Part four of a seven part interview with ventriloquist figure maker Kenny Croes.
Video Transcript:
so uh so now you don’t take custom
orders am I correct on that um I do um
but I’m I’m picky about it not because
I’m I’m picky but
um because I’m not I don’t want to take
on a project that I don’t feel like I
can do and so I’m I’m choosing in that
way um if it’s something that I I think
I can do um even if it will mean
learning something new to do it a
stretch I mean I’m okay with that but if
it’s a little bit
beyond um then then I’ll I’ll I’ll refer
them you know to somebody else mostly of
what I do are are you know the the
stable of character heads that I have
offer on my website and people may ask
for um um customization of them in some
in some fashion um and probably the the
best example of that is which turned out
to be a character that I offer now um
was my Mr Winkle my 2T Mr Winkle with
the The Grouchy kind of old guy and uh
somebody uh wanted to well it’s even
that’s on my website too a guy was
making a movie the uh what’s called a
fan film for a Batman and so he he
wanted him to he he he thought the
character uh Winkle looked right but he
wanted him to have the the scar down
across the the eye from the forehead
down all these little little things he
wanted and eyes he wanted the eyes to be
in a certain way so that kind of
customization I I said yeah I can do
that and so uh and then I kind of
converted him to be a sort of a what I
call Dr schmille um now so if somebody
wanted somebody a character like that
and I I I kind of have a model of how to
make them but um I’m making my first
right now my
first kind of almost from scratch
character and that’s the Otis and that
and the way that happened was are you
interested in hearing about oh yeah yeah
okay well
um a a guy that I’ve sold a couple
figures to um I po I I put on my my blog
that I had made my last Otis out of a
head that I called Elmore it kind of my
first goofy head that I ever made a 2T
head but the mold was wearing out and
the you know the sails on Braylu of the
head were were slowing down and so um if
I wanted to redo Elmore just redo the
mold out of that original model I’d have
to pay Buzz to do it which I’m happy to
do um I mean he and I work great
together and um but he was not going to
Market it anymore and so and then at the
same time this guy emailed me and said
there’s no really me no you’re you won’t
make me another one you know can’t you
just squeeze one more you know so I I
emailed buzz and I said well can we get
one more out of that mold and he said
yeah we can but it’ll be pretty
pretty nasty and I’d have to do a lot of
prep work well I I thought well as long
as I’m going to pay to do this new mold
I might as well do a new model you know
because
um you know I mean I’m better at every
time I sculpt I learn something new and
I think I could do a better goofy guy so
then I emailed the guy back my the
customer back and said well here yeah I
can make you one more out of the old one
but
if you don’t mind waiting three to six
months I said I’ll sculpt a brand new
character and he said yes so anyway so
he kind of told me what he was looking
for and I’ve Incorporated that in into
how I’m putting this together and I send
him uh pictures of what I’ve done and
there so far he hasn’t even asked for
anything he likes the direction I’m
going and so it’s kind of like my first
you know from scratch but nobody has
sent nobody yet has hired me to do one
completely from scratch we like we’re
right I didn’t have some kind of idea to
start um
and you know but I don’t know there’s so
many good people out there Tom that that
I think Do It um I I just don’t see
myself at the point where I would be
somebody they necessarily come to first
because you’ve got the sellbergs and you
know and who is so fantastic and um you
know Bill Nelson who’s just my hero um
and and Albert Alfaro who’s just
astounding uh I mean these guys are um
who I Look to for you know for
inspiration uh they
do I mean they sell their stuff for a
lot more than mine mine do so I feel
like I’m not you know I’m doing okay but
um you know if when it comes to starting
from scratch these guys are probably
going to get the first call you know so
well I think it’s only a matter of time
uh your stuff has like you said you’ve
been doing it seven years and I know uh
as I’ve watched uh what you’ve been
doing and you know seen it here and
there I’ve been very impressed with how
you know you’ve progressed and I can see
a day where people will be coming to
Kenny to get their you know custom figures
done yeah
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