As usual, I've been contacted by someone who is looking for a puppet build that is way beyond my experience - is it really difficult to make a vent?... This is very much for an important organisation, and on the one hand I want to say yes, but on the other hand... I've never made one, and what they're asking for is a little more complicated (blinking eyebrows, it has to be a caricature of someone, has to be operated by one person) than I had expected over the phone.

I don't mind putting in the hard work, I'm just worried that I'd agree to do it and end up making a fool of myself later.

What do you guys think?

Always be up for a challenge.  If they are asking for a soft sculpture then give it a whirl.

Just make sure that you have the time line/wiggle room that will be enough to experiment.

You will never learn, other wise, unless you take the challenges.  You always will have great help/support here at the site.

Just my thoughts......

Daryl H

Well, from the sounds of it they're looking for a molded vent. Actually, not much was given in the way of a materials brief; just what the puppet needs to do. They've given me a photo of what kind of look they want (not the person that the puppet will be based on, but rather a similar puppet that is very famous in Australia), and it seems vaguely doable.

I can of course, ask for more info on materials.

My main concern is that this is for one of the TV channels here and that's quite intimidating. I have to give them a quote and an idea of time... I've been hunting for how to's on vent figures, and though I could make something, it would be my first vent. I'm just worried I won't do a good enough job.

On the other hand, it's an excellent opportunity... and if I do it well, I have an in with a TV producer.

If its for a solid vent puppet and you dont want to endevour on casting your own mould etc then there are various kits available here on the internet which have hard heads already made. You can change the character by using sculptey to define features ie making the nose a different shape. All you will need to do is read up on the mechanisms and get that sorted, it looks complex at first, but I think you will get round it. There are also other parts such as hands, and legs ready made for you to paint.

Cheers,
Dan

Something like this

170198302596

Thanks Dan - actually I'm reading up on making it from scratch as we speak. I'm not keen on buying a kit (I'd already discovered them) because it will take a while to ship to me here in Australia.

I've been reading the tutorials here:

http://www.puppetsandprops.com

http://www.alstevens.com/ventriloquism/fred.html

And I think I could probably combine the two tutorials to create what I need.  The other reason I'm avoiding kits is because it will be a caricature puppet, and the photo that I've been sent is much more cartoonish than what I've seen from the kits. (Although I'm sure I could adapt one, it's probably just as easy to start from scratch)

But I do have some questions: I'm not sure how much of the materials I can get my hands on here. I'm thinking that I could make a clay head to create a mold from, and then use plaster to create the mold with. I can get my hands on some brush-on latex rubber, but it just seemed so much more complicated (or time consuming rather) than doing plaster.

Next, I'd have to find a material to make the actual head out of - and that's what I'm stuck at. Does anyone know of a product that I could find in Melbourne?

Plaster will be fine, but make sure you pick a good strong version, not the cheap readyily available plaster of paris which can crack easily.
Ive made some smaller vent figures in papier mache before, very strong + a light coating of plaster to make it smooth yet lightweight. Plastic wood can also be used, which is again a lightweight material, but Im not sure what brands you have over there in Australia

Cheers,
Dan

Yes, I was thinking of the plaster I recently used at UNIMA 2008; it was very good, and didn't take very long at all to use.

I wasn't sure about using papier mache - obviously durability is a big factor, but as this is for TV, I also wanted something that would be good at getting all those little details. However, the photo that I have almost looks like papier mache, so it might not be a bad idea. Is plastic wood something like this?

http://www.selleys.com.au/Selleys-Plastic-Wood/default.aspx

I'm still reading through the Fred project, so I'm now looking at arms and the body. Oh, there's so much work in it! (Not that I mind... just trying to calculate how long it would take me)

Ok, got a bit more info. I've been looking at the maker's behind the puppet that I've been given as an example. From what I can find out, the puppet is: a latex rubber puppet, glove sized, with the arms/hands just gloved human hands. There is some movement of the mouth, but not in the way a vent works; it seems to be just a flexing of the rubber open and shut. The eyes don't seem to move at all, and I'm as yet to find one that has moving eyebrows (as per my brief). Additionally, I haven't yet found one of them that has side-to-side head movement, which is also in my brief.

I'm thinking there's got to be a compromise somewhere between the design/look that they're going for, and the method/materials to make the specs work.

If someone PMs me I can forward them a link to a video so you can see what I'm talking about.

Hello,
That looks like a wood filler. Im not sure if its still available over here in the UK, but Ill look to see if I can find a photo.
Papier mache would work well for figures, particulary if you use the layer method which creates a very strong head, and since your beginning vent making this would be a good start. As for fine details, these can be added afterwards once youve done the mould.
Ive recently made a small puppet in fibreglass, which has turned out to be quite durable yet lightweight, but the only problem is its very difficult to work with and can be quite frustrating when using it.

Cheers,
Dan