steve neill
Sr Member
I first watched 2001 when it came out in 68. I was in high school. It changed my life’s direction and career pursuits. I started making films which I still do today. But it also turned me into a maker.
I watched so many great sci-fi films and movies and often I wanted things from those films. So I made them myself. This later lead to my working at the American Zoetrope and then in 1974 I came to Hollywood where I met Rick Baker and was quickly dropped into the make-up effects and creature making world.
For years I have worked on so many things. I made Spock’s ears for TMP. Made creatures for Ghost Busters, Fright Night, and so many other films. I worked as a SAG actor in creature suits. Did many gorilla suit gigs thanks to Rick who referred me. I even helped launch Doug Jones career with the Mac Tonight moon mask I created for Mac Donald’s.
But during all this time I never stopped thinking about 2001 and the impact it had on me. I wanted to make something from the film and relive the history as I did. So I started on two projects in my spare time away from the post production of my TV pilot, “But Something is There”.
I am building Moonwatcher and a studio scale replica of the Star Child. I am documenting the process on video and so far I have sculpted the skin and made the core mold for Moonwatcher.
I am working from photos and frame grabs. I have found the surviving head pieces pretty useless as a reference. They have been rotting over the years and the attemps at repairing them have only further distorted Stuart Freeborn”s fine work. Not to mention the upper lip being in a fixed snarled position.
To get the neutral look of the skin sculpture I had to back engineer from the few black and white pictures available of the sculptures. Additionally there was little reference of the underskulls. But I knew how it was done. The same way I made my gorilla suit heads with a fiber glass underskull and mechanics to move the lips.
What aren’t cannon about my techniques is the use of materials.
They used gypsum for the molds and foam latex for the skins. Knowing that they will rot in time I am using GEL 10 silicone and deadener. For the molds BJB 1630. It just makes more sense to use modern materials that will insure better surface detail and longevity for both the molds and the skins.
The first part to the video is long I warn you and I cut it back as best I could. So far it took a week to do the sculpture, mold and core mold.
- - - Updated - - -
A few pictures but to get the whole story watch the video it will answer all your questions.
I watched so many great sci-fi films and movies and often I wanted things from those films. So I made them myself. This later lead to my working at the American Zoetrope and then in 1974 I came to Hollywood where I met Rick Baker and was quickly dropped into the make-up effects and creature making world.
For years I have worked on so many things. I made Spock’s ears for TMP. Made creatures for Ghost Busters, Fright Night, and so many other films. I worked as a SAG actor in creature suits. Did many gorilla suit gigs thanks to Rick who referred me. I even helped launch Doug Jones career with the Mac Tonight moon mask I created for Mac Donald’s.
But during all this time I never stopped thinking about 2001 and the impact it had on me. I wanted to make something from the film and relive the history as I did. So I started on two projects in my spare time away from the post production of my TV pilot, “But Something is There”.
I am building Moonwatcher and a studio scale replica of the Star Child. I am documenting the process on video and so far I have sculpted the skin and made the core mold for Moonwatcher.
I am working from photos and frame grabs. I have found the surviving head pieces pretty useless as a reference. They have been rotting over the years and the attemps at repairing them have only further distorted Stuart Freeborn”s fine work. Not to mention the upper lip being in a fixed snarled position.
To get the neutral look of the skin sculpture I had to back engineer from the few black and white pictures available of the sculptures. Additionally there was little reference of the underskulls. But I knew how it was done. The same way I made my gorilla suit heads with a fiber glass underskull and mechanics to move the lips.
What aren’t cannon about my techniques is the use of materials.
They used gypsum for the molds and foam latex for the skins. Knowing that they will rot in time I am using GEL 10 silicone and deadener. For the molds BJB 1630. It just makes more sense to use modern materials that will insure better surface detail and longevity for both the molds and the skins.
The first part to the video is long I warn you and I cut it back as best I could. So far it took a week to do the sculpture, mold and core mold.
- - - Updated - - -
A few pictures but to get the whole story watch the video it will answer all your questions.
Last edited by a moderator: