Mike Palma's Blog Spot!

Being Mr. Addison!!

2011-12-22T04:27:00.000-08:00

A few more Pictures!!

2011-10-16T08:39:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more pictures with a body and clothes. This Guy is Classic!!!

The Latest Finished Figure From "Ventriloquist Workshop"

2011-10-15T16:02:00.000-07:00

The Latest Finished Figure From
"Ventriloquist Workshop"

This guy was customized to look like an old 50's Doo Wop type figure!

Here He is....Facetious AKA "Fuh See Shuhs"

2011-09-26T18:36:00.001-07:00

Here is my Character Facetious or spelled "Fuh See Shuhs"
He he made his Big debut at the last Central Florida Ventriloquist Association (9/25/11) At Ed Thomas house and was a riot!!

A Few Clips From My 9/11/2011 Show

2011-09-12T19:28:00.000-07:00

Here are just a few clips from my 9/11/2011 show. It was a small club of about 40, but fun was had by all!! I hope you all enjoy!

Best Regards,

Mike Palma

Mike Palma Of Ventriloquist Workshop

2011-09-11T13:11:00.000-07:00

Here is a little clip from a show I did in back in early 2000. Thought I'd share it with you. You can see my "Classic Boy" (that is available at Ventriloquist Workshop) in action.

Enjoy,

Mike Palma

Ever Have One Of Those Days?

2011-09-05T07:55:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had one of those days, where no matter how hard you try, you just can't please anyone? Looks like this is one of those days!!!

INSPIRED WORX !!

2011-09-03T04:52:00.000-07:00

With all the figure makers out and about these days, I don't think there is a figure maker more creative then Bill Nelson. Together with Dan Lavander the two make some of the best looking figures with some of the Most ingenious mechanics that you will ever see. Bill and Dan are like the modern day McElroy Brothers! Take a look at some of there figures at: http://www.dlavender.com/

Mr. Addison is in the House!!!

2011-08-30T16:41:00.001-07:00

Well, Mr. Addison is In the House! He will be available soon! He will have many different looks, so stay tuned to see his progress!!

Eye Colors!!

2011-08-27T09:45:00.001-07:00

I just popped in the different color eye's that I have received from Mike Brose. As you can see, Mike Brose makes some wonderful eye's!!

Eye have a feeling I'm on to something!!

2011-08-22T16:35:00.001-07:00

Just working on a way to install eye's quickly and with precision each time! This seems to be working nicely!!

Guess the figure maker!!

2011-08-14T08:59:00.000-07:00

Try to guess who the figure maker is for each picture!

Back From New York, New York!!

2011-07-29T07:20:00.000-07:00

Well the family and I just returned from "The City That Never Sleeps" and Brother that is the TRUTH!! There is something always going on, at every miniute of the day, everyday!
The nice thing about New York is that there is so much to see. You can catch a "Yankees" Game go to the theater, grab some great food and visit the different walks of life from up town (Harlem, the upper east side, central park) to time square and then down town (Chinatown, little Italy, the village and ground zero). New York has really changed throughout the years and for the better. The city is still very busy and crowded , but the people are really nice. The stereotype is that New Yorkers are rude, but nothing can be further from the truth.
As you can see I have two teenage boys. If you know teenagers, then you'll know that if they aren't having a good time then they will let you know it! As you can see in the photo they are both having a wonderful time, and who wouldn't eating a pastrami on rye at the Carnagie Deli!!

Ready For Production!!

2011-07-17T11:37:00.000-07:00

Here is Mr. Addison's head complete and ready to head to the molding and casting room. As you can see t in the pictures, the mouth has been omitted. The mouth will be molded and cast separately.

Mr. Addison will be the second in a small line of figures I will be producing. I'm planning on going to Vent Haven next year with my figures for all to see!!

In The Works?!?!

2011-07-12T19:25:00.000-07:00

Here's a guy I started working on Some time back, but he was shelved due to other commitments. I have been thinking of finishing him and possibly make him a stock figure. What do you folks think? Is he good enough to be a stock figure?

Let me know!

Updating an old Favorite!

