Photo #14: Since the theme of the video is a sort of attraction vs. repulsion, beautiful girl vs. gross zombie, I decided to make Marissa’s molars visible through her cheek. Not very appealing to the would be kisser. I got these inexpensive denture teeth at DavisDental.com
Photo #15: I split the teeth in half with wire cutters so they will lay closer to the face, and pressed them into the clay.
Photo #16: With all my forms blocked out, its time to start detailing. I’m going to go for a sort of water logged, wrinkly prune face type thing, since the set will be a swamp. Texturing and detail is definitely the most fun, I just have to try not to get caught up in it!
Photo #17: Don’t do this at home! Or, eh, not at home… Had to take Marissa to Santa Monica for an audition (She’s going to be a huge star!) but couldn’t lose sculpting time. So if you saw some guy sculpting a zombie in his jeep on Colorado this afternoon, it was me.
Photo #18: It was hot in the jeep, but I got a lot done. Wrapped it up back at the barnyard, and called it done. Although I could keep detailing forever…
Photo #19: The next step is for prepping the mold. I make bands of clay ¼ inch thick and lay them along the flange, a ¼ inch from the sculpt. This is called “flashing” or a well. This clay represents negative cavities in the mold that will absorb the overflow of foam latex and allow the mold to close tightly to the face cast.
Photo #20: The flashing clay should be cut at a 45-degree angle on the side facing the sculpture. This is the “cutting edge”, which helps push the excess foam away from the mold cavity.
Photo #21: I carefully removed the plastic teeth from the sculpt. When I have the foam appliance, I will glue these same teeth into the holes they made. It will look better than painted foam teeth.
Photo #22: Now to make the mold. It’s dark and cool outside, so it should be a little easier. Heat and plaster is not a user-friendly combo. I am making the mold out of Ultracal 30 gypsum cement.
Photo #23: The first layer of a plaster mold is called the splash coat. Probably because it splashes everywhere when you throw it on! But you want to do that, so the plaster forces out the air within the textures of the clay. Rubbing or brushing it in can cause damage to the sculpt.
Photo # 24: The splash coat will ultimately end up being about ½ inch thick.
Photo #25: The cement is strong, but can be brittle on its own. Adding a layer of hemp helps reinforce the mold.
Photo # 26: The hemp is applied in an even layer, but should overlap to prevent weak spots. When finished, the mold should be approximately 1 inch thick.
Photo #27: Almost done! I put one last coat of plaster to keep all the hemp stray strands in place, and level out the top so the mold will lay flat when turned upside-down.
Photo #28: The mold is finished. It has to fully cure, then cool for a few hours, so I’m going to sleep while I still can. I’ll crack it open in the morning and get it to Mark the foam guy. Then I have to try and get the other 3 zombie girls sculpted in one day!
Photo #14: Since the theme of the video is a sort of attraction vs. repulsion, beautiful girl vs. gross zombie, I decided to make Marissa’s molars visible through her cheek. Not very appealing to the would be kisser. I got these inexpensive denture teeth at DavisDental.com
Photo #15: I split the teeth in half with wire cutters so they will lay closer to the face, and pressed them into the clay.
Photo #16: With all my forms blocked out, its time to start detailing. I’m going to go for a sort of water logged, wrinkly prune face type thing, since the set will be a swamp. Texturing and detail is definitely the most fun, I just have to try not to get caught up in it!
Photo #17: Don’t do this at home! Or, eh, not at home… Had to take Marissa to Santa Monica for an audition (She’s going to be a huge star!) but couldn’t lose sculpting time. So if you saw some guy sculpting a zombie in his jeep on Colorado this afternoon, it was me.
Photo #18: It was hot in the jeep, but I got a lot done. Wrapped it up back at the barnyard, and called it done. Although I could keep detailing forever…
Photo #19: The next step is for prepping the mold. I make bands of clay ¼ inch thick and lay them along the flange, a ¼ inch from the sculpt. This is called “flashing” or a well. This clay represents negative cavities in the mold that will absorb the overflow of foam latex and allow the mold to close tightly to the face cast.
Photo #20: The flashing clay should be cut at a 45-degree angle on the side facing the sculpture. This is the “cutting edge”, which helps push the excess foam away from the mold cavity.
Photo #21: I carefully removed the plastic teeth from the sculpt. When I have the foam appliance, I will glue these same teeth into the holes they made. It will look better than painted foam teeth.
Photo #22: Now to make the mold. It’s dark and cool outside, so it should be a little easier. Heat and plaster is not a user-friendly combo. I am making the mold out of Ultracal 30 gypsum cement.
Photo #23: The first layer of a plaster mold is called the splash coat. Probably because it splashes everywhere when you throw it on! But you want to do that, so the plaster forces out the air within the textures of the clay. Rubbing or brushing it in can cause damage to the sculpt.
Photo # 24: The splash coat will ultimately end up being about ½ inch thick.
Photo #25: The cement is strong, but can be brittle on its own. Adding a layer of hemp helps reinforce the mold.
Photo # 26: The hemp is applied in an even layer, but should overlap to prevent weak spots. When finished, the mold should be approximately 1 inch thick.
Photo #27: Almost done! I put one last coat of plaster to keep all the hemp stray strands in place, and level out the top so the mold will lay flat when turned upside-down.
Photo #28: The mold is finished. It has to fully cure, then cool for a few hours, so I’m going to sleep while I still can. I’ll crack it open in the morning and get it to Mark the foam guy. Then I have to try and get the other 3 zombie girls sculpted in one day!
I've been sculpting since 2007, www.3rdcirclefx.ca, and I'm looking to get into a studio so I can do what I've found to love professionally. Do you have any advice on steps to take. I live in Canada.
ReplyDeleteThanks again for any help you provide me with and keep up the great work.
Sebastien Cote