The Seventh Kingdom : Minotaur

FANtastic Feature - The Seventh Kingdom : Minotaur

Day Fourteen:

Here are some shots of the final torso. Back on day eight we talked about the detail on the chest plate. We could have called it a finished piece back then and been pretty happy with it. Something that we¹ve learned after doing so many figures is when to call a piece finished.( Or not finished in this case.) On day eight there was a suspicion that some more details would be needed to tie the design in with the rest of the armor. As the other armor has progressed it became more and more apparent that the chest plate was coming up a little short. The final piece here shows the addition of line work that is similar to the shoulder and leg armors.

One other thing to take a look at here is the stomach area. Throughout the process of a figure we may use clay from a couple of different batches. The stomach is a great example of how different the colors can be from batch to batch.

Day Thirteen :

Here is a look at the finished arm pieces. Once again here is a good spot to look at contrasting textures as well as the continuing detail motif in the shoulder armor. Another thing to look at here is the textured articulation discs in the wrist and elbow under the bicep. The wrist is once again the scraped plastic approach used in the ankle. The elbow uses a slightly different tactic. The shape of the under bicep area requires a more contoured shape than the perfect circle that a turned disc provides. The solution is to cut back the plastic of the disc and apply clay to the appropriate area. The disc can then be shaped seamlessly with the shapes of the anatomy. Both of these methods add time and effort to the overall process, but in the quest to seamlessly integrate the articulation with the sculpture, it is a necessity.

Day Twelve:

Here we are back at the legs. The finished legs look considerably different from the last images that we put up. These pictures show a nice example of contrasting textures. The smoothness of the armor areas should compliment the highly textured fur areas nicely. One thing to make note of here is the design motif that is going on here in the armor pieces. We will come back to that in a later installment.

Day Eleven:

This is where we get back into the detail shots. The hooves are essentially finished in these two shots. Once again there is a combination of diverse textures used on the pieces. One thing to take note of is the texture scraped into the plastic articulation discs. This is something that we generally do on our figures even though it doesn¹t always make it to the final productions piece. Another thing seen here that sometimes gets lost for one reason or another is the detail on the bottoms of the feet. This is something else that we try to include on our work, but it doesn¹t always work out.

Day Ten:

This is a very similar image to the day nine photo. The arm includes a working disc and socket ball joint in the shoulder, a below the shoulder lateral swivel, a single elbow, and a disc and socket ball joint in the wrist. One noticeable difference here is that the arm is much closer to a finish than the leg. Many times the addition of the articulation points is the catalyst to finishing pieces. The way that the articulation fits in also dictates some of the details as well. The way that the armor around the upper bicep swivel is shaped helps accommodate the joint as well as to hide it.

Day Nine:

The Articulation results are finally in! Now we can get into some of the dirty work. As you can see here the leg has been cut up and the articulation added. Hopefully this is the only time you will really be looking at the articulation points since one of our main goals with articulation is to make it as seamless as possible with the sculpture. As you can see here the articulation below the hip includes a double knee joint and a disc and socket ball joint in the ankle.

The general process that we use to put in the articulation begins with a solid sculpted piece. We measure out what the diameters of the joints will be and turn them down out of casted urethane plastic on a lathe in the fabrication area. This is once again where a little experience pays off. The process gets a little easier and makes a little more sense every time that we do it. Of course that¹s not to say that it still can¹t be a pain in the butt from time to time. Once the plastic discs have been cut we start cutting up the clay piece and inserting the discs.

One of the biggest issues with the articulation is not only putting it seamlessly into the piece, but then making it work. Making sure that there is enough movement and that the movement is correct is crucial. In this case a good example of this is the ankle joint. Since this character has a hoof style foot a lot of thought was put into how to make this joint work well and look nice. If we were to put a standard double ankle joint in there would have to be a big awkward gap in the joint to get enough clearance for the articulation to work. We opted to instead use a disk and socket style ball joint because it is a very natural fit into the leg armor.

