Adam Savage Stunned by the Mechanics of these Bird Puppets!

Oh my goodness! If you hold your hand out, it'll come land on you. Oh yes! Oh my god! Oh wow! Oh my gosh! I just want to watch a whole feature film of these guys. Hey everybody, Adam Savage with Laura in my cave. How are you? I'm great, thank you so much. I'm so delighted to have you here. You have brought two of my favorite things, which are puppets and wings. I've been trying not to ogle these too much off camera, but Laura, these are amazing. Thank you so much. Oh my goodness, there's so much character in each of these four. And I've never seen puppet mechanics like this. Yep, I've made them all myself. It's all invented because I couldn't find mechanics that did what I wanted it to do. So that's come from trial and error, and what my hand can do, and what my hand can control. So yeah, it's all original. That's my favorite kind of story. Would you walk me through the progression? I think we talked off camera that it's from left to right here, give or take? Yeah, give or take. So the first puppet I made was the little sparrow. So I'd been making articulated animal sculptures, like poseable models. And I was working, invigilating in a dinosaur exhibition at the time. And so I was spending a huge amount of time with dinosaur skeletons, like models of dinosaur skeletons. Yeah. And it was showing the evolution of dinosaurs into birds. It had the holotype, the... It's completely gone, what the first feathered one was. But it had that there. And so I was just immersed in these bird, dinosaur, feather skeleton. I was like, I loved puppets when I was a kid. Why don't I try making a puppet? I'd sort of got a bit tired of the work that I was doing. And so I just started making this puppet. And I just became obsessed with it. I just... It was always in my head. I became a recluse. I was just in my studio all the time, just working out how to make these little wings come to life, look like bird wings as much as I possibly could. It's a lot of iteration. Oh my gosh. I understand why you became a recluse. Those wings are so beautiful. Oh my goodness. So how long ago did he come into being? I made this one 2000... Started 2017, finished mid-2018. Amazing. I am... Oh my... May I touch it a little bit? Yes, absolutely, yeah. So is this... You individually painted every feather, and individually cut out and mounted every feather. Yes. Because when I started, I thought maybe I could clump a few feathers together so that they could be articulated easier. But that just didn't work. Like to get that natural spread, they need to be independently articulated. And you have to sew a specific length of thread between each one so that they all splay correctly? Yes. And then also don't go over themselves when they go back as well. Right. So the holes are all very specific of where that thread goes. Wow. You know what I love about this, is there's so many people out there thinking, I want to make something, but I don't know the right way to do it. And there is no right way. Yeah, you just invented this. This is so incredible. Thank you. Yeah, the first time I got the mechanics working, and the first time I knew what each finger was going to do, flying around the studio, I was in tears. I really was. I know it was just like magic, like bringing this creature to life. And then I became obsessed with making puppets. So is the dragon part of the next evolution? Yes. It's sort of a wonky story, because the dragon, I made a dragon originally, but then the hand controls didn't work quite well enough. So then I reworked the hand controls. So the dragon, it was looking at linkages. So my thumb can only pull up that far, like I've got really small hands, and my thumb could only pull up, I think it was like six centimeters. So that was the limit of the wingspan. But I wanted to do a bigger wingspan. So I used to play with broken umbrellas all the time. I actually made a bird with broken umbrellas. I wish I still had it, but I don't. But yeah, that linkage, which works in the same way as bone and tendon does. So I could pull in from a shorter distance, but get the larger spread. Yeah, yeah. So I started working out the linkages for that, and then the dragon came along, which I can get down. Yeah, please, please. And these reusable cable ties, these are one of my favorite things. I just, yesterday during a build, referred to a cable tie as everyone's favorite portable knot. It's like, I'm going to sell that to them as an ad campaign. Yeah. Wow, I love how the hand control is almost a direct dragon-shaped Waldo. Dude. Dude! Oh, I really see how much attention you have paid to every, every frame of this. Oh, that is... So if you look at the elbow equivalent, that's where the string is. So you're getting all of that? Just from a very short motion. Oh, wow. You're not doing that with this. You're doing that with over here. Yeah, so that's just the lever. So in the original dragon design, it