2011-07-04T06:43:00.001-07:00

Sometimes I like to go back and redo a few thing that might improve the looks of my figures. Sometimes it's just smoothing things out or filling in imperfection. The reason I do this is so when I make a new mold it will make the finishing process easier and faster. As you can see in the pictures, the mouth has been omitted in the head. This allows me to simply cut along the edges of the mouth Area and then the separately cast mouth will slide right in place.

Stay tuned for further progress of this and other figures.

Feel free to e mail me if you have any questions on my figures or figure making at: mpalma1@cfl.rr.com

Dunham, Walter & Casey Anthony

2011-06-26T08:45:00.000-07:00

Here in Florida we have this crazy court case going on, maybe you've heard of it? It's the Casey Anthony murder trial. Well, I think the defense attorney, Jose Baez, is doing such a bad job that he continues to bring up a surprise witness almost each day, from god only knows where, to try and convince the jury that Casey is not the mu...rderer. The prosecution is try to say that Casey killed her daughter with chloroform and/ or putting duct tape over her mouth.

So where does Jeff Dunham and Walter come in? Well, in Jeff's book, "All by my selves ", Walter is getting mad at Bubba J for of course being Bubba J. At which point Walter asks for some Duct tape so he can put the tape over Bubba's mouth. Now with that being said, I'm surprised that this Jose Baez hasn't called Walter to the stand as a possible suspect ! It seems to me that Walter will feel right at home on the stand, as once again, he'll be surrounded by a bunch of dummies!

Could you imagine if Walter did take the stand? Imagine how Walter would lay into both Jose Baez and Casey Anthony!

Anyhow, just a crazy thought on a seemingly crazy court case!

Mike Palma

Multi-Tasking!

2011-06-17T03:56:00.000-07:00

If I'm not busy finishing a head, I'm busy sculpting a new head and when I'm not busy sculpting a new head then I'm busy sculpting hands!

I guess you can say I stay busy!

Tight Fit! No Gaps!

2011-06-04T11:41:00.000-07:00

One thing I strive for is a no large gaps in my figures mouth. As you can see in the photo's a lot of time is spent on trying to achieve a night tight fit with no gaps.

Once the mouth is complete, a mold will be made. Since I have been staying busy building figures for amateur and some pro Vents, the mold will serve to save time on future construction of this particular figure.

If you look close, you can see a little Jerry Mahoney and a little Charlie McCarthy!

This will be one beautiful Classic style figure when completed!

One in the Works!

2011-05-30T05:47:00.000-07:00

Here is a head I'm starting. A lot of work yet to come!

I take a lot of photo's of my figures as I sculpt them. Sometimes you can't see the mistakes you are making until you see a photo of the sculpted head!

Looks like I need to fix the right eye! It looks a little to low!

A lot of thought goes into the figures head as I sculpt it, from how the eye's will line up, what if I add winkers later, to the most important, "Will the mouth open and close smoothly and evenly".

If you see something I need to "Fix" let me know!

Best Regards,

Mike Palma

Lighting!

2011-05-27T15:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a few photo's of a figure with two different light sources.

The first two pictures are taken with the flash on. The colors seem to come to life and appears more theatrical.

The last two photo's were taken with natural lighting.

With the natural lighting the colors seem less harsh and more realistic.

Both photo's are of the same figure, but only the lighting has changed.

When performing on stage with bright lights, the figure will appear more colorful as in the first two photo's.

In the last photo you can see how the figures paint looks compared to a real person. Other then my son having a summer tan, you can see how realistic a paint job can make your figure look! BTW, the last photo was taken while using the flash on the camera.

Al Stevens New Book

2011-05-15T11:25:00.000-07:00

I have received and read the book, "Ventriloquism: Art, Craft and Profession", by Al Stevens. This is by far one of the best books on ventriloquism as it covers a wide variety of subject matter that you'll need to know to become a proficient ventriloquist. Even though some of the material may seem the same as other books on ventriloquism (substitute sound, lip control, etc) , Al has added his own thoughts, techniques and experiences on the subject that are invaluable. I feel this book is a wonderful text book on ventriloquism and if you sit down and study the material and follow Al's directions on performance techniques, comedy writing, promoting techniques and all the little things that go on behind the scenes, you will be a well prepared Ventriloquist! Al has done his homework on this book. The thing I really like about this book is that Al shares important information that can only be learned from performance/ experience. Al has been compiling this information over several years and now he is ready to share it with you!

