From the start of my interest in stop motion animation I have been eager to learn about the puppet fabrication process. I am particularly intererested in the technical side and problem solving that is involved in the creation of puppets for animation. Because I also work as an animator I know exactly what is needed for a well-functioning puppet that can express and tell a story with the right range of movement and emotional expression.
My experience as a puppet maker includes over 2 years of work at John Wright Modelmaking (Bristol, UK), building ball and socket armatures, including for the upcoming Aardman feature ‘Early Man’ (Jan. 2018). I still return for occassional freelance work with them. In 2015 I was puppet trainee in the armature department at Mackinnon & Saunders (projects included Postman Pat, TwirlyWoos & ITV knitted ad break).
Currently I mainly work freelance on puppet fabrication commissions and can take on the full fabrication from technical design to final product.
The selection below are examples of puppets I made or worked on with use of a wide range of materials and processes. All projects had different budgets, style choices and time frame to complete the work in. Each puppet has different requirements in terms of durability and what it needs to be capable of. Some of the puppets have complex ball and socket armatures while others have more simple wire armatures. Some were developed over weeks or even months while others had to be completed within days.
Cave character
Gardener (Bodyform)
Earth Mother
Owl puppets
Early Man – armatures
Dog armatures
Resin head cores
Jellyfish puppet
Girl puppet
Fowl Play puppets
