Day sad this is. Yoda.

flimzy

flimzy

Master Member
A long long time ago back when I was in my teens I sculpted a yoda. then when I was 19 I got hired by the Jim Henson creature shop to work a a little film about 4 turtles. On that first film I learned a lot of stuff I'd never come across in my model making before . We where all aloud to work on our own projects in our spare time so I moulded and finished of my yoda hand puppet, but that was over 25 years ago and the day has come when all I have to show is a pile of rotting foam :-(. So he's of to that blue haze in the sky wile I decide if I should sculpt another one. yoda 6.jpgthis was my bedroom all those years ago. Yes we all seam to be fans of the same stuff._MG_7787.JPGIMG_7790.JPGIMG_7792.JPGIMG_7800.JPGIMG_7802.JPGIMG_7803.JPG you can see where the velcro was to separate the legs when just using the hand puppet. the feet haven't quite turned to card board yet. I suppose they never saw the light of day. its only the prosade in the paint thats holding the rest together.IMG_7808.JPGIMG_7812.JPG well I couldn't bring me self to throw him away. but all he will do is rot now :). I feel like I will have to make another one to fill the space he lived in.
 

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That's one sad looking Yoda! :(

Anyway; so you worked on the Turtles? Any BTS photos or stories? Sorry, not a Star Wars fan but a huge Turtle fan! :lol
 
A very sad day indeed, after seeing this I may just start a Yoda project myself, who wouldn't want the little fellow in their living room?

Incidentally Chris, my first job was also at Hensons in London when i was a 15 year old tot, (I've grown up considerably since then, backwards in some!), coincidently my first assignment at the shop, whilst they found something for me to do, was lending you a hand in the attic on your very cool space station tunnel!!
Small world indeed.

I visited the site in camden recently and its such a shame they never made it, that place was a truly magical place for a kid, it had its problems like other shops do but it had a cool history attached to it that added that..something.

Cheers

SImon
 
You can rebuild him, you have the technology, you can make him better than he was, better, stronger, faster...
The six million dollar Yoda.

Ok maybe that's a bit much but yes I think you should fix the little guy up.
 
wow It truly is a small world. I never finish the space tunnel job but it did get me an art directing job on one of the henson kid show. seems like such a long time ago now. are you still in the film game




srosefx said:
A very sad day indeed, after seeing this I may just start a Yoda project myself, who wouldn't want the little fellow in their living room?

Incidentally Chris, my first job was also at Hensons in London when i was a 15 year old tot, (I've grown up considerably since then, backwards in some!), coincidently my first assignment at the shop, whilst they found something for me to do, was lending you a hand in the attic on your very cool space station tunnel!!
Small world indeed.

I visited the site in camden recently and its such a shame they never made it, that place was a truly magical place for a kid, it had its problems like other shops do but it had a cool history attached to it that added that..something.

Cheers

SImon
Click to expand...
 
Almost seems you should get in touch with Tom Spina, whose company restores screen used production pieces. They may have some tips on how to restore and preserve it.
 
I say make a new one! Keep what you can, the clothes seem to be it, and make it again with your improved talents and newer materials that'll last longer. Keep the old one for sentimental sake and have it to remind you how far you've come. ;)
 
flimzy said:
wow It truly is a small world. I never finish the space tunnel job but it did get me an art directing job on one of the henson kid show. seems like such a long time ago now. are you still in the film game
Click to expand...

Hey.
Yeah I'm still muddling along, when Neill left for Oz my career took a dive as i had no other contacts in the game other than him, even the the other supervisors didn't know me so didn't want to hire me, i think Nigel had some issues too. so a long struggle to regain a foot hold got me work with Nick on "cough..Phantom men..cough..ace"
I left uk after 18 years in the industry there, for New zealand as i was offered a job with the "little people" and been there ever since.
NZ is AMAZING, not a great talent pool for animatronics and prosthetics but they make up for it in models and costume and of course VFX.

The only thing about NZ that sucks arse is the volume of work, none most of the time, the buck is as strong almost as the US dollar and thats hurting the game there, Weta have been quiet for a year.
 
srosefx said:
Hey.
Yeah I.

Did you Know Simon Cluterbuck is working for weta now. he's been there since King Kong. Work has been good over here I left Henson not long after that 10 years was my limit. now that warner brothers and Marvil are making movies here. with the bond and star wars people are in short supply. But we don't have the locations and weather.
Click to expand...
 
PoopaPapaPalps said:
Can I ask how you guys got to Henson in the first place? Did you apply or just wander in one day?
Click to expand...
sounds funny but I just knocked on the door. I'd been a model maker since I was 15 working for museums when I was 19 i got there address by a strange set of events so thought what the heck. John Stevenson how ran the company gave me a job there and then. bets 10 years of my life.
 
flimzy said:
sounds funny but I just knocked on the door. I'd been a model maker since I was 15 working for museums when I was 19 i got there address by a strange set of events so thought what the heck. John Stevenson how ran the company gave me a job there and then. bets 10 years of my life.
Click to expand...

Can I expect that it wouldn't be that easy now?
 
PoopaPapaPalps said:
Can I expect that it wouldn't be that easy now?
Click to expand...
Funny you said that. I was talking to some young kids a wile back how this hole studio security thing has distorted the cold calling with a portfolio approach to getting work. even for people who have been around for a wile. If your not on some one's call list your stuck.
In the old days if you wanted work you could go to the studio and say at the gate ,you where going to (name one of the effects houses) and get in to wander all the Art departments on new production to find out who is hiring.
Thats all gone now we have the American system "your not coming in unless your name has been left at the gate or you already work here!"
So art departments now get new talent from art schools. These are springing up all over the place now with actual courses on film effects? I got asked to lecture at one of these courses years ago and when I left I told the head of the course that out of 30 students only 2 would ever make it in the film industry, I knew that because they didn't need my help. It seems a shame to be teaching kids letting them think they will get a job.
I'm lucky I have a history in different fields to pull on and have evolved my skills enough to still be hired.
I've seen 2 fields fade away in my time, Animatronics and models all to be replaced by CG, Not that they have gone completely but you can't make a living just doing them now as there very rarely used. Sets and props are the main hands on fields now but be warded the creativity of these two department is not the same as the 70ys. Now the Art department is heavily in to CAD concepting ( this is where I work now) you more likely to have most of the details of making props/sets worked out pryer to getting drawings. i.e. laser cut, 3D printed.
The industry is different but still fun and in the lower budget fields those 70ys hay days of creativity still thrive.

long winded but I hope this answer your question :)
 
I appreciate lengthy responses, it goes to show how well someone knows something and how much they've got to say on the matter. You've more than answered my questions but reaffirmed what I already had suspicions of. Someone like me: wants to do something in the film industry, completely self-taught, no connections, can't afford art school, and with little CAD experience wouldn't be able to acquire a position running for coffee (let alone make something), would be better off doing his own things than trying to get in.
 
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