"Kiwi" The Serval (Puppet-Mask)
As an artist and creature maker, who’s mainly oriented towards animatronics/puppetry, make-up, PFX and SFX, I decided to complete my academic creative journey at the Gorton Studio by choosing to make a Serval puppet-mask as my 3rd project. The goal was to create a mask with organic movement that would resemble the animal but also easily communicate with an audience based on body language and facial expressions. Throughout this process, I chose to experiment with different materials and techniques. Additionally, I challenged myself with adding more mechanisms than ever before, both because I wanted to practice making higher complexity mechanisms as well as because I thought it was very fitting for a feline as their faces are pretty expressive (this prototype is the one with the most moving components I've made to date).
The Inspiration for this original character came from multiple sources, one being the Five Nights At Freddy’s film (where the animatronic characters were brought to life by the Jim Henson studios), along with a few other fellow creators that I’ve seen online who make masks/costumes of similar nature. The species idea wasn’t inspired by anywhere in particular, I purely just admire Servals and wanted to try recreating their unique look.
The plan was to add four moving eyelids (top-bottom) and connect them into one pulley mechanism, along with a snarl and jaw mechanism which would move separately. Additionally, I looked into prototyping an ear mechanism that would help replicate fear-anger which would fit with the snarl really well (eight moving parts total). All the above would be fully manual with zero electronics. The making processes I used for this included 3D sculpting, 3D printing, some silicone moulding/casting, filler priming, sanding, hand sculpting, painting/air brushing, polishing and making patterns for the foam + fur (along with prototyping mechanisms, both physically with test prints and on ZBrush). The main challenge for the construction of this puppet-mask was getting the mechanisms of the mask to work with the skin on, as I’ve never gotten to finish any one of my other prototypes before (due to my studies and continuous projects), so adding fur was not my strong suit. (P.S. I also did some foam latex testing in hopes that it would work for the eyelids, but due to our limited time, I chose to just work with the fur. I do hope to get a chance to work with said material some more in the future.)
Brief talk on the making process:
I took a bobcat skull scan into ZBrush which was the closest I could find to a Serval (anatomically), then cleaned it and transformed it into a base where a human head could fit in, lastly I added a jaw joint, then did a test print. Eventually I went back to do some corrections on the digital model, by removing the back of the skull completely. Afterwards, I created a fiberglass skull-cap which was custom made to fit me, then bolted the new 3D printed PLA skull on top. That way I was able to remove it from the base and work on it easily (and do any repair work if needed later). The rest of the moving components were designed in ZBrush, like the eyelids, snarl/snout base and nose. The eyeballs were a challenge as I separated them in two parts, the backing was PLA but the front was a transparent resin which I polished and later stuck to the PLA backing once hand painted (this was a new way I thought of for making eyes as I didn't have too much time to work with eye moulds at the time, plus I enjoy hand painting eyes). The nose was also printed out of resin, it then got moulded and cast out of silicone.
The rest was pretty much a series of trial and error while working with springs and strings for the eyelid and snarl mechanisms, along with foam and fur for the rest of the face. The springs keep each moving component in place, once pulled with the strings they allow space for movement while also returning each component back in position after I've let go of the strings. The jaw has elastic bands on its sides that connect to my chin with a strap, when I open my mouth the jaw opens then the elastic bands pull it back up. (Additionally, the strings would attach to the wearer's fingers with rings to allow them to have their hands free, at the time there was a lot of resistance with the thick fur on so when performed I keep one of my hands higher than intended to help with the movement of the 4 eyelid blink and snarl, as they all pull the skin along). The ears are made out of memory foam and strings are attached in two areas of each ear to make them fold accordingly, when letting go they naturally return to their neutral position. Some air brushing was also done on the fur and the silicone nose, whereas the inside of the mouth and eyeballs were all hand-painted with acrylics (+tongue and inside of the mouth were sculpted out of milliput).
In conclusion, I was eager to step up with the complexity but also explore different materials, making processes and ways to step away from the hobbyist-amateur style of creating characters during my MA studies at the Gorton Studio. I thought this project was worth sharing in the Halloween contest as it's something I'd definitely wear during this season, even though it's a puppet-mask and not a full body costume.
I hope that you enjoy! Big thanks to Neill Gorton and Bradley Greenwood for their continuous support and guidance and another thank you to the Stan Winston school for being a great source of inspiration 
P.S. Here are some "Behind the scenes" pictures as well as the end result. I hope to later attach a youtube video link where I'll be showcasing its range of movements. (Footage and testing videos can also be found in my instagram + Tikok pages under: @ Shewolf.artgr )
Finished Puppet-Mask:
Demo Performance Youtube Link: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBerQGzBNXg&t=28s
-Christianna Altani / SheWolf.ArtGr
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