Puppet's lip issue is resolved... for now. Moving into the shooting phase soon.

https://www.patreon.com/posts/129666731?pr=true

Actually, all the puppets were more or less ready by last week. But for the past few days, I’ve been trying to solve the mouth issue. Just like the finger problem, the mouth has been bothering me since the very beginning.

I’ve tried all sorts of materials in the past — different types of air-dry and oil-based clays. But no matter what I used, the mouth parts are just so tiny — only about 10mm wide — and clay is really hard to control at that size. I could never get it right. Of course, part of it is my own limitations in sculpting. That’s why I’ve always simplified the mouth movements just to get around this problem.

Recently, I tried tackling it again. I experimented with new materials, but still, the results weren’t great — either the outcome wasn’t ideal or the process was just way too time-consuming and complicated. In the end, I went with the simplest solution possible — but that also completely changed how the expressions look and brought some new concerns.

As you can see, I ended up using hand-drawn paper cutouts for the mouth parts. This method is pretty common in amateur stop motion. The reason I hadn’t used it before was because this style loses the depth and thickness of the lips. But this time, I boldly went with it — mainly because it’s stupidly simple to make. Plus, the cartoony, exaggerated expressiveness and the ease of swapping expressions are just stupidly convenient.

The only downside — or maybe I should say the real issue — is that this method adds yet another completely different style into the mix. See, Cocky Me has realistic sets and semi-realistic clay puppet characters. Now, throwing in super cartoony paper mouths... it honestly makes me a bit nervous. I don’t know what kind of impact mixing all these styles will have. But I think it’s worth a try.

As for progress — all four puppets are done. The only thing left is a bit of adjustment to Leah’s current body (the one in the photo), plus dealing with the older Leah and Erica puppets. And I need to tidy up the set a bit (it’s been sitting untouched for half a year, after all…). Anyway, I’m pretty sure I’ll start shooting next week. So get ready — it’s coming.

(The new character Sharon's puppet showcase will be released together with the puppet-making video within the next few days — exclusively for paying members.)