was controlled just by my fingers pulling up, but that really hurt my hand for a while. All these muscles down here just got so tired so quickly. So I was like, okay, we need to rework this. I'm noticing you have a delayed timing for each of these joints, that this one doesn't reach its full... So I've got control... Oh, you've got a little extra! Yeah, so that it's attached in front and behind, so I can control that from anywhere. But it just gives it a little bit more flair. You know, one of the things I have found with sewing is, I've been regularly astounded by how much corruption I can get with very few loops to hold delicate things. And this is so incredible. I mean, it's like you're thinking like an animator. I think it's... Also, I love the neck linkage resting through these little... I've never seen anyone do this before. Just gives it like that dragon-y arch. Yeah. Oh, look at his... I've just noticed his beautiful eyes. Wow. The gold leaf? Or no, that's like gold... It's UV nail varnish. I was gonna say! That's fabulous. Because it's got that... It's like nice and like tappy. Yeah, yeah. I can't think of a better word than tappy. Do these guys, each of them lives in your head as a character? Yes, they definitely do. Yeah. I mean, and I'm also... I would assume that some of that character is based on the hardship of building the thing as well. Definitely. There's a sort of impatience of them to me. Them to get me to finish them so that they can be alive and they can interact with the world. And it's... I feel a pressure from them. It's ridiculous. I feel the pressure from them to finish them. I love this so much. I don't think that's ridiculous at all. There's this moment in the Beatles documentary where George Harrison says to the other guys, we don't know what the album is going to be because it hasn't told us yet. Yeah, yeah. In my experience, when an object I'm working on starts to tell me what it wants, I have achieved something. You just have to follow that. Follow that. Let it be an external. So my old partner on Mythbusters, Jamie Heinemann, his favourite thing in the world were these little X linkages. Oh, I love them. He did the spiders from Arachnophobia. Oh, wow. And each leg was one actuator for all three joints because of those little X braces. You can do so much with them. So the end one is sort of like reverses. Yes. Oh, right. Yeah. So that that pulls in. And I was looking at, you know, those punching toys? Yes, yes, yes, yes. So I was looking at that. I've got one around here somewhere. I thought you might. A boxing glove at the end of it. So looking at how I could reverse it by looking at the angles of where that was going. I'm thinking, yes, that would be possible because I can just change which side it goes. I'm usually sitting there with pieces of foam core and stick pins and just moving them until they get something that actually works. Yeah, I do this all digitally. I used to work in Illustrator and circles and lines and things. And now I do most of it in Rhino. So I admire anyone who works out linkages, not digitally. But it's still the same. It's a geometric thing that I worked out. Two circles in the intersection of that is where the link it, where the pivots can go, because I couldn't find out a way. There's people working out. So there's this legendary guy in the film industry who did like Batman's guns coming out of the Batmobile and stuff like that. And we we covered him when he was working on the Ghostbusters movie. And he does everything. He does his first pass in CAD. But then he prints it out in like heavy paper. Right. And just like, OK, does it not work there? Makes the last bit of adjustments and then goes back to CAD and cuts it all out. I guess that's my equivalent of I'll do it on the laser cutter. Right, right. Take it back. Yeah. I want to see the next progression. This this this dinosaur. Well, let me just show you in the mouth. So what? That was a later edition is. Oh, you've got an extra movement on the tongue as well. Do a little little feather in the feathers so I can fly around and I can sort of like go snap at people as I'm flying around. If you just feel the teeth because they're actually quite sharp. Oh, they have to be careful not to bite children. Oh, biting children's absolutely necessary. So Lyra is kind of my final prototype. I have made and sold a few of these, but Lyra is sort of my own. Yeah. Sorry if I hit the microphone. Lyra is mine. So yeah, Ross is a velociraptor. He was originally a commission for a lady who has a birds of prey raptor center. And she wanted to she goes around schools and things, and she wanted to show the evolution of dinosaurs into birds. So she commissioned me to make Ross, but then Covid happened and the commission kind of fell through eventually. Let me just chisel his wings out. Detangle. Yeah, yeah. Am I correct? You're laser cutting all the feathers? Yes. Out of fabric? Yes. This is synthetic taffeta. So it's