Bunrakku
What country was Bunrakku puppetry created in?
Japan
A puppet behind a screen is lit from behind.
List some famous examples of hand and rod puppets.
Sesame Street, Avenue Q, Between the Lions, The Muppets, The Labyrinth, The Dark Crystal.
List 3 examples of a contact puppet.
Dragon from Shrek, King Kong, Joey from Warhorse, Ludo from Labyrinth, The animals in the broadway production of The Lion King
Name one stop motion feature film.
Nightmare before Christmas, Frankinweeie, Gumbie, Rudolph the Red nosed Reindeer, Corpse Bride
Who voices the puppets, and what moves the plot forward?
What events are Chinese shadow puppetry typically performed at?
Festivals, weddings, funerals or major events and gatherings.
One person operates the head and left hand and does the voice, a second person operates the left hand.
What are the 3 puppeteers in the warhorse puppet and what are their jobs?
Head (operates ears as emotional indicator manipulates the head), Heart (in charge of breath and front legs), Hind (in charge of tail as emotional indicator and keeping the pace of the animal/matching footsteps)
What materials can stop motion films be created from?
Anything! The sky is the limit.
How many puppeteers operate one puppet, and which part do they use?
3, one on feet, one on the left hand, and one on the right hand and head.
What are traditional Chinese shadow puppets made from?
Animal leather.
What is 'giving ground'.
Making it appear is if the puppet is walking with a physical hitting of the ground, even if the puppet does not have legs. Giving it a strut.
Are contact puppeteers seen or unseen?
Often 'disguised' somehow, though often out in the open, it again depends on the puppet and production.
How is a stop motion production created?
An object is moved in small increments and a picture is taken at each movement, these pictures are then strung together to create a film.
Who is the only puppeteer allowed to have their head uncovered, and why?
The master puppeteer, it takes many years of study to gain this position and it is a mark of respect that his face is allowed to be uncovered. The others wear all black and have their faces covered.
What are the jobs in a traditional shadow puppet troupe?
Puppeteers (1-3) and a singer/narrator and musician. Sometimes one person does all the narration and music.
Are puppeteers in hand and rod seen or unseen?
Either, it depends on the production. Productions like the Muppets, Sesame Street or Labyrinth, no, in Avenue Q yes.
List at 2-3 characteristics of contact puppetry?
The puppeteers body is in contact with the puppet to give it life, can have 1-many puppeteers, can be of many sizes and styles (often larger),Operates in a unique fashion
What is a storyboard?
A compilation of drawings or images that show a frame by frame plot of what the end film will be like.
What is the special characteristic about how a woman's feet are performed? Why is it done this way?
They are just the puppeteers hands, it was thought inappropriate to show a woman's legs or ankles, even on a puppet, so with there being none built there was no chance of revealing them.
How is Shadow Puppetry passed down and why is it dying out.
It is typically a family art form that is passed down.
Who is Jim Henson and why is he important?
He is a major puppeteer who pioneered how we create and manipulate puppets. He is responsible for The Muppets, Labyrinth, Sesame Street and several other famous productions.
What is the most important component of puppetry that gives a puppet life?
Making sure that it breathes.
How is Jack's face moved in the film "Nightmare before Christmas"?
They have hundreds of different face plates and they switch them out for each expression or mouth movement while speaking.