Rumplestiltskin Initial Character Designs

        As with every design I undertake for a character which will exist as a physical, stop motion puppet, it is important to bear in mind that the underlying armature will influence and impose limitations upon the physicality of the character. For example, very tall, slender characters are more difficult to craft, as they would require specially constructed armatures, with smaller joints. Such characters may also require additional support and rigging, as the puppets may be unable to stand on their own, or the joints may be incapable of supporting the weight of a long limb.

        Simple things, which may be less of a concern in other animation mediums also become problematic. Hair and clothing for example, will need to be constructed in such a way that they too can hold a pose while each frame is captured. This means that long flowing locks, and elegant swathes of fabric can be awkward and best avoided. These are factors which I tried to bear in mind when sketching out initial character designs for Becky's Rumplestiltskin animation. Although I was not given any visual reference material to work with, I did have the already complete designs for the other characters, the King and Rumplestiltskin himself. This allowed me to make a concerted effort to differentiate the Miller in terms of body shape, posture and height (the daughter would be distinct enough, being the only female character).

        However, to provide some frame of reference, I did gather a range of illustrations of the Rumplestiltskin story. While the Miller's daughter has been depicted in a number of ways (from stereotypical blonde princess) there are few or no depictions of the Miller, being only a minor character. None the less, I found the illustrations of the daughter useful, if only for costume and hairstyle inspiration.

        From the brief profile Becky provided, I got the impression that the Miller should be skinny and undernourished. As the design for Rumplestiltskin was short and thin, albeit with a bit of a pot belly, I began by making the Miller taller, with a stooped posture which I hoped would convey his wretched and unfortunate nature. However, my pedantic nature began to take over...would such a weak and wiry figure be able to work as a Miller? Could he physically manhandle the heavy sacks of flour required? As such, I also drafted some more solid, sturdy figures, with a range of head shapes. It was my hope that even if Becky did not like a whole character, I would have presented her with enough range that she could mix an match her favourite elements for me to incorporate into the final design.

        The aforementioned point about hair and clothing was especially pertinent in relation to the Miller's Daughter/Queen character. As a traditional fairytale princess, my initial instinct was to give her long tresses and swirling skirts. In an attempt to make things easier for Becky I attempted to style the hair in such a way that it would be simpler to animate. Tying in back, in twists and plaits, would mean that the hair would not need to be animated strand by strand, but rather a wire could be inserted through the plait, allowing for some animation. Similarly, princesses are often depicted with full, swirling skirts, which would be required to perform secondary and overlapping animation to suggest the weight and momentum of the fabric, in order to make the character's movements seem natural. To achieve this, the skirt may need rigging with wire, which can be manipulated and animated frame by frame. Another option is that the skirt could be supported by a rigid, hooped petticoat, as per Victorian fashion. It would then only need to swing, rather than flow and ripple. The fluidity of movement would also have been a concern on the more bell shaped sleeves of the figure on the left. To limit this issue to just the skirt, the bodice and sleeves could simply fit close to the puppet's body.

        In the past, Becky has made stop motion puppets with interchangeable resin faces allowing a few different expressions. This could potentially be her intention with this project, but in case the puppets will maintain a fixed expression (as in the Periwig Maker by Steffen Schaffler), I hoped to use an expression in the designs which would appropriately capture the spirit of the characters. For the Miller, I imagined him to be worn down and weary. He must be a somewhat desperate figure, in order to place his daughter in such a precarious position. The daughter herself could have a range of emotions; she could be either despondent, angry or frustrated by her impossible task of spinning straw into gold. In any case, neither character is happy, and that should come across in their faces, as well as their stance.

        Another point which occurred to me was how the transition of the girl from Miller's Daughter to Queen could be achieved. Would there be two puppets of the same character, each wearing a different outfit? Would the outfits be interchangeable on a single puppet? I was only asked to depict the Miller's Daughter in her tattered peasant's garb, but in case the character will be need to appear more Queenly later on in the animation, I will refrain from making her hair too tousled and unkempt.

        The Miller's Daughter was more of a struggle than the Miller himself. I find there is more freedom and variety of body and head shapes when designing a male character, particularly on who is not the strong attractive hero. In spite of my best efforts, the influence of Disney is all too apparent in my attempts to create a pretty young woman, fit to be a fairytale princess. This may be due to the fact I was lacking a strong visual style or influence when conceiving these characters (with My Uncle Oswald I will be using the elongated figures of Art Nouveau illustration as reference). As I develop and practice my skills with character designing, I hope that this influence will become less apparent.