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Old 05-02-2012, 10:59 AM   #31
darthwhitey
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Originally Posted by PacMan3000 View Post
Could you talk a bit of how exactly this came together? Meaning, you had Bob make a silicone 1:1 bust that had a hollow neck, and then you placed the bust on the mannequin?

How did you find clothes that you felt would be a good fit? Was it trial and error?
A great question.

Yes, Bob makes the busts with a hollow neck area. They have a hard, supportive inner structure that allows them to be placed onto the mannequin's "neck." The flexible mannequin I used had a removable head that helped even more. The other nice thing about it was the neck was flexible, allowing me to bend it forward to replicate that "hunched over" Joker look. This worked out great, I don't think it would be as easy to achieve this look with a traditional fiberglass mannequin, at least not without some serious cutting, etc.

I ordered the clothes from Magnoli Clothiers in New Zealand. Working with Indy Magnoli and Bobby, I did my best to order sizes that Ledger would have worn. A problem arose because the mannequin was 6' 2" (the right height) but he was too muscular, which caused me to have to chop him down a bit. ...but it made the clothes fit properly. This worked out since Ledger was pretty slim during filming anyway. In fact, the naked mannequin looks extra slim because with so many layers (shirt, vest, coat, top coat) the clothes bulked him up a bit too.

The pants posed another problem. Bobby had a metal stand fabricated that the Joker stands on and went up the back of his legs. I had to have the pants cut up the back of both legs so they could wrap around this stand, then secured them with velcro that had to be sewn into the pants. Since you only see about 12" of the very back and bottom of his pants this works great. This allows him to stand on his own with no stand at all. It really adds to the realism. The metal stand is so heavy that he won't tip over.

When I get home I'll post a couple "behind the scenes" pics showing the mannequin and stand in action without the clothes.

I learned very quickly that these life-sized figures are a lot of work and preparation. In my opinion, the pose and clothing can kill even the best bust. It's really tricky to get them just right.

Hope this helps
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Old 05-02-2012, 11:24 AM   #32
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Really fascinating, thanks for the insight.

So you're saying that before the pants were sent to you, you had them sort of slice all the way up the pant leg (to the butt/belt area, I suppose), and then have them stitch in Velcro so that you could wrap each pant leg around the mannequin's legs?

Also, how long did it take Bobby to complete the head for you?

And lastly, where on earth do you keep this guy, how easy it it to pose his fingers and hands with the gloves on, and how many people has he given heart attacks?
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Old 05-02-2012, 12:03 PM   #33
darthwhitey
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Originally Posted by PacMan3000 View Post
So you're saying that before the pants were sent to you, you had them sort of slice all the way up the pant leg (to the butt/belt area, I suppose), and then have them stitch in Velcro so that you could wrap each pant leg around the mannequin's legs?

Also, how long did it take Bobby to complete the head for you?

And lastly, where on earth do you keep this guy, how easy it it to pose his fingers and hands with the gloves on, and how many people has he given heart attacks?
Yes, that's exactly what I did with the pants. A tailor cut down the middle of both legs from bottom to the top (belt line) and opened them up. Then they installed 2" thick velcro on each side. This allowed me to simply wrap each pant leg around the Joker leg and velcro them in the back. The pants were very big in the waist, and wide in the legs, which helped this to work since I lost so much while attaching them, if that makes sense.

My situation was different, as Bobby was working on several projects while perfecting my bust. But I would say typical turn around time is around 3-6 months.

The hands are actually pretty good on this mannequin. They are foam hands/fingers with flexible wire underneath. That's another area that can really "make or break" your figure. I also chose to chop some foam off the hands and fingers to make the gloves fit better. I really wish someone would make a set of mannequin hands that was fully articulated and capable of holding their position!

I keep him in my Home Theater basement "Man Cave." But I gotta tell ya, I had no idea how real it was going to look. You're right, it's almost unsettling how real it is. People really freak out.
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Old 05-06-2012, 12:52 PM   #34
lforigno
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That is a great piece of art
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Old 05-07-2012, 02:31 AM   #35
DSET
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amazing
can hardly tell its a statue
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Old 05-10-2012, 09:46 AM   #36
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That is a great piece of art
Thanks bro, I sure appreciated your help on the project!
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Old 08-11-2012, 01:34 PM   #37
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Here are a few pics with his new scratch-built Smith & Wesson M-76 as seen in the film.

The gun is very light and made from plastics and PVC. I made a metal support and ran it up his forearm under his jacket so he holds it securely.
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Old 08-11-2012, 02:21 PM   #38
dark_spidey
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Great job, man!
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Old 08-11-2012, 11:00 PM   #39
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Dream piece. Thanks for sharing!
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Old 08-12-2012, 04:58 AM   #40
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That is just stunning. I'm guessing with Joker standing at the window you don't get too many visitors

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