So, if you thought you knew everything you needed to know on the subject of ventriloquism, then think again. This Book is a must for the beginner to the seasoned professional!

If you are wondering where you can purchase this fine book, you can find it on Lee Cornell's website: http://www.ventriloquism101.com/products/books.htm

WEDDING DAY!!

2011-05-06T13:36:00.000-07:00

Well here I am getting married to my Beautiful wife at George M Steinbrenner field in Tampa! Yes, you can say we are BIG YANKEES FANS!! We couldn't ask for a better day. The temperature was in the mid 80's with 50% humidity, a slight breeze and my two son's as my Best Men! PERFECT!!

So whats next for me? I hope to write on the blog more consistently, but for right now I'm heading back to the workshop to finish some orders and a custom ordered figure I have been working on!

Where The Magic Happens!!

2011-04-27T17:17:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures of my workshop and this is where the "Magic" happens.

I am currently getting my shop ready for production of not only Ventriloquist figures, but Radio controlled airplanes and small magical illusion. With my knowledge of radio control equipment, it won't be long before I make a radio controlled ventriloquist figure. That should be a fun project!

With the summer coming the next thing to do is insulate the workshop so my small window A/C unit won't be over used and my wallet won't be over used on paying the electric bill!

I guess the one of the reasons I'm showing my workshop is to show that at one time I had a clean workshop! When I get busy on these projects, it won't be long before the workshop becomes a big mess! The funny thing is when it's clean, I can't find a thing, but when it's a mess, I know exactly where everything is! I think someone once said, "Disorganization is the sign of a Geniuses!" If that is true, I should be a Genius very soon!!! ;o)

Talk About A Headache!!!

2011-04-12T16:25:00.000-07:00

Here I am with 5 recently cast heads. Now to build them all together. I'm hoping to make a building Jig to help decrease building time, while still making a high quality figure!

This figure will be one of my stock figures that will be available on my, soon to be running, web site.

The site will be called "Ventriloquist Workshop"

http://ventriloquistworkshop.com/

So...Stay tuned to my Blog and web site to see how things Progress. I also want to work on a daily journal that will appear on my Blog, but that probably won't happen until sometime in late May as I'm getting Married April 30th, 2011.

This has already been one busy year for me and I don't see it slowing down and That's A Good Thing! :o)

DUMBSTRUCK

2011-03-17T17:40:00.000-07:00

When I see a TV show with a ventriloquist theme I watch it! If there is a ventriloquist comedy special on DVD, I'll buy it! And when there is a ventriloquist themed movie that is out in a theaters, You bet I'm there. The only problem is there isn't to many ventriloquist type movies in theaters...Until Now!! Hip hip hooray!! Thank God For "DUMBSTRUCK"!! ....Well not so fast! You see, we have a problem Houston!! The movie is only coming out in a selected number of theaters. WHAT'S UP WITH THAT?!?!?!? Absurd!!!

As I sit here and ponder my dilemma, I ask, "Why is the movie being viewed in a limited area and who chooses these areas? Why couldn't the studio just put the movie out everywhere?" I imagine the bottom line is Money! And from what I understand it is the Money!! First the movie will go into a few selected theaters to see how it does. If it does well then the studio can put the movie in more theaters. If it doesn't do well then it will go to DVD. You would think that making copies of the movie would be inexpensive, but to make a copy of the film print can cost anywhere from $4000.00 per copy and up. Think of all the theaters just in your state and then of all the theaters in the USA...That's a lot of Theaters and a lot of MONEY!! So by testing them movie in a certain market, the studio can find out what there next plan of action is without losing there shirt!

From the promo footage that I have seen, The movie looks Great and I can't wait to see it! I can only hope that the movie does well enough that I can go see it on the Silver Screen! If not, I'll have to wait for the DVD, and watch it in the comfort of my own home on the TV Screen!

