Stinky is the third release from the Tomenosuke + Circus Posterus line of sofubi. If the name and header card weren’t any indication, she reeks something fierce with an equally-snarky attitude to match.
Chris’s original model stands on the left, accompanied by Yohei Kaneko’s modified version on the right. The figure was resized in scale with Stingy Jack and Calliope and slight adjustments were made to her features.
Previously on Calliope Jackalope, An Anatomy, Pt. II: Our little lady is assessed by Obitsu and it’s determined that the figure would require five molds. The wax master is sculpted, the metal molds are forged and the first Calliope test figure is born. Now: we add a splash of color.
With the test figures pulled and green-lighted by KO, it was time to bust out the Pantones and whip up a paint master for the factory to replicate. For her debut Calliope, Kathie chose a soft robin’s egg blue:
At a glance, Calliope’s paint finish seems relatively simple; buuuut … that definitely is not the case. The spray mask alone had to be applied three times more than that of Stingy Jack’s. The figure has a total of eight masks: propeller, face, broken antlers, whites of the eyes, the pupils, lips/cheeks, belly and zipper. The lips and cheeks were the most tedious as they had to be airbrushed by hand to create a realistic ‘rosiness’.
Up next, we take a look at the completed Calliope Jackalope in all her glory. Stay tuned!
Previously on Calliope Jackalope, An Anatomy: Calliope is rendered in 3D and from that a prototype is made for the factory to map out the mold process. We head there now for some mold-makin’, waxin’ action!
Like Stingy Jack, the Calliope prototype was taken to Obitsu to determine how many metal molds the figure will require. Given her complexity, she, too, would require five to cover her multiple parts: head, body, legs, hat, ears and tail.
The figure is re-cast in wax and the metal molds are made. From that, we get our first test:
And from there, the header card art is submitted by Brandt and Kathie and voila! Our first packaged Calliope!
After years of designing characters and toys brands for Slap-Happy!,The Serv-O-Matics, Dead Bunny, The Carnies, Big Sal, and other odds and ends with almost every toy company out there, I went back to the drawing board to really consider what I was trying to accomplish and say with my characters. The public only gets to see the final result in the stores or online, but each of the above projects were months and years of my time developing and it takes a lot out of me. In order to stoke and keep the creative fire going strong, I had to reach even deeper and closer to mine and my creations’ raison d’etre.
Following a month or so of scribbling, note taking, researching, talking to my colleagues and friends, reading the industry – I reached in and figured exactly what my inspirations are, who I am and precisely what I want to leave, as far as a mark on the planet and this toy world. Stingy Jack is the first project (of many in development) that hits closest to home. I guess as a growing artist, my tastes change, I get more honest with myself, I hone in closer and closer to what makes me tick and Vintage Halloween has always thrilled me… just as much as all of my other toy subject matter: Ancient Aliens (Big Sal), Coney Island and Depression era ephemera (most of my toy designs to date).
Previously on Stingy Jack, An Anatomy 4: We get our first look at Stingy in coloured vinyl and apply new paint mods to help show off his assets. And then, the unthinkable: the unforgiving heat of New Mexico warps Stingy’s feet, causing him to shelf dive. So, we rebuild: his feet are remodeled and repositioned for better stability. He’s tested and stands. And now: the exciting conclusion!
After a year of planning and production, 120 Stingy Jacks arrive on Tomenosuke’s doorstep from Obitsu. Half will head to New Mexico for the North American release, while the remainder will stay back for international collectors. An overwhelming feeling of relief and pride spills over Tomenosuke store owner and T+CP partner, Shinji Nakako.
“Since it took a full year to complete, I