Props...

Okay, so now I will post some photos of the various props that we have already done some work on. So far all of the props have been made, and given a wash of primer. The next step will be the painting, which we will be doing next week (time permitting). Some of them need a final "wash and a brush up... a bit of water on the back of the neck, old boy" before they actually get painted...

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Prop : 2 x Spellbooks

These are made with Extra Firm Scupley. I used metal tools to get sharp edges on the "brackets" and book-bindings, as well as the name-plate on the front. Some simple scoring to suggest pages inside. The book names will be painted on with acrylics and a fine-headed brush (preferably sable, if I can get one in time). These were made by me. The books have a block of hardened epoxy inside to bulk them up, thereby saving on sculpey.



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Prop : 3 x Containers

Again, made with Extra Firm Scupley. We decided to do three different irregular and rustic shapes for variety. These were made by Kjestine.



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Prop : Fidget's Ladel

This ladel has a thin aluminium armature inside, which was useful in ensuring it kept it's shape while being sculpted. It also meant we could use less Scupley to make it, and that it would bake more evenly. Barry made this.



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Prop : Rotten Fish-head

This prop also required a small aluminium wire armature due to the finicky nature of it's shape. Having made this though, I am now considering to re-make it using clay, because I would quite like the fish to flop as it hits the floor... This version may be too rigid and not look quite right in the finished film, as it is being thrown to Caspar. I sculpted this.



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Prop : Pie Dish and Toddler Pie

I sculpted the Dish and Pie in two seperate parts. This is so that I could show the pie dish empty before the pie is made... rather than making two pie dishes. The Toddler Pie itself has some gruesome detailing in the fingers and eyeballs poking out through the lattice pastry. Not to my personal taste... I prefer apple & blueberry pie! I sculpted this one. This should be a fun one to paint!



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Prop : Fidget's Broomstick and Wand

These items were both made using wire inside to help retain their shape while sculpting. The texturing on each was achieved in a different way to allow me to experiment with which would be most effective. The broomstick was textured before baking, and the wand was textured after baking.

Barry made both of these items, and textured the broomstick... I then textured the wand after baking. For this I used a sharp, small-pointed sculpting tool... It took about 2.5hours!!! I really like the results, as the wood texture grooves are quite deep...

However, in comparison with the pre-bake textured broom-stick which still looks effective, I am not sure it is worth the extra time required to texture a wood effect after-baking. One reason it took so long is that it is a small size. Anyway, both are done now.

I really like the gnarly shape Barry gave to the wand... It is a welcome departure from the boring straight version I drew in the design stage.

They have each received a thin coating of wood stain on top of their primer coat. This was to see if that would be sufficient... I think I will be painting over them with acrylics though for the finished piece. The stain is far too specular and glossy...

I'll be using a special "miniature reed" product for the broom -brush-sticks!



Basically... I like the depth of my post-bake texturing, but I like the style of Barry's pre-bake texturing... Maybe I should do another test doing Barry's less regular texturing after baking... Any thoughts?




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Well I hope you liked the props. If you have any questions or suggestions, then fire away. I will post photos of them again after they have been fully painted and detailed.

Next up... The furniture.

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-Paul J. McConnochie
Producer / Director / Animator
Vortex42
www.vortex42.co.uk