All the Best To "DUMBSTRUCK"

Coming Soon....

2011-03-13T12:25:00.000-07:00

Mike Palma's

Ventriloquist Workshop

http://ventriloquistworkshop.com/

I will be building both full size Professional figure (38-40" Tall) and Semi Professional figures (approx 34" Tall). I also hope to carry a line of Ventriloquist related items including Vent Novelty items, Vent Books and DVDs in the very near future! So... Stay Tuned!!!

"IT'S COMING !!!!!!!!!"

2011-03-12T14:13:00.001-08:00

I can't say anything yet, But "IT'S COMING !!!!!"

Keep checking back, because not only is it coming, but "IT'S COMING SOON"!!!!!!

Tedious work ahaed!!

2011-02-26T12:14:00.000-08:00

Here's a little trick I use to get a smooth head and face. I use dark primer paint to cover the head. When the primer dries you can see all the little imperfections that need to be filled and sanded. This is a long and tedious process But well worth the effort when finished!!! I still have a few spots to fill and sand, but he is coming along! Remember, make it as smooth/ flawless as possible before you make your mold and you'll save a lot of time finishing the head once the head is cast!

Casting with Magic Sculpt!

2011-01-22T04:55:00.000-08:00

This is how I used to cast my heads. I would then reinforce the head with fiberglass. It made a very strong head, but it is very time consuming.

For someone wanting to make one or two figures/ heads, this is an easy and fairly inexpensive way to cast a head.

For more information on building your own figure you check out my earlier posts and also check out a wonderful book called, "Figure making can be fun" by Mike Brose. Mike has written this great how to book which he sells on his web site http://www.puppetsandprops.com/home.html

Al Stevens has also written on not only figure making, but mechanical installation which can also be found on Mike's web site. It is located under the "Fred Project"

Happy New Year!!

2011-01-01T06:41:00.000-08:00

Well a new year is here and I want to wish all a Very Happy New Year! As for me, I have some New and Exciting Projects and Shows in the works! Here is a few pictures of where all the magic happens! It's my Magic/ Vent room! Over the years of performing, I have collected a large number of magic apparatus and magic/ vent paraphernalia! Enjoy these photo's!!

ventrilo-ett figure

2010-10-12T04:28:00.000-07:00

As you can see by his face, Eddie is very happy to have his very own ventrilo-ett figure!"

This is a fun little figure you can take anywhere! You can purchase them at mahertalk@aol.com

Some of my works!!!

2010-09-14T13:17:00.000-07:00

Here are just a few of the figures I have made over the years. I have so many pictures of figures I have made, that choosing which ones to put on can be difficult and time consuming!!

The photo to the left is a promo picture I used when performing at an opry house!

This was one of my smaller 35 to 36" figures. He was a lot of fun to use and I also made him with a midget body for a more comical look!

These two classic boys are made from the same mold, but there are slight differences. Can you spot them?

Before and After!! This was a John Carroll figure that came into the shop for a face lift!

Mr. Addison's Demo!

2010-08-21T09:40:00.000-07:00

Here is a Demo of Mr. Addison in action. As you can see, not a very pleasant man!
Hope you enjoy!

A Big Thank You To……..

2010-08-18T19:43:00.000-07:00

Well the Project is finished and now it is time to give credit where credit is due! I can honestly say that I could not have made this or any figure without the significant help of three very important people/ artist/ figure makers. These gentleman were always gracious enough to answer any question and help in any way they could!

It is hard to explain in detail what each person has done to help me improve my figure making. I’m sure I have left some of those details out and If I did, please know it is not intentional. I hold the Highest respect for all the men listed below !

The first Gentleman I want to say, “Thank you” to is Conrad Hartz. Conrad was the first person to ever help me with figure making. Even though I don’t carve my figures from wood, Conrad has helped me with important information on Sculpting, Painting and installing the Mechanics of a figure. I have known Conrad for over 10 years and I still am learning so much from him. He is a wealth of information on figure making and continues to help me to this day! I keep telling him he should right a book or make a DVD on figure making! I’m sure they would be best sellers!