got the sort of a bit of rigidity of taffeta, but because it's synthetic, it seals the edges so it doesn't fray. Oh, nice. It's like self-cauterizing. Yeah. Oh, wow. Oh my gosh. This is is this about the right size for some of the velociraptors? Yeah, yeah. I think I think he's a little bit small. So maybe a junior now. But yeah. This is in the book. This is the first one you meet. Yes. Right. Wow. Oh my gosh. The movement with the feathers is incredible. That must have been really thrilling. The first time you got all the feathers on and saw it move. Yeah, it was. It was because there's so many different feather parts. Because it was a commission, I was trying to get through it to get it done. And so I wasn't sure it was. I'll show you. I'll show you how it works. So it's all based on fishnets. So that's the skin. Oh, yes, yes, yes. All right. And so I thought like this is going to like this will move over the joints without being too blocky. Yeah. And so yeah, he's got little fishnets on. And that worked. Yeah. And then so the leg will move and you don't get like a hard line of where the feathers are. Within animatronics, I know that when they put a skin over an animatronic, the whole goal is the fewest attachment points possible because you want the skin to move. Look at his movement. Oh my goodness. And then so for his walking, I wanted him to be able to really sneak. Yeah. And so he's got two strings on each leg. So the back string rolls up and then it like rolls forward. Oh my God. And so he's got like real control over the movement because I didn't want it to just be like. Yeah. Walking, you know, funny. You're really thinking through all the biomechanics. I just wanted that like and sneak and forward. Oh my God. And then the terrible claw. The terrible claw is so spooky watching him do that. Do you perform these in some form? I do. Not in puppet shows. I'll do walkabouts at festivals and events and things. But yeah, he's quite the favorite with children. They'll either hate him or love him. They'll either run away or they'll be like, yeah, bite me. Yeah, that's appropriate. I'm curious if you've filmed any narratives with him. I have. It was the idea that velociraptors were like a modern pest. Yeah. So we had Ross like sneaking up in someone's garden and then rummaging around in one of the bins at the back of the garden. And then someone shouting, oh, you get out the bins. And then he runs off into the woodland and then is chewing on a chicken bone. You know, it's just in Australia where is it the emus that wander around and everyone calls them bin chickens? Oh, yeah, I think it's. I'm literally overwhelmed. And the same mechanism on the wings as the original sparrow to a certain extent. Yeah, there is a linkage in there, but it's not. It's not as complex as lift it up a bit higher. It's not as complex as the dragon. You know, it's so funny. I talked off camera about some wings that I wanted to make. And I for a long time, wings are such a monolithic assemblage of so many things. And then I realized it's only like 22 feathers per wing. Yeah. Right. It's not that many. Yeah. It's a discrete number of stitches. Yeah. It doesn't it doesn't it's not infinite. Unless you wanted to do all the covert feathers as well. But it feels infinite when you look at it like this. Yeah, yeah. What was the length of time from the beginning of construction to completion? Probably like two or three years with breaks in between different projects. But yeah, just coming up against a problem, leaving it for a bit, working on something else. And then when the commission fell through, I started working on it for a bit. And then during COVID, I was like, he needs to live. I need to bring him to life. So I carried on working on him. I've paid some attention to the puppet space. And I don't know that I've seen anyone do a marionette with such a really complicated leg mechanic. It's just incredible. Thank you. Wow. Yeah, I'm really interested in the biomechanics. And it just wouldn't be right if it was just stomping. When I was a kid, I had puppets. And they just stomp. And I love them. But I really wanted to embrace that natural, really working out the mechanics to make it look real. This is the thing I love, is that you didn't start out going, I'm going to make biomechanics, really accurate biomechanics. You just, you made one that stomped. And like, oh, I need much more than this. Like, you're always surprised by our points of view, right? Yeah. I love how I can see his skull underneath. Yeah. Yeah, the feathers got smaller and smaller. But those little chin ones. Yeah. Amazing. Okay. This is your firebird. Yes. Oh my goodness. I haven't even clocked him yet. Raptor's beak. It is based on a combination of the harpy eagle, which I just think they have the most beautiful faces, and a magpie. So I, during COVID and the lockdown, I had baby magpies were coming and visiting my bedroom window. And they were just this little life