Q: I'm a former vent and dummy maker. I caught a couple of your videos on YouTube. Pretty good. I learned how to make my dummies from Paul Winchell's book (you know which one) but it never showed how to make closing eyes. I'm not interested in blinkers, or side to side, just closing eyes. You got a simple diagram you can send me on how to construct this?
Why the renewed interest? I'm constructing a new dummy for a horror flick we are planning to produce.. I started ventriloquism around the age of 11. I haven't performed for more than 10 years 'cause I just got bored and got tired of playing straight man. What an ego! Please reply. Thanks.
A: “Blinkers” is the term for eyes that open and close together. “Winkers” refers to eyes that can open and close separately, so I think you're referring to "blinkers" after all. Most instructions I've seen are installations over side-to-side eyes, but I suppose the mechanics would work with eyes that don't move. However, I think the eyes would still need to be mounted on a tray of some kind.
Either way, the great Al Stevens' Fred Project is probably your best free source of information. Mike Brose’s book “Figure Making Can Be Fun” is also an excellent resource. Hope your horror flick figure turns out well. Keep me updated! Thanks again. - Kenny
Welcome to the DummyStore.net blog, chronicling the adventures (and misadventures) of building professional ventriloquist dummies. It features tips, tricks and utter failures. Please feel free to submit comments, critiques and helpful suggestions.
No comments:
Post a Comment