Day Eight:

Sticking with the theme of non-articulation parts we move on to the chest plate. We showed a rougher shot of this piece in the day six photo. There really isn¹t to much to cover on this piece as it is a pretty straight forward interpretation of the design drawing. We have chosen to make this a separate piece in order to give his torso some added interest that we could not pull off with a solid torso. The undercuts will give the chest area additional depth and create an overall more interesting chest detail.

So far the detail itself is very true to the drawings for now. This is another case of keeping the design open ended. Although it looks good now, it may need some additional details as the rest of the armor progresses. The fine details are what will hopefully tie all of the armor pieces together even more successfully than in the original design. In the end you can look at the original design elements like a framework for the figure. It is the support structure of the figure and will remain basically the same. It is all of the details added throughout the sculpting process that will flesh the structure out and give it it¹s character.

Day Seven:

Since we are waiting on the articulation results to come in, the focus is temporarily shifted to areas not affected by articulation points.

Normally this type of detailing would be saved for later, but this process has turned out to be a little out of the norm. As you can see here we have taken the belt to a finished stage. We once again pre-made the buckle and casted it so that it was easier to work with. One of the fun parts about creating a figure like this is that we allow the figure to evolve throughout the entire process.

Although we were very happy with the original drawing, every detail is not set in stone. By constantly re-evaluating the different elements of the character, the design stays fresh. Rather than just copying a drawing we continue to create through the final details. On this belt we have added textures and changed some of the stitching and buckle details.

You will continue to see these sorts of changes through the rest of the process all the way down to weapons and paint.

Day Six:

These images show how things are shaping up on the figure as a whole. Since our last entry the loincloth/hip armor has been further detailed. As the pictures demonstrate, this figure will be covered in varied textures and details. The detail on the chest armor has also been started.

A couple of days before these photos were taken we received word that we could get some coverage in a couple of the major toy magazines. This was one of those unexpected things that keeps the job interesting. It is also one of those things that can completely rearrange our schedule in a flash. With this in mind we put in some extra time to get this guy as presentable as possible for the shoot. The full body shot that you see here is actually what we sent the magazines. This will show up in next month¹s issues which are on stands during the Toy Fair season . Of course this is a great opportunity for FANtastic Exclusive, that we are very excited about. Even though we are well into the process, it is still important to spread the word about FANtastic Exclusive.

Day Five:

What you see here is a selection of pieces that were sculpted and cast into hard plastic for various reasons. Most of these were done so that they could be duplicated. A lot of time is saved by doing this. The process also ensures a certain amount of symmetry. Of course some asymmetrical details such as battle damage will be added to make it mare interesting. The second reason for getting pieces made into plastic rather than clay is durability. The harder material allows us to work with some of the finely detailed pieces with out their edges softening while they are handled. We don't always use this technique, but on a personal project such as this, time is of the essence.

These sorts of pieces are often times fabricated rather than sculpted. For those not familiar with the term, fabrication is when pieces are made out of hard materials such as plastic or metal. The fabrication process combines the skill of a machinist with the artistic ability of a sculptor or designer. Fabricated pieces are predominately used for accessories and articulation building. We usually try to take a more integrated approach by designing figures that take advantage of all of our resources. In an ideal world that is how it works. In this case we have to step back into to real world and deal with things accordingly. As it happens during the holidays C.B.(Cornboy) broke his ankle. Part of the aftermath of his accident has resulted in his absence at the office for the past month or so, and Jim having to handle most of the fabrication duties by himself. Combine this with the onslaught of preparation for Toy Fair and some office remodeling, and we are nowhere near our normal capacity. Normally about half of these pieces would be sculpted while the other half would be fabricated. This time all of the parts done up to this point have been done in clay.

Finally one of the big decisions made with what you see here is whether or not to make the knives removable. After trying to make this work it just wasn¹t happening. One of the main reasons is that the one piece that combines the armor plate, the knives, and the sheaths would have to be five separate pieces. It would have cost potentially much more for somewhat of a small payoff. It would also result in a lot of flimsy pieces. Rather than making a mess out of a simple piece we opted to make up for it elsewhere on the figure.

