From: Brad Shur <mr_utamaro-AT-hotmail.com>
To: <puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org>
Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2008 00:59:38 -0400
Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] Resemblance: how much is OK?


A strong resemblance can be distracting. We've all seen a movie where an actor is so well known for, say being the goofy lead in a TV series, that it's hard to stop waiting for the punchline when they're in a tragic role. Of course, the better the production, the less of an issue this is.

One thing I've been finding often lately is that a naked sculpt transforms drastically in all the steps to bring it to finish. Paint, hair, costume and all the various tweaks along the way play a huge role. I'm working with some foam and fleece heads right now that seemed very exaggerated and cartoony as foam shapes, but with the fleece on top and hair and eyes, they ended up being sort of subtle.

Not to be ivory tower-ish or anything, but a lot of people define a lot of their life through pop media, oh hell, I do too. People often want to relate new things they see to pop media they know. I have a shirt with a Big Nazo puppet character on it, and every time I walk around with it on people seem very confused and interested that I would have a shirt with a character they don't know. Every time I have worn it at least one person has spent several minutes trying to compare it to popular cartoons or puppets. "Is that supposed to be one of the old guys from the muppet show?"

I wouldn't stress it too much as long as you feel comfortable.

B. Shur


> From: creaturiste-AT-primus.ca
> To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org
> Date: Sat, 26 Jul 2008 18:11:56 -0400
> Subject: [Puptcrit] Resemblance: how much is OK?
> 
> Hi all,
> two questions I'd like to see Puptcritters react to...
> 
> -How much resemblance can we let our character designs have to other 
> creations, thinking that the paint job and other finishing touches will 
> change the character quite a lot?
> 
> -How good or how bad can a resemblance to another character be? Anecdotes?
> 
> -How much can we trust people's (as a random crowd) opinions, when they make 
> observations that are so often far fetched that you think they might just be 
> looking for ressemblance just for the heck of it, justified or not?
> 
> 
> 
> Background:
> 
> I've sketched, quickly in clay, a character head for a puppet short film 
> project. It will eventually be developped in full collabopration with my 
> colleague, also a sculptor. He'll come up with his own version, we'll 
> compare and see what direction we take, and then sculpt something new, 
> together.
> 
> For my first draft, I was working without any visual reference, but with a 
> specific concept in mind.
> He is a thin, hungry character. I need to make him look like he is slowly 
> evolving into a bird. So I made his eyes bigger and further apart, and his 
> mouth and nose pointing vaguely like a beak.
> I also made him semi bald, with hair only forming a crown on the sides and 
> behind the head.
> 
> All these elements made him look like something I had seen before.
> At first, I was sure he looked quite a bit like a caricature of Roberto 
> Benini (La Vita E Bella), with a touch of Mr. Burns from The Simpsons. I 
> don't mind that my characters remind people of actual persons, but I am 
> always quite worried that they might look like other people's creations! 
> (Mother Nature is the only Artist we can all "get inspiration from" with a 
> totally clear conscience).
> 
> The next day, I was modeling another head while sitting in a park (which I 
> love to do when it's summertime), and my bird-like character head was 
> displayed (good exposure, good for feedback, good for meeting potential 
> customers or emplyers). People stopped quite a lot to see me work and ask 
> about what I was doing there (sculptors working in parks is a very rare 
> occurence). A few noticed the ressemblance to Mr. Burns. I now see that my 
> character's facial construction is dangerously similar to that of Mr. Burns. 
> I wouldn't be surprised if I were accused of copying him directly and then 
> modifying. Mine is a very nice and innocent looking character, but he could 
> almost be evil Burn's "good twin".
> 
> I know the finishing touches will "make the character" and can totally 
> change the personality, but I have a hard time figuring out how powerful 
> those changes can be, compared to the sculpt itself.
> My initial instinct has always been to make sure the concept is solid and 
> defined in its sculpt. The modification possibilities in the finishing steps 
> are just a bonus, some are happy little accidents. I like a bit of 
> randomness in my work, it makes things look more real.
> 
> Other observers thought he looked more like a local celebrity, which is 
> really stretching it.
> 
> Maybe they are just  looking for ressemblance just for the heck of it?
> I've witnessed many make unjustified connections over the years. The most 
> ridiculous has always been the comparison to a Mogwa=EF (which they invariably 
> mistake for a Gremlin, their mean transformation), whenever I made a 
> creature with fur and long ears, no matter how completely different their 
> head and face might be.
> 
> So, if I started following their standards, if it has two eyes, a nose and a 
> mouth, it must be human?
> 
> Is "association at all costs" a human trait?
> 
> 
> I'm very curious as to people's opinions and insights about these!.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> List address: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org
> Admin interface: http://lists.puptcrit.org/mailman/listinfo/puptcrit
> Archives: http://www.driftline.org

_________________________________________________________________
Use video conversation to talk face-to-face with Windows Live Messenger.
http://www.windowslive.com/messenger/connect_your_way.html?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_Refresh_messenger_video_072008
_______________________________________________
List address: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org
Admin interface: http://lists.puptcrit.org/mailman/listinfo/puptcrit
Archives: http://www.driftline.org