After a 6 1/2 hour workshop with Michael Earl (a retired Jim Henson puppeteer) on Sunday I was beat.
Things I learned
The puppets he brought were of such great quality.
And we did some improv from time to time. I wasn't super proud of my stories and ideas, being to caught up in focusing on the puppet and the camera, however I was a part of a really good improv during the day. There were three characters at a bowling alley, and then Timmy got stuck in the pin return. It was higher level of improv that any of the other ones we did because it had semi defined characters, a little plot arch and was, you know... interesting.
These muppety puppets were created by a genius. Not that I want to praise any one person to much, but they really were well made. Michael created them himself, and possibly because he'd worked with the Henson company for so long, and they fit like a glove. The only foam is in the creation of the mouth, the rest of the body is just cloth with no real support and this fact alone makes it possible to play with them above your head for hours with very little arm fatigue. I MUST STUDY THEM.. So simple yet exquisite in their construction. The body, the eyes, the rods!! It's orgasmic... alright, awkward, but it gets my point across. With some very simple ingredients these intensely expressive creations are there for play time. I LOVE IT!!!
Bradly, one of the other puppeteers in this "troupe" had worked for 3 years on some Disney shows and he's great to work with because he knows how to get the characters to life. Denis and Warren both create some fantastic voices. All things that I strive to become better at.
An exciting plus was that we used music quite alot and I was really excited that one of the exercises was to the Mahna-mahna Song!!
Below are two clips of puppetry work done with Michael Earl, HOWEVER they are not something that I was a part of, I believe these were done during one of his regular classes. I post this more as an example of the puppets (and for general entertainment) than anything else.
Aren't those puppets mind blowingly cute? I do love the dog bunny!
Things I learned
- The Three Holy Requirements - Breath, Gravity, Focus
- Stillness is a necessity
- Be Specific
- Pupil visibility helps keep the puppet alive
- The four voices
The puppets he brought were of such great quality.
And we did some improv from time to time. I wasn't super proud of my stories and ideas, being to caught up in focusing on the puppet and the camera, however I was a part of a really good improv during the day. There were three characters at a bowling alley, and then Timmy got stuck in the pin return. It was higher level of improv that any of the other ones we did because it had semi defined characters, a little plot arch and was, you know... interesting.
These muppety puppets were created by a genius. Not that I want to praise any one person to much, but they really were well made. Michael created them himself, and possibly because he'd worked with the Henson company for so long, and they fit like a glove. The only foam is in the creation of the mouth, the rest of the body is just cloth with no real support and this fact alone makes it possible to play with them above your head for hours with very little arm fatigue. I MUST STUDY THEM.. So simple yet exquisite in their construction. The body, the eyes, the rods!! It's orgasmic... alright, awkward, but it gets my point across. With some very simple ingredients these intensely expressive creations are there for play time. I LOVE IT!!!
Bradly, one of the other puppeteers in this "troupe" had worked for 3 years on some Disney shows and he's great to work with because he knows how to get the characters to life. Denis and Warren both create some fantastic voices. All things that I strive to become better at.
An exciting plus was that we used music quite alot and I was really excited that one of the exercises was to the Mahna-mahna Song!!
Below are two clips of puppetry work done with Michael Earl, HOWEVER they are not something that I was a part of, I believe these were done during one of his regular classes. I post this more as an example of the puppets (and for general entertainment) than anything else.
Aren't those puppets mind blowingly cute? I do love the dog bunny!
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