Lampfish - Part I

Dear Reader,

I'm told they are actually Anglerfish, but they'll always be Lampfish to me.

In any event, the future of our story moves into the World of Dreams, and in there we'll find a school of a hundred such fish!

Our prototype started life as a plastic bag. And while Alien One sketched plans I whipped up a pot of papier mache glue.

A couple of days later we wicked the protective plastic off our wires and added a bulb.

Eye sockets of bottle tops and peacock feather eye-lashes were added over the orange "skin".

Fins and a tail to come :)

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

Summer Aliens

Dear Reader,

Summer break is now well underway for the Aliens. Time to fold some good old production design into the behind the scenes stuff that's happening.

Now we just have to find some time between swimming and visiting galleries and running in the sun and eating mangos on sticks and hanging at the beach with friends and ....

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

Sewing and Craft Table

Dear Reader,

We've been quietly in the process of upgrading!

Our old craft table has served us well over the last couple of years but it was, well small. And our dining table, aka the sewing table, shuddered under the power of the Trouble and Strife's machine.

So we made plans. Made a trip to House of Hardwood for the top, and three trips to Home Depot for the base. We're now closing in on the final product.

Stay tuned, our productivity is about to go sky-high!

Oh, and it's going to have wheels ... :)

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

Ruthless Whims in Front of the Camera

Dear Reader,

As part of our preparations for the mini-squirrels kits Kickstarter campaign we're making a video to help introduce the uninitiated to our mini-stunt squirrels.

It's a turnabout for the books, but as part of that video, yours truly has temporarily moved in front of the camera :) Hold onto your hats, it's coming your way soon!

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

Stereo Illusion

Dear Reader,

We haven't used a lot of forced perspective or other forms of optical illusions on The Squirrel King, but these tricks of the eye are always intriguing and when I see them I'm always pondering how they might be incorporated. Hope you enjoy this one that I ran across the other day!


And don't be shy about sharing your favorite optical illusions!

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

Kickstarter

Dear Reader,

For a while now, we've been talking a lot about mysterious happenings behind the scenes. The time has come to let you in on our plans!

At long last you too will very soon be able to enjoy the mini-stunt squirrel craft kits!!
It's all happening at the end of July and the beginning of August when we're going to run a Kickstarter campaign to help spread the word. So mark your calendars!

As you've seen the mini-squirrels are a lot of fun to make and great company on your desk or as playthings for the kids :)

So stay tuned and we'll start telling you more about the final preparations!

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

Oneiric

Dear Reader,

I learnt a new word today: oneiric. It means `of or relating to dreams or dreaming'. It strikes me as a pretty important word for a story about the World of Dreams, so I wanted to share it with you :)

I came across it while reading an article about Boards of Canada's new album, Tomorrow's Harvest. The Squirrel King is definitely a different take on the word, but I have always liked Boards of Canada's music, and this line in their interview is one of the favorite sentences I've read in a while:

"You could say the wobbles and flutters in our music are equivalent to something like weeds overgrowing an old building."

Alright, time to sit down and listen to the album :)

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

Behind the Scenes Cucumber Post

Dear Reader,

As promised some behind the scenes footage of yours truly prepping Tony Doupe, our Catburglar, for the all important cucumber spa day.


What at first seems like a frivilous luxury the Catburglar indulges in, turns out later to have significance ...

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

The Power of Cucumbers

Dear Reader,

You've seen Tony Doupe, our amazing Catburglar, covered in cucumbers.

Here's a shot of the Aliens enjoying the same fruit :)

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

PS. Speaking of Tony, check out the wonderful little indie film Safety Not Guaranteed that he has a small role in.

PPS. On the story side of The Squirrel King, cucumbers also turn out to be significant in the context of the world of dreams :)

PPPS. Monday, I'll upload a short behind the scenes video from the Catburglar cucumber shoot.

Background Elements

Dear Reader,

It was a while back that we shot this background element for a driving scene, but as I looked back on it, it occurred to me that some newer viewers might have missed it. I just love stop motion animation!


And don't forget there's a whole slew of behind the scenes videos on The Squirrel King You tube channel.

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

PS. there are more background elements under development. Hopefully we'll have something to reveal shortly!

Rainbow Spiders

Dear Reader,

Two years ago, Alien Two and a good friend of hers shared a rainbow connection on their birthday. This weekend they reprised that party with a rainbow spider theme!

I was in charge of the rainbow spider's egg sack and attendant baby rainbow spiders, and our good friend Kylie took on the mama spider!

The final product was a delightfully whimsical creation!

Even the cleanup of the spider web toffee yielded a magical surprise - this golden seahorse!

We continue to remain open to possibilities and let all colors of the rainbow shine :)

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims