To start with something not directly linked to the film-in-making but still related to puppets, here a grey cat co-designed with Ukrainian stuffed animal maker (would it be better to say ‘maker of stuffed animals’?) Жулито Токаренко (Tokarenko Julia).

I came across her work by total coincidence, mainly she had been making stuffed bears so far, and I asked her if she was willing to try making a cat; here you can see drawings that went back and forth between us with corrections and instructions and the final outcome, this fabulous grey cat:

Жулито Токаренко – Tokarenko Julia “commissioned grey cat” (2015)

I am very pleased with it and apparently the commission inspired her to do more cats. I am thinking of asking her to collaborate on some other animals maybe to use in the film, but step by step. At least enjoy the genius!

If you are interested in more of her work you can find it here: http://www.bearpile.com/artist/3709

or if you speak very well Russian, also here: http://www.livemaster.ru/julitto

Further, some images from a performance the Japanese puppeteer ホリ ヒロシ Hiroshi Hori gave at the Košické kultúrne centrá (Košické cultural center) in Slovakia last year with almost life-size puppets and very, very bird girl, see for yourself:

puppeteer ホリ ヒロシHiroshi Hori with bird girl puppet at  (2014)

http://www.k13.sk/hirosi-hori-pretancuje-s-babkou-az-do-dalekeho-japonska/

http://www.k13.sk/hiroshi-hori-si-tanecne-partnerky-vysniva-vo-farbach-usije-oblecie-a-roztancuje/

So, that’s good to know. Inspiration.

And then, a musical interlude, Mike Bradley playing blues harp and Simon is fascinated:

Josiane Keller “Mike and Simon playing blues harmonica” (2015)

whilst the blood moon looks on… well, we have seen now all a million orange moon photos, so here something completely different: Blood Moon – inverted, and it looks like this:

Josiane Keller “blood moon, inverted” (2015)

and further, after we refreshed our minds with the beauty of the moon (yet again), back to the hard work of research for, in this case, costume studies for the film:

日下部金兵衛 Kusakabe Kimbei “Cloudy Day” (1800’s)

a beautiful and stylish photograph, nicely staged in a photo studio, taken by the famous Japanese photographer 日下部金兵衛 Kusakabe Kimbei and just what I am looking for in this case; here a bit more info on him:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kusakabe_Kimbei

and then I need a character of a lady in the snow, for example this is good by 小川 一眞 Ogawa Kazumasa (who is perhaps mostly known for his flower photographs):

小川 一眞 Ogawa Kazumasa “a fair pedestrian on a snowy day” (1800’s)

some more info on him for example here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogawa_Kazumasa

and one more fair maiden in the snow by Kimbei:

日下部金兵衛 Kusakabe Kimbei “Japanese lady in winter dress” (1800’s)

Very interesting to me is that all these photographs were staged and taken in the studio. Not from life. In order to for example be sold to travelers to take home form the rare trip to Japan. So one these are photographs that illustrate a narration, communicating an image that the one person has seen to those who have not seen it, but it was created by someone who also has not seen it.

Meanwhile, on the technical side of it all, we are testing our green screen (only to find out that we need better):

Josiane Keller “green screen test” (2015)

The clip on the screen is from one of the Compagnie Mama’s / Lincoln Brother skits. But more about that later on…