brown, I painted it using acrylics. I wanted to re-enforce the fact that this was a mask a bird was wearing as opposed to the face and head of the animal itself, so went for a leathery kind of appearance, with faded marks around the eyes, highlights around the different panels and small white dots showing where the seams are. Overall I'm relatively pleased with the paint job, but feel I should've used a lighter primer, as the colours wouldn't really lift after a dark backing tone was put down.
Once this was dry I used a clear lacquer gloss to seal it and provide a slight shine.

Bird mask: Moulding and casting

1) Seeing as the little bird mask sculpt didn't have a flat back to it, I had to cast it by means of a two part mould. I began this by finding a container that would fit the sculpt whilst still accommodating enough room on every side so the silicone wouldn't be too weak. I then filled half the container, in this case a small ramekin glass, with air dry clay and buried half the sculpt in this making sure it was air tight. Silicone was then poured over the remaining half of the sculpt that was left exposed, and left to set.

2) On taking out this half of the set silicone after the going off time, I accidentally pushed the tool I was using for leverage in getting the mould out of the container, into the sculpt itself. Because of this a little repair work was needed between casting. I also took this opportunity to trim down the silicone to fit back into the same container; it had a rim to it, so needed to be cut back down to size.

3) The second half of the mould after it had been cast: Quite a bad mould really, with a lot of airbubbles, but in no place they couldn't be simply sanded quickly away once the mask piece was cast so I saw no reason to completely re-cast this half. This half of the mould is also a slightly darker green; I put more catalyst in so it would go off a little faster this time.

4) The resin cast straight out of the mould pieces! It worked! My next step will be sanding down the edges that were left where the two mould pieces met.

Complete bird prototype

Images above show the completed bird prototype! I'm so happy with how this came out; I was able to experiment with different materials and methods to see what worked best. I feel like I'll be able to go on and make replicas of these, (or at least different breeds of birds using similar processes) a lot more confidently now. Understanding even small details such as 'which kind of wire is appropriate for which parts' was integral in figuring out how to carry this forward and make something successful from it.

This prototype could either go forward and be painted and detailed, or I could leave it as a demonstration of the progressive creative processes that have occurred during this project. Depending on time restrains I'll either paint it and finish it, or leave it as it is to demonstrate an example of prototyping.

Prototype bird mask details

After blocking out and refining the shapes for this mask, I smoothed it out and added details such as the eye loops.
In image 1), half of the face had been smoothed out using a brush and lighter fluid; this dissolves a small amount of the chavant, leaving it smooth. This picture also shows the difference between the circular eye loop before and after being blended into the rest of the mask.
Image 2) shows the finished thing, ready to be smoothed over once more before being cast.

Seeing as the body is quite delicate and light I will have to consider the weight of the mask when casting, and because of this I feel that solid resin would be inappropriate. Currently I'm considering biscuit foam or slush cast resin to be more suitable.

Bird Mask: Final fitted sculpt

Looking back at my previous sculpts, I realised that these masks would be too small for the 1:1 scale I created the prototype bird body in. I also realised that by simply sculpting out the mask alone, without a head there would be nothing to stick it too. I can solve this problem one of two ways; Either sew and stuff a small, featureless ball to act as a head shape that the mask could then rest on, or simply include the head in the mask sculpt. For this prototype I decided to sculpt the head into the mask, to save on time and to experiment with whether this looks good or not.

1) Blocking out the base shape for the bird mask. For this prototype I was looking at jay birds for reference; the American blue variation sporting a small peak of feathers at the back of the head, which I felt was a key characteristic in distinguishing the features of this bird. The blocking out was simply done with my hands; no tools where needed at this point.

2) Begin using tools; smoothing out the shape to begin figuring out features and seeing what kind of shapes I'm working with.

3) Using references to refine shapes.

4) Adding in a neck piece to connect the body with the head. To make sure the final thing will fit, I held this against the opening of the neck and made sure to regularly check that it could still connect.