The second Gentleman to want to say, “Thank You” to is Bill Nelson. Bill has helped me understand the importance of Character development when sculpting a figure and creating your own style of figures. A style that when seen by other vents, would let them know right away who made that figure. Being different! I was also lucky enough to learn some of Bill’s techniques to improve my painting. Bill does offer an on-line class on painting at http://thatcreativeplace.com/ ,so check it out! I guess the one most important thing I have learned from Bill is the attention to detail! He understands how the muscles of the face work which allows him to sculpt every facial detail from a crows foot, a forehead wrinkle to proper facial proportions. His figures are nothing short of masterpieces!

The third Gentleman I want to say, “Thank You” to in Mike Brose. Mike has helped me understand how to make figures using molds and casts. All the information shown on my blog on making my figure comes from Mike’s book, “Figure Making Can Be Fun”. This book you can order through Mikes Web site http://www.puppetsandprops.com/home.html . Mike also allows figure makers to buy the essentials needed to make and finish a figure such as bodies, hands and eye’s, etc . I have also know Mike for about 10 years and I can’t speak highly enough about him or his wife Cathy! Wonderful People!

“Other people who have helped me along the way”

My good friend Al Stevens has also been a tremendous help not only with figure making, but his great gift for comedy writing! I met Al a little over 10 years ago at a “Central Florida Ventriloquist Meeting” and we seemed to hit it off due to our passion for ventriloquism and figure making. Al, also has a great wealth on knowledge with figure making and there mechanics! Al has made some of his own original figures that are just wonderful. His Uncle Sweeter and Aunt Sally Pickles are just two wonderful characters in which Al performs regularly with.

Even though I have never met or talked with these next two gentleman, great thanks goes out to them for providing a great manuscript on figure making. The first is Ray Gyull. Ray’s book, “How To Make Your Own Ventriloquist Figure” was the first book I bought that sent me on my way to figure making! This book is still available at Ventriloquistcentral.com.

The second is gentleman is Joel Leder. Joel wrote a wonderful Five Volume book on figure making with photo illustrations. These books are not available at this time, but maybe Joel will reprint them one day. If he does reprint these books, you better get them and fast!!

I am sure I am leaving some people out (Unintentionally)and I truly apologize!

Once again to all of you, who at have helped me out at one time or another I just want to say…….

THANK YOU!!

2010-08-07T13:02:00.000-07:00

The Body!!

2010-08-07T04:35:00.001-07:00

Here he is with his body. The body and hands are Urethane which you can purchase from Puppets and Props (owned and Operated by Mike Brose) You can find the link the side bar of my blog.

Here Mr. grumpy is sitting next to my Chuck Jackson figures. I wanted to show the quality of both figures!

Mr Grumpy will be available on e bay. Keep your eye out for him!

All Wigged Out!!

2010-07-27T04:26:00.000-07:00

Well, I have just finished wigging the head. I was originally going to use a gray wig, But thought using a darker wig that the character could be more then just a grumpy old guy. With this darker wig, he could still be a grumpy guy, but also a mobster, a bouncer, a wrestler, a baseball umpire, even a really bad marriage counselor! As you can see more then just a grumpy old guy.

Someone's having a bad hair day!!

It is always amazing to me how a slight movement or movements can change the characters look and personality! Also how these movements make the figure look so life like!!

Ok, Time to give this boy a body!!! My main figure Eddie, was none to pleased when we had to use his body for the photos!

Mechanics done!

2010-07-12T13:27:00.000-07:00

We have installed the moving mouth, raising eyebrows and moving eyes.

The controls work off the control post. Each lever moves each movement. When worked in combination with each other, the figure will appear to be very lifelike!

Due to my main desk top computer being down, the painting of he figure will come later when I can access those photos . Not to disappoint, I do have a few pictures of the completed painted head. The eyebrows may change in color depending on what color wig I can find for this guy!

The eyes really make him look lifelike!!

Slow But Sure Wins The Race!

