Ed Eyth Interview Part 13

Ed Eyth has had an extensive and diverse artistic career. He has a Bachelor of Science degree from Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles and prior to that majored in Visual Communication at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. He has served as a production designer, a set and costume designer and a puppet designer for a variety of film and television productions. His film credits include Hook, The Rocketeer and Captain EO.

For nearly 10 years Eyth was Director of Creative Services for the Jim Henson Company. While at Henson, he designed characters for shows like Muppets Tonight, Mopatop's Shop and Animal Jam, as well as the video feature Kermit's Swamp Years. I asked him to share his thoughts on puppet design.



PJ:  What suggestions would you give young artists interested in designing characters and puppets?

EE: I don't think there have ever been more opportunities for character design, especially for the computer gaming industry and for computer-generated films. And those are the best assignments, because just about anything goes with CG characters and you're not restricted by many of the performance limitations imposed when you're designing a puppet.

My suggestions? Go for it, go wild and draw -- constantly. The best designers I've ever encountered just love to draw. When you can communicate ideas visually, you have a valuable, marketable skill. When you can come up with original, creative solutions for design projects, people will be lining up to work with you.

And don't forget to take advantage of all the great resources on the Internet. Sites like this one, where people like Patrick and Sean graciously provide crucial how-to information that's easily accessible and inspiring!