The next set I had to make was the main set. The main set where all the animation was going to take place. This is where my Stop Motion character was to interact with a couple of 2D Characters (which I added in during post production) so the whole scene required lots of planning.

Again, the set itself was made out of Polystyrene. It is set inside the small bombed out building established in the previous shot (see images left). I used the same salt and PVA technique to get the stone look, and again used the Games Workshop grass for the moss effect (certainly handy stuff!)

Another challenge I had was making the character. It took several weeks to get it finished. To start I made the wire armature, which was then covered with Foam to pad it out. For the hands I used Latex (see images left). The technique to make the armature was shown to me by my Tutor. He has been in the Animation industry for many years so he certainly knows his stuff.

I then had to make the puppet some clothes. I'm useless at sewing, so I enlisted the help of my parents. My Mum made a black under clothing and pants to hide the armature and foam. My Dad made the Lab Coat. All Credit goes to them for costume design, I just told them what I wanted. To stop the Lab coat flapping around whilst tryin to animate, my Tutor gave me some Foil Tape (usually used in Piping I think), which I stuck about 2 or 3 layers of on the inside of the coat. This let me keep the coat in any shape I wanted.

Finally the head and feet were made out of a light clay material. Very handy stuff, though it does dry pretty quickly.

So once all that was finished, I began to animate! I have a new appreciation for Stop Motion and Model making. It took alot of hard work, but seeing the characters come to life is really fulfilling. To see the finished piece, check out my showreel HERE.

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