Day Four:

Now that the inner workings of the hips and stomach have been worked out we can start getting into some of the armor. Getting the hip armor more defined will help to see how the figure is filling out with actual working pieces. One of the problems that can happen at this point is that once the working pieces start to layer up that it starts to look bulkier than the drawing or even the rough that was put together in the first couple of days of sculpting. The wall thickness of the piece needs to be substantial enough that when the piece is shrunk down to half size that it is strong enough to hold up to the wear and tear that an action figure enthusiast can dish out. By making the crotch/hips undersized the thickness of the armor piece ends up being right where it needs to be. The gray plastic pieces that you see here were actually done later and stuck on.

Day Three:

Before we get into the images we just wanted to make a little side note. Although we are labeling these entries by day numbers, this is not really accurate. This is a figure that is being worked on simultaneously with many of our other projects. We are always careful that our personal projects don¹t interfere with our existing obligations. That being said, the day by day approach is just an easy way to present this information. In the end, though, these day numbers will hopefully be pretty close to accurate if we were working on this figure straight through.

Now onto the images. Since we don¹t know for sure what the articulation points will be just yet, we are getting into some of the safe bets. Any of these points can be easily altered as voting dictates. The hip/waist area is in some respects the heart of the figure as far as articulation goes. A lot goes on in this area. We are adding ball joint style hips with the mid thigh swivel directly below the ball. We are also adding a standard style waist and a stomach hinge. These points will allow for a lot of the major movement in the finished figure.

The style of hips that we are doing is very similar to a lot of the super articulated figures out there. The advantage of this joint is that so many movements are confined to one area. The downside in our opinion is that a lot of times the flow of anatomy gets lost. In a case like this the decision is much easier because the whole area will be covered by the Minotaur's loincloth/hip armor. Normally when prototyping a figure like this the hips are made by just putting a ball where the hip is and letting the factories engineer the joint. In this case we wanted a working prototype so we are building working joints.

The waist is pretty standard except for the fact that the sculpting has to allow for the thickness of the hip armor section that is trapped between the crotch and stomach area. Trapping the armor in a cup like fashion is a very sturdy way to attach it. Finally the stomach hinge or 'ab crunch' articulation is added. Hopefully this style will win the votes, but we need to take the risk at this point.

Day Two:

By the end of day two the general forms are blocked in. The idea is to get an overall look at how the figure will look. We can now see whether or not all the pieces that have been roughed out will work together. Some of what you see is literally just clay rolled up and stuck on just to give a general idea of what something will look like.

This is where a lot discoveries and decisions are made. Proportions that may look "perfect" on paper don't always look good in three dimensions, and this is when those proportions are fine tuned.

This is also a point where another crucial decision is made: continue tightening up proportions and detail or start with the dirty work of cutting him up and putting in articulation. We are anticipating that this figure will have quite a bit of articulation based on forum topics and some early vote results. With this in mind our next step is indeed articulation.

One of Jim's sayings regarding home improvement is "Stabilize then Beautify." That theory is applied to what we do here at the studio as well. It doesn't make a lot of sense to get too far in a figure when we are going to cut it up twenty or thirty times, especially when the idea is to seamlessly integrate the articulation into the look of the figure.

Day One:

These images may look like a strange way to start a figure, but in some situations we do start roughing out a figure in pieces rather than as a whole.

The decision was made, in this case, for a couple of reasons. Reason one is that the drawing was pretty specific and we were happy with how it looked on paper. Having a "blueprint" like this allows us to jump in on a figure quicker than if we were figuring out proportions as we went. Although this gives us a quick start on the figure, the proportions will continue to evolve as we see how the figure works in three dimensions.

The second reason for starting the figure in pieces is that it removes a lot of the time spent cutting up the figure and making the articulation work. By working in pieces we can lay the groundwork for the articulation points as we create the shapes of muscles and forms so that they work more seamlessly when they move. If we didn't have a fairly tight drawing to start with this would not work quite as well because again, we would be working through a lot of proportion issues blindly.