2010-07-03T09:45:00.000-07:00

When installing the mechanics you don't see the progress happen as much as when you are sculpting something. This part takes time and patience. You want all things to line up so the mechanics move smoothly and without binding or making noise!

The eyebrows, eyes and mouth have been installed. I added the tongue to the mouth, however it will not be a stick out tongue. The eyes are covered with wax paper so that paint will not touch the eye itself when I paint the head. When the paint dries, the wax paper is easily removed.

Here you can see the installation of the mechanics. This is as far as I can go until the control post in fastened in place.

The control post is made from 1 1/4 inch dowel and has been notched to accept 1/8" brass hardware. the deep cut is for the side to side moving eyes and the shallower one is for the raising eyebrows

The circle drawn on the post will be drilled for the mouth string to travel down to the control lever.

Here is how the brass tubes will look when installed. Well, back to the workshop to try and finish the mechanics and get ready for a final sanding and then to begin painting!

Getting Mechanical with the Mechanics!

2010-06-27T16:14:00.000-07:00

The framing for the mouth, eyes and raising eyebrows mechanics have been started. Next I have to start on the control post. Time and patience are needed so that everything will line up correctly which will allow the movements to move silky smooth! So far so good!!

I think the stick out tongue will not be installed on this figure, but maybe on a future figure! We'll have to see how things go!

Installing the Mechanics!!

2010-06-20T17:34:00.000-07:00

Before I install a control post I like to install the eyes and mouth first. When these are finished I attach the front and rear of the head. By installing the mouth and eyes with just a half head (front half) this allows me more working space. When the two halves are together, installing eyebrows is no problem as I will have plenty of room through the trap door.

The Eyes rest on a platform. A piece of brass rod is bent and then travels through the center of the eyes and then secured in the platform.

The eyes add a look of life to the character. When the eyebrows and paint are finished, he will look very realistic.

Still debating the stick out tongue!!

Meet the Cast!!!

2010-06-17T17:14:00.000-07:00

The back of the head, mouth and tongue have just been cast. They are fresh out of the mold and a light sanding will be needed for thing to line up properly!

I can already hear him complaining!!!

An EZ Mouth Mother Mold

2010-06-08T15:45:00.000-07:00

The mouth mother mold is also made with the plaster of Paris wrap. I make a two piece mold for this.

As you can see to silicone mold fits into the larger portion of the mother mold and then the small fits on top. A rubber band will hold the mother mold together and then I can slush cast the mouth.

One thing I did on this mouth mold was to leave the brass pivot tube in the mouth when I first molded the mouth. I did this so I could cast the pivot tube in the mouth at the same time I cast the mouth. This is a time saver!!

2010-06-05T13:18:00.000-07:00

To save time for future figure making, a mold of the tongue, mouth and eyebrows have been made. A plaster mother mold will be made for the mouth to add support when casting the mouth.

Because of the shape of the eyebrows (and how they contour around the forehead), I made the mold of the eyebrows on the head

Because the mold is so thick around the tongue and eyebrows, I will not need to make a mother mold for them. Simply pouring the urethane into the molds will be sufficient.

Now that the molds are made, Time to Cast them!

Ok, Where Have I been?

2010-04-30T16:53:00.001-07:00

Ok, so I have been getting a lot of e mails to where I have been and what is going on with the figure building. Well' it goes something like this, I renovated my kitchen! It was way over do and needed to be done. As you can see a lot of work and trust me, a lot of headaches, but it is now finished!! So now what? You guessed it, "Back to "Figure Making"!!

Getting Our Parts In Check!!

2010-03-13T06:49:00.000-08:00

Ok, here is where I stand. I have finished sculpting and shaping the mouth and I have sculpted the eyebrows and tongue. These need to have a final sanding and then I will make a mold of each and then cast them. ( The tongue needs a little more shaping. It's not what I'm looking for yet!)
These photo's gives us an Idea of what he might look like when the mechanics are installed! Well, off to the mold making and casting process, then the installation of the mechanics!

Moving Ahead On The Mouth!!

2010-03-07T14:07:00.000-08:00

I have the mouth shaped and fitted into the head and I am working on the teeth now. This all takes a lot of time and this is the reason I usually mold and cast the mouth! It's a big time saver for future figure making!!

