I’ve been getting back into making stop motion films and the results show I’m a little rusty. It’s been at least 15 years! The audio was accidentally recorded in a car while I was playing with my camera so that’s why it’s noisy. I am trying here to develop a decent lip-sych method. Even though this doesn’t really work, I have learned a lot and the next effort will be much better. The set was built for a big project I’m envisioning: a 7 or so minute movie taking place in a bar with a whole assortment of characters. I’m going to need help coming up with a working plot– so if anyone has suggestions or ideas, please let me know!
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The Hamburger Man is actually a real person. He is the connoisseur of all things beef and hails from Mexico City. You can monitor his activities at his blog. [I know, it’s in Spanish. If you don’t speak it you can get the gist of things using Google Translate or something similar.] I have added another character to my cast of tourists based on the Hamburger Man even though he is technically not a tourist. From time to time he may make an appearance around these parts. It’s worth paying attention to what he has to say. Like all the others, he was carved out of a solid block of basswood (linden for you brits) and painted with tender loving care and given like a million coats of clear-coat to protect him through his travels. His extra special touch, however, is the belt buckle which I fashioned out of sterling silver and a lab-grown star ruby which represents the lovely red juices which run from the perfect hamburger. Enough said. Let’s eat. Here she is in all her glory: ready to take on the world. Below are a few shots of how she was made. We’ll start her off with visits to a few locations around here and then hopefully she will take a long trip. Any volunteers to help in her travels?
What an opportunity. Our little man is shipping out to Hungary (via Germany) this evening for a month long voyage culminating in Istanbul! His handler, Ron, plans all kinds of activities on this trip beginning with a steam bath and massage in a Budapest spa, an evening at the philharmonic, and dinner on the Danube. Perhaps an escape to Lake Balaton and wine country. After traversing Romania and Bulgaria with all their fantastic scenery and culture, he plans to alight in Istanbul for a stout cup of real coffee and later take in the sights. He has always had a weakness for Byzantine art. After that, a cruise along the Black Sea coast and catch the sunrise over the Golden Horn. I should have clear-coated him…
Note his silver glasses. When he gets back he is going to have green lenses fitted in the frames. I had no time this moring. Before I knew our little man was about to embark on a long trip throughout Eastern Europe I had planned to begin his world travels with local visits. He will visit the court house of every one of New Jersey’s 21 counties and get his picture taken there. I figured court houses usually make pretty landmarks. Once he gets back I will pick up where I left off and visit some more close by. After NJ is done it will be time to move to other states, but that’s planning way too far in the future. Behold: First Picture, Somerset Courthouse, Somerville NJ!
This new project consists of a set of little whittled wooden figurines of tourists which are going to be photographed all over the world. The idea is not new: you take a picture of an object everywhere you go on your travels, or ask people to take it along on theirs. People do this with spools of thread, pictures of friends, etc. I plan to make three or four figurines. That way, if any one of them gets lost, a replacement can be carved quickly. The first little tourist was completed this morning and is already heading out on his first trip, but more on that later. Below are pictures of his construction. I think the wood is basswood. He was then gessoed & painted with acrylics. I had no time to clear-coat him. I’ll finish him up when he gets back, if he makes it!
I will be posting new entries to try to make up for what was lost in the move. Of course, I didn’t back it up. But at least it was due for a redesign! |
