Becky Johnson and Paul Vincett interview

29 Jul

Netflix, Ludovic Robert - Eric Creature Suit - Stitches and Glue / Benedict Cumberbatch

Becky Johnson and Paul Vincett have recently been interviewed by Vin Burnham (Costume Designer) for her new follow up book to Get Into Costume, with more focus on the creature department and VFX puppets.

Here is the interview in full. We look forward to reading the book Vin!

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CLOSE-UP: BECKY JOHNSON AND PAUL VINCETT

STITCHES AND GLUE - Creature and Puppet Builders

‍Credits:

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‘There’s a real crossover between theatrical and VFX puppets, they feed off one another and have a similar approach to their making, but they have very different purposes’.

‍ ‍With a background in puppets and creature work, Paul and Becky frequently combine digital techniques with traditional handmade fabrication work to bring the best of both worlds together.

What is the function of VFX Puppets for film?

CGI is very much a part of how films are made today, many characters are digitally created and never even exist as a physical entity. However, if that character needs to interact with cast a puppet can be used. A great puppet can help the Director and DOP with framing, lighting and performance. It will help the VFX crew determine the space the character occupies and prevent occlusion on set. The puppeteers will work with the directors, actors and the puppet to get the performance and motivation required of the scene and hold eyelines at the correct pitch.

‍ Sometimes a tennis ball on a stick is used and that can be draining on the creatives continually trying to visualise all these aspects. That’s when we will become involved. For example, on ‘Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore’ we made a whole host of Puppets, ranging from a manticore, nifflers, baby Qilin and Mother Qilin. ‍ The Qilin is a rare, part-dragon, part-horse magical beast native to China.

‍Eddie Redmayne had to work with these characters through emotional and action based sequences and physically connect with them. For these reasons we built different versions of the puppet for the different needs. A fully articulated Baby Qilin rodded puppet for sensitive beats, and a soft flexible puppet for action sequences.

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How do you combine your different methods?

Each job requires a different approach. There are so many aspects to what we do, with specific considerations to be made for each brief we rarely repeat the same combination of techniques but build on successful methods used on our previous jobs and learn from failings. We are always learning and striving to do our best.

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How do live performance puppets differ to VFX puppets?

‍With VFX puppets we use the production’s digital asset that provides all the geometry we need to produce an accurate physical representation. Theatrical projects tend to work with a 2D design. VFX puppets need to occupy the correct footprint which is predetermined and they need to move in the same manner as the creature you are portraying. These puppets are then replaced with computer generated imagery. Live action / on camera puppets, such as the builds we produced for ERIC, are seen in the final edit.

‍Both variations are exciting to build and are open to interpretation such as planning how a puppet is manipulated and the materials and methodology used to build it. Functionality is led by the script requirements and what the director wants to see.

‍ Working on ERIC was an amazing insight as we got to work very closely with Lucy Forbes the director and Abi Morgan the writer as they developed the script and cast the lead actor Benedict Cumberbatch, which really had an impact on the design of Eric. Poppy Kay illustrated many different 2D incarnations of Erics, as the project tightened up so did the design. Even though the choice of ear colour was made the night before he flew off to Budapest!

‍The puppet cast of Good Day Sunshine (the puppet show seen within the series ERIC) reflected characters that would have been found in Central Park in the 70’s/80’s and also utilised different forms of puppetry; for example Officer Charlie had ‘live hands’ whereas Bug and Mush were ‘muppet style’ with rodded arms, the Statue of Liberty puppet was nearing a vent doll.

‍ With all puppets and suits, the performance can be strenuous, considerations must be made for the puppeteer who will be wearing (or holding) the puppets for long periods of time and bearing the weight. We strive to make our puppets as lightweight as possible, balancing this with strength within the build, to enable the performer to keep going. During the rehearsal period, when the performance is being established, complications can arise and damage can occur as the work is used, final adjustments are made accordingly.

‍ For the stage production of Stranger Things: The First Shadow, we built Demogorgon creature suits to fit multiple cast members, endure 8 shows a week 52 weeks of the year. That is a massive durability demand on a worn mechanical suit. High wear areas are reinforced, a kit for running repairs and instructional videos are handed over to the wardrobe team. This is in stark contrast to the television show of Stranger Things Series 4 and 5 working on the Vecna prosthetic suits for Barrie Gower of BGFX. We fabricated the wearable elements worn by Jamie Campbell Bower. These were built to help keep the prosthetic make up application time to a minimum. Legging bases were fabricated which we glued the prosthetics pieces on. Similar methods were used on Vecna’s shoes and the glove that covers the finger extensions making it a ‘re-wearable’ costume piece, as opposed to the actual prosthetic pieces that only last one application. The fabricated items only had to last the shoot, and as they were given expert maintenance and many multiples were made, it was easily achieved.

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In the 20 years we have been making puppets and creatures, things have changed massively and will continue to evolve. We get so excited by what we are doing and want to continue to push every build as much as we can to make it as smart and impactful as possible.

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