As you can see, a nice tight fit with minimal gaps. Here are a few photos with the mouth open. It gives you an idea of what he might look like with teeth.

If you have noticed there is no tongue in the mouth, well I have decided to put in a stick out tongue! The tongue will be made separately.

Well, back to the teeth! I feel like a dentist! I wish I was paid like one!

Installing the Mechanics!! First The Mouth!!

2010-02-28T13:21:00.000-08:00

Now we are to the point where the mouth and eyes need to be cut out. You must be careful to cut two parallel lines on each side of the mouth so that when you reinstall the mouth the gaps will be nice and tight! We don't want wide gaps!

When I make the mouth, I like to build up the mouth with teeth, tongue, Etc and make a mold and cast of the finished mouth. This allows me to make another mouth later if I want to make another head. This saves a lot of time if I do make a second figure.

I cut and glue a piece of thin ply to the mouth and then use brass rod and tubing to make the pivot point.

Here you can see that I have found the pivot point on the mouth. This take time, patience and trial and error.

When I build the mouth, I will reshape the it and try to eliminate any odd or irregular shapes of the mouth so that when the mouth is opened or closed, the mouth will look natural!

As you can see, I am starting to build up the mouth. When finished, it will be shaped, the detail of the teeth, tongue, Etc. will be added and then the mouth will be installed into the head.

After the mouth is finished I will work on installing the eyes, raising eyebrows and I'm still thinking of installing a stick out tongue!! Before I get to ahead of myself, I still have a lot of work to do on the mouth!!

Casting the Head!!

2010-02-21T12:46:00.000-08:00

Today I have cast the head. I used a two part urethane casting resin that was slush cast in the silicone mold we made earlier.

Here is a photo of the urethane slush cast in the mold. This takes time, patience and several coats!

Here is the cast demolded from the mold. Note all the detail from the mold!

The next part of the project is to cut out the mouth. From there we will build a functional mouth with detailed teeth and tongue and then its time to install the mechanics!!

Stay tuned for my next Blog when we will install a moving mouth, raising eyebrows and maybe a stick out tongue!!

Finishing the Mold Making Process!!

2010-01-30T12:00:00.000-08:00

Here we have to mother mold separated into a front and back half. When the mother mold is taken off the silicone mold is cut with an x-acto knife in half along where the front and back of the mother mold meet.

As you can see the rear half of the silicone mold lines up with the rear half of the mother mold.

You may also note the negative image in the silicone mold.

Perfect fit! The silicone mold fits perfectly into the mother mold!

You would think he would be happy to have the silicone and plaster mother mold off of his face! Well, I guess there is no pleasing some people!

Next we will be working on casting the head!

Starting The Mold Process!!

2010-01-26T15:58:00.000-08:00

I have decided to use a silicone rubber mold on this head. This is a two part mixture that once mixed and applied to the head, will make a strong mold. The nice thing about the silicone mold is that you don't need to use a mold release when casting the head! Nothing should stick to the silicone mold! I have put on one thin coat followed by three more thicker coats.

After the silicone mold has set, the next thing to do is make the mother mold. The mother mold is made to add support to the silicone mold. I am using a plaster cloth wrap to make the two piece mother mold. I like to use the plaster cloth because it is cheap, easy to use and less toxic and messy then other mother mold techniques!

As you can see, I have made the front half first with the plaster wrap. When this dries, I will make the back half.

Creation Of A Figure!!

2010-01-22T15:14:00.000-08:00

When trying to make a Ventriloquist figure, You must first start with a sketch of a character you have in mind and then attempt to sculpt the character in your favorite choice of medium . I used clay. In the below photo's you will see the progress of a sculpted head. Slight and subtle changes in each photo allow you to see the character come to life! In the next few weeks, I will show the mold making and casting process followed by the controls and finishing of the figure.

I hope you have enjoyed!

Best Regards,

Mike Palma

(Figure designed and sculpted by Mike Palma, Sketched By Bill Nelson)

Creating Of A Figure !!!

2010-01-22T15:05:00.000-08:00