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Story by
dkoss2,
Vanessa,
weirdwolf
Published on April 17, 2009 in Etc |
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Diane Koss carried around stuffed animals throughout her childhood. Today she makes one of a kind stuffed monsters for her shop Cutesy But Not Cutesy. She has become a monster-maker through and through while pursuing a career as a fine artist and working towards a certificate in graphic and web design. Her animated film Monster Compilation is a collaboration with animator David R. Popolow of Right Brain Animation. It's a fantastic stop motion monster mash up with her very own creations. Here's Diane talking about her work:
I have always wanted to see my monsters come to life... giving them stories and personalities is probably a reflection of that. I like to imagine that when someone purchases one of them it's like I am packaging them up for their own little expeditions all around the world... and I like to think their personalities "come alive" in their new homes.
Luckily I meet a lot of really wonderful people when I travel with my monsters and I met the manager of a small production company in Philadelphia who fell in love with my fellas. We got to talking about how neat it would be to really bring them to life on screen. A few months later he contacted me and wanted to make the animation actually happen. He set me up with David Popolow of Right Brain Animation, also from Philadelphia, to create some short animated sketches.
We agreed that we both wanted the stories to stick pretty closely to the personalities and stories I had written for each monster. Once that was all worked out, we created wire structures, or armatures, based on each character's form. I then built and stitched my monsters around each armature that had been created, trying to stay true to the original monster design but also keeping in mind the motion and mobility that would be needed for each one.
I learned a lot during this step, both about stop motion animation and about my production process. I had to take into consideration things like the type of fur that was being used to cut down on the amount of "wind effect," as they called it, which is when certain furs can look like they are blowing in the wind during a stop motion animation.
[As David worked on it over the course of a few months] it was truly amazing to see the progression as my monsters really came to life as I had always dreamed. It was such a wonderful experience working with another artist who is skilled in a different media than my own. I think we both were able to learn a lot about eachother and about eachother's processes. I try to encourage collaboration as much as possible now, it really was an eye-opening experience and resulted in a really exciting finished product! I look forward to the possibility of more animations in the future!
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62 comments Login to add your own!
myzoetrope
That was amazing!! The thrusting zebra-bodied monster had me cracking up. Such adorable monsters.
odiliafu
Wow!! They are all very cute and unique. Each one has its own character.
pattihaskins
girlscantell
yay, philadelphia! diane's shop is so awesome - best monsters ever!
thewhimsypatch
Diane, that's amazing! Great job! My little guy enjoyed watching it with me:)
lovelygifts
beautifulbridget
studiocvh
baconsquarefarm
Love them all, each one has his/her own personality~ congrats on all you've accomplished~ Great story.
BlueTerracotta
RockefellerJewelry
Furryville
natARTlie
ScottieinaCanoe
IcingOnTheCupcake
jodieflowers
FlanneryO
Fantastic-- It's like Napoleon Dynamite meets Godzilla! It must be amazing to see your creations MOVING!
I have to say that the highlight for me is the hand towel stage curtains...a stroke of genius.
Well done to everyone involved!
stinkybomb
worksandfinds
buttercupbloom
OMGosh, that was fantastic. Loved the one-eyed zebra suit monster dances like my Mom!!! Lol.
SusanFaye
Shades of Gumby! (Don't children of ALL ages want to see their toys come alive?) Too much fun!
redsofa
Philip and Micah are my favorites! And Loco Ojos is very cool too :)
pulpsushi
ArtWhims
PeppermintDaydreams
mojospastyle
These plushies are too cute! I wish I had these kind of stuffed creatures when I was little. The cupcake monster is my fav!
rawbeauty
RiRiFisch
I just LOVE it! Once I saw the towel curtains, I knew it was going to be fabulous. I would look forward to more - especially the dancing!
jenniferdennispotter
ladaworks
dkoss2
Thank you everyone for all of your wonderful comments! It is so amazing to have such great support!
dogties
atomicana
that was disturbing (the dancing part) and hilarious all in the some stroke. Well done!
*tips hat to you*
akane
pipapiep
zombuki
HibouCards
Great! I love monsters, I draw monster for my son all the time :)
MyJunkyTrunk
inRibbons
that was really good, I loved it :)
and keeping me entertained when should be working.
marcelostworld
mythunderstood
Brilliant!!!!
The 80s towels were the perfect touch...
and was that a 3-boobied fire hydrant?????????
AngelPainterGrl
MichaelDunnJewelry
EpicBones
LittleCritters00
way to go Cutesy. I've been waiting to see what would happen with this. Awesome job.
enchantingimages
Caracarmina
MustLuvVintage
redyellowandblueink
Poor misunderstood hydrant monster....
That was great! It is so lovely to just sit back and be so entertained.
ChelleT
Brilliant! the best thing to watch on a sunday morning slightly hung over! thank you :)
Bohemianwhimsey
mietteLove
sandali
AWESOME -- Loved all the creatures and creations ;) Really enjoyed it !!
OhFaro
Well, that was a great good morning with my coffee!
Great work, and those monsters ... thanks for sharing.
rikkicondon
good idea! It could be good to have a way to post videos of artists'-at-work in our shops..
Signs
Awesome! Very Cool :D I keep watching the video over and over. Keep up the good work.
Scampsville
Oh this is so great. I especially love the zebra-print monster's pelvic thrusts ;)
Zooguu
great job! Monsters are always fantastic actors! :)
The dancing zebra monster was my favorite, too.
EJPcreations
franzidesigns
What great work! I love Francisco,I guess cause he"s my namesake! Congratulations!
undertheroot
AutumnWindDolls
OMG! That video is awesome! I just LOVE your monsters! Make more!
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