Kidding’s Ennui Le Triste
I built Ennui at Swazzle Puppet Studio for Showtime’s Kidding! He was one of the lead puppets on the show, interacting with just about all of the stars throughout its two-season run. Ennui was an interesting challenge as he was hand carved and then hollowed out to allow for installation of a mouth mechanism, which was being built by another puppet builder miles away. To learn more, check out the behind-the-scenes photos below, and consider contacting me to help bring your puppet project to life!
Ennui was carved out of soft foam & painted to look like a loaf of bread. His arms were scott foam covered in fleece, & his mouth was controlled by a mech.
Ennui and Frank Langella in a shot from the show.
Backstage, waiting for his close-up.
Jim Carrey, Ennui, & other puppet friends.
Ennui and the popular Pickle Princess, Ariana Grande!
Kidding’s Pill Bug
Built by me at Swazzle Puppet Studio, Kidding’s pill bug is one of the most complicated puppets I’ve ever built. He needed to appear homemade, be able to expand, curl up in a ball, and still be easily performed. I achieved all four! To learn more, check out the behind-the-scenes photos below, and consider contacting me to help bring your puppet project to life!
The pill bug is made of scott foam, L200 foam, and vinyl. He’s covered in canvas, antron fleece, & strips of fur.
Catherine Keener and the pill bug puppet.
In Kidding, Catherine Keener is a puppet builder. Pill bug is one of her creations.
Pill bug in a dramatic scene with Catherine Keener and Frank Langella.
Kidding’s Spotted Snake
Built by me at Swazzle Puppet Studio, the spotted snake started his life in a live traveling show called The River Otter Circus. Years later, he was rented by the producers of Showtime’s Kidding to appear as an incidental background puppet. I truly believe that his 15 minutes of fame is not quite over! To learn more, check out the behind-the-scenes photos below, and consider contacting me to help bring your puppet project to life!
The snake had a scott foam head with rubber palate. His body was a cotton sleeve stuffed with fiber-fill.
The spotted snake in one of his few appearances on Kidding.