top of page
TAN FANG TING, VALERIE
fun-loving creative known online as @balerietan
work with me: balerietan@gmail.com
Puppet Fabrication and Rigging
Process documentation for 小 boy and 老爸 puppet
The 小 boy and 老爸 puppets part of my final year thesis film, 纸包不住火, a film on Little boy’s innocent encounter with his new paper bird friend uncovers the dark psychological warfare of the Malayan Emergency. Check out @papertrails.film on Instagram!
Silver Soldering Armature
The armature was made from custom-cut brass tubes soldered with silver solder and fitted with steel ball joints to form the spine and leg structure. A locking mechanism was created by soldering metal nuts onto the armature for secure positioning. The detachable arms were made from wire and brass tubing, and the finished armature was wrapped in flexible sports tape to provide cushioning while maintaining mobility.
Puppet plan
Armature plan
Completed armature after soldering
Covered armature
More soldering process photos
3D Modelling in Z-Brush
I modelled the 老爸 head in Z-brush including the 12 different expressions and mouth shapes required for lip-syncing.
I also planned and designed the The 小 Boy face plate and head, that included a magnet attachment mechanism, and was modelled by Shara Tay. Both the 老爸 and 小 Boy heads were then 3D resin printed and airbrushed to add the colours and details.
Silicone Casting
I modelled the 小 Boy and 老爸 limbs in Z-brush and 3D printed a mould for each limb. The wire armature was then placed in the mould and silicone casted with eco-platinum silicone to create flexible limbs.
.png)
Final 小 Boy and 老爸 Puppet
I sewed clothes for both puppets and assembled all the pieces together. The final puppet animation is currently a work in progress but short clips of the puppet in action can be found in my stop motion animation demo reel.
.jpg)
Previous puppet armature documentation
bottom of page