mae voogd puppet maker/ designer
A rt i st Stat e m e n t
biography
I studied a BA (Hons) in Animation at the Bristol School of Animation, Bristol UWE, where I specialised in Stop Motion. During my time on the course and on work experience I have found my niche in craft based medium, designing and fabricating puppets, sets and props.
I have always loved story telling and like exploring ways to tell them visually. Studying Animation has enabled me to develop new processes in wich to do so. I’ve specialised in Stop Motion and have been developing my skills in puppet fabrication. Growing up with a Theatre background, story telling through puppetry is something I wish to persue, whether this involves live performance, film or animation. Not only do my skills lie in craft, I also like to develop designs and ideas through drawing. I have a good line and like simplicity and wit in my work. Animation and Theatre lend themselves well to eachother and I would like to be able to work across both platforms to expand my skills and creativity in story telling through craft based mediums.
Beard was a collaborative piece that was made during second year. The short stop motion followed a man named Bart whose life took a hair raising turn of events when his beard grew wildly out of control. I concieved, devised and directed it and collaborativley made and animated it.
Filmography
Beard 2011
Chav Rat 2012 This Flash animated short was made for BBC Radio Four’s More Than Words Festival. I was given a sound clip to animate to. It was a quick deadline so I wanted to produce something that would be simple to make. I wanted to make something that would utilise my drawing skills.
Carousel 2013 Carousel is my latest piece of work. It is a mix media short using film and stop motion. It is a series of vignettes of weird and wonderful characters. I wanted to produce something that would showcase my puppet making skills. I made four puppets: three for stop motion and one for live action. I used a variety of techniques during the fabrication for the puppets and set from casting, found objects, woodwork, metal work and sewing. I also learnt a lot of postproduction skills in After Effect during this project.
Gorran
and
bran
Pip ( The G i rl Who S wal l owed an A ppl e S eed )
The mermaid
The Monkey
other work
Mac
Mac is my first rod puppet which I made for myself. He was just a bit of fun but he’s really encouraged me to perservere with just trying things out. He was a lucky accident! I’m using him to practise my puppeteering, to develop a character through voice and movement.