that was separate from all of what was going on in the world. And they didn't care. And they just hopped around on the windows. I had a little window feeder. And sometimes they came in my room, and they just filled my room with joy. And so I thought, I'm going to make a magpie. Because I'd done the dragon wings with the linkages, and I hadn't done a bird wing with the linkages. So I thought, I'm going to make a magpie. But as I was making it, I just felt like I want it to be more fantastical. And so a phoenix just seemed like the perfect creature to play. Look at all these mechanics you have access to. OK. Oh, what? So the wings work in a similar way to the dragon. Yeah. Just with the big lever pulling up and out. And then I've got control over the allule, which are my favorite. With what? The allule. So they're moving. So that's bird thumbs. Oh, my God. There must be ornithologists who are going freaking out over your work. Bird nerds. Yes. I like it when people spot things and they're like, yes, I did that deliberately. So if you hold your hand out, they'll come land on you. Oh, oh. I feel like there's... Oh, hello, buddy. And then... I love the flame feathers. Yes, again, synthetic taffeta. Yeah. It just works on laser. The level of extension is just shocking, Laura. Thank you. Wow. And that's the first time using 3D printed sections as well. The bones? Or... Yeah, so the bones are birch pie again. And then the white parts are 3D printed. Gotcha, gotcha, gotcha. Because it goes up and down a few layers. And so I thought I'd try 3D printing it and get that. Oh, right, to get the onset. Yeah, yeah. Amazing. Do you have a process for eyes? Or are you using sort of normal cabochon kind of eyes? These are cabochons with a digital print behind them. Yeah, yeah. These are just purchased on Etsy. But then Lyra's eyes are 3D printed. And if you look, they have a pupil. Yes, I see. It has depth to it. So you can see it just inside the head there. Yeah. So the pupil goes back and then there's like a bit of a flash, depending on where the light is. Wow. Oh my God. They're like, they're such fully realized souls. Lyra, I just want to watch him fly some more. Would you run through this? Oh my God. The blue at the ends of the feathers is such an inspired color choice. Thank you. It's homage to the magpie feathers. I don't, I think it's just European magpies. That have these white flashes on their wings. So the orange would be black and the blue would be white. So I've done gas flame instead of like, not gas flame. I'm really, I'm just marvelously overwhelmed, Lyra, by the technical rigor and also the aesthetic perfection. These are just a fully realized souls here. Like I said, it's just so inspiring. Oh my gosh. So the right, the left hand is doing the large wing lift. Is that correct? So my left hand is up, down. Yep, yep. And then also controlling. Right. And that gives you these guys. Yeah. And then the in-out is the big lever. Yeah. And then I have that little lever and that does some head movement as well. Yeah, the combination of them. Oh, wow. Wow. So you said there's always projects on. What is the next large ambition you have? My next puppet that I'd really like to make is a unicorn. But a unicorn. So a lot of four-legged puppets have diagonal legs connected so that they'll go like. Oh, yeah, yeah. I don't want to do that. Of course not. No, I want each leg individually controlled to pull up and then extend. So I can do all of the gates. I love horses. Yeah, so I want to be able to walk, trot, jump, canter, rear, kick the heels up. Yeah. And I have, it's maybe 30% there. I've got the beginnings of the mechanics. But I'd really like to invest some time into that. This is just such a marvelous different approach. It's really exciting, especially all of the ways in which you've clearly like, oh, no, it all has to be within here. Right. I like the idea of puppets that you operate with several people, but then you don't have that freedom to just move around. When I'm doing a walkabout, I love just being able to just flip around the corner. And I think unless you had a real symbiosis with someone else, then it would be difficult to do that. But yeah, I just love moving through a crowd. And then people go, oh, they didn't quite see it. Yeah. I quite like that, that I become the puppet. Oh, my gosh. I can inhabit it. Have you scared children by having them come around the corner? Yes. Oh, good. That's required. It's one of my favorite things. Yeah, because you give them some magic. They're never going to see a dinosaur in real life. Yeah, exactly. Oh, that's amazing. Laura, this is so, so freaking inspiring and so beautiful. And so, yeah, I'm run out of superlatives. This is incredible. Please keep doing this work. And please come back with a unicorn and show us. Oh, I'd love to. OK, good. Yes, promise. Amazing. If you like that collaboration, know that we have so many more. You can click on this link for a playlist.