This afternoon, the 2,000 clients on Odd Machine’s Email list will receive a holiday greeting that is probably the most unique message to come out of the industry on this, or any, holiday season.
The studio’s one-minute “Christmas Card” is a remake of a classic Yuletide television moment: Bing Crosby and David Bowie singing “The Little Drummer Boy” in the 1977 TV special, “Bing Crosby’s Merrie Olde Christmas.”
Using custom-built puppet versions of the performers, filmed in a miniature replica of the TV show set, the Machinists choreographed and shot more than 2,000 separate frames to make a flawless stop motion homage synchronized to the exact soundtrack of the original duet.
The studio has been winning praise for similar work on Illinois Tourism’s “Mini-Abe” campaign.
“It just seemed like the perfect idea to bring to life,” says producer Alec Pinkston.
The inspiration came to him and director Seth Henrikson during a Mavis Staples tribute concert in November, where they were discussing holiday themes between songs.
“Alec said, ‘I always wanted to do ‘The Little Drummer Boy,’” Henrikson recalls. “You know, Mary’s trying to have a baby and this kid shows up with a drum.”
“And Seth’s like, ‘we should do the Bowie Bing duet,’” says Pinkston.
Although the holidays were fast approaching, the two never doubted Odd Machine’s ability to get it done in time. Their headquarters is a 10,000-sq. ft. studio in Humboldt Park equipped with enough Canon 7Ds and Dragon Frame workstations to animate ideas on a continental scale. The post department is scheduled to expand into a suite at 900 N Franklin on January 1, allowing for space at HQ to house a creative incubator to develop fresh talent.
But according to Henrikson, advanced technology plays only a small part in this essentially primitive genre.
“Stop motion is actually pretty simple stuff,” he says, “filmmaking at its most basic level. That’s what’s so intriguing about it.”
The real trick is maintaining patience for hours on end, making thousands of infinitesimal adjustments to a doll that will ultimately simulate little more than 60 seconds of motion.
“You definitely have to love doing it,” Henrikson says, “Our whole team was here on Sunday night shooting until two a.m., then back at eight in the morning.”
Helping to pull it off was artist Cammi Upton, a model builder credited for her work on “Boxtrolls” and “ParaNorman,” who created the Bing doll. Several puppeteers in Odd Machine’s animation department handled the rest. Amber Marsh constructed the Bowie doll, Lolly Extract made the bodies and wardrobe.
Director Greg Hinchman built and shot the opening.
The original 1977 TV performance opens with a skit featuring a cardigan-sweatered Bing Crosby and a suavely sport-coated David Bowie as neighbors who have never met before. After bantering about the differences in their multigenerational tastes and pretending not to know about each other’s success, they stand next to the piano and sing.
In Odd Machine’s rendition, the conversation is edited to make room for the music.
“We originally planned to do a portion of the song,” says Pinkston, “but after watching the clip so many times, we couldn’t resist tackling a bit of the dialogue for a teaser.”
CREW:
Seth Henrikson — Director
Steve Morrison — Editor
Amber Marsh, Cammi Upton,
Lolly Extract, Greg Hinchman,
Justin Reid Tvedt, Julie Sabo — Animators / Artists
Scott Baehrend — Gaffer
LaDuskee Nauman — Production Assistant
Debra Shegich — Color
Alec Pinkston — Producer
