hi guys,

i'm new around the board; i introduced myself a couple of days ago, and i've been reading and looking around. what a kind and welcoming group, and so much talent and imagination. it's wonderful.

as i mentioned in my previous post, i'm making a 10-foot tall werewolf as a commission for a film that's being made. the werewolf has to be quite menacing and scary, and the director wants it to have moving eyes.

i've never made moving eyes before. i've been doing as much research as i can to teach myself how to do it as simply and as quickly as possible, and there are just a couple of things i'm confused about. if anybody can answer my questions or even point me in some kind of direction it would be greatly appreciated.

i have a bunch of completed puppets; i will post photos asap so y'all can see the kind of work i do, i would love feedback from other puppet people.

on to my questions:

1] i understand what to do up to a certain point, then i lose the plot. i'm a little confused about the axles and the actuator arm of a moving eye mech. what exactly IS an actuator? is the actuator arm just something to "brace" the eyes at the top and bottom? 

2] must the eyes be spherical in order for a simple moving eye mech to work properly?

i want the eye mech to be as simple as possible, and it will be hand-operated by the performer who is inside the werewolf head. it must be operable by one hand.

do my questions make sense? if more information is needed i will do my best to clarify what i do/do not understand.

and thank you all so very much. resources like this board are invaluable - especially to the self-taught, DIY sort like myself.

cheers,
JW

There are several different eye mechanism designs out there right now from the very simple technique using a close hanger to a robotic type.

Since this is a commisioned piece of work............... I'm assuming that you want it to be simple but not look like it came from a cracker box.

What other things will this werewolf be doing ? It will be operated by only one or two puppeteers.
Being of such large size it would seem that it would take more than one person unless you are making it like a mascot type costume where the one puppeteer operates everything inside.

How big is the head going to be in diameter? We can give you all types of eye techniques............... we have to find the one technique that works for you.

Can we see some drawings or something to go by?

Billy D.

Well the actuator would be the leaver you use to move the eyes.  When you ask if the eyes have to be spherical to work, what other shape are you wanting?  If you want both up and down and side to side action then, yes they well most likely need to be spherical to work.  Remember though that you can actually change the look of the eye by how much you expose.  Think of it in terms of a humans eye. Inside the skull all eyes are pretty much spherical yet because of the "skin" around they eyes they can look like different shapes.

One hand operation should be no problem. Most the simple eye mechanisms I have seen are operated by one finger.

Here are some past post on blinking or moving eyes

http://puppetsandstuff.com/community/index.php/topic,754.0.html

Thought I would add this one while I had it available.... this may help you in the body movement

http://puppetsandstuff.com/community/index.php/topic,2087.0.html

Billy D.

unfortunately i am currently at my day job and cannot upload any sketches or photos as they are on my home computer.

but, to give you a better idea and to answer your questions:

Billy D: yes i want the mechanism to be simple, both to make and operate. i really don't care what the mechanism looks like from the inside; i know i can make the outside look pro enough.

the werewolf will be operated by 2 performers. one will just be doing the head; one will be doing the body. this part was not my idea; the film is kind of arty and avante-garde and the director wants to create a sort of Michel Gondry-esque world. thus the werewolf, though it must be menacing, doesn't have to look "real" - i have more creative freedom than if it was for, say, the X-Files.

the director is also working with a convention where the operators of the puppets [there are other puppet characters as well] will be visible from time to time. they will be wearing all black, but he wants to be able to see them. for example. some scenes are using miniatures, finger puppets, and the hand/wrist of the performer will be slightly visible against the backdrop. that kind of thing.

BUT the werewolf has to be huge, with an oversize head. it is only in a few shots of the film. it will be shown looking through the forest, howling at the moon, and mauling someone.

the head will be approx. 3-4 feet tall and 2 0r 2.5 feet in diameter at the base, narrowing as we get toward the face.

Shawn: i assumed the eyes would have to be spherical in order to operate, and then i can "hide" most of the sphere inside the head/eyelids. i just thought i would ask to clear that up.  the final eye shape will probably look best as a sort of almond shape, as the werewolf has to look frightening and mean, you know?

thank you so much for responding, i'm really excited to make this work!

You might make two were wolves: one full size with out the eye mechanism for action and more distance shots, and the other just the head and shoulders with the moving eyes and perhaps other features for close up shots.

i definitely don't have time to make 2 full werewolves. as well, it's not really in much of the film, so not worth it for me or the director to make 2. it's a big project that will be seen for about 45 seconds.

thanks for the links Billy D.  will take a closer look at them on my break, but i don't think i'm going to make it blink, just look side to side. i've researched blinking before - it's something i will definitely try, but for this particular project i just want to make it do exactly what the director wants. as well, i am on a really tight schedule so simple is definitely better.

I have some instructions for a moving eye mechanism that i printed out a couple of years ago when i began making puppets. the instructions are really clear up to a certain point, and then it just shows the eyes inside a box-like structure and refers to the axles and actuator arm but doesn't make clear what those things are. i just want to make sure i know exactly what i am doing so i don't waste time have to re-do things.

again thank you all so much! any help is very appreciated.

There was a how to on an eye mech that moved side to side at Puppet Building.com, but since the site is down I can't post the link. I'm trying to find the original link... bear with me.

EDIT... Not what I was looking for, but I thought I'd post it anyway:

http://www.clevelandfx.com/crazylou/tutorials/eyemechs.htm

... Can't find the actual link yet.

Andrew has Puppet building.com down right at the moment for some work...but as Na said that site is full of information. If a side to side movement is what you are looking for then you will most likely have to use the same mechanics ventriloquist do. I did find a few links......... you can find a good bit of info from Puppets and props
http://www.puppetsandprops.com

I highlighted a few here
http://www.puppetsandprops.com/The%20Fred%20Project_files/synchro.html

http://www.puppetsandprops.com/The%20Fred%20Project_files/eyes.html

I found these on you tube..they don't show much but it gives you some " eye" dea

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https://youtu.be/GdamMcLlseQ

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https://youtu.be/30bt-ut7Nd0

I forgot to ask... What is the time frame you have to get this prject finished. I'll keep looking for you.

Billy D.

Ah, that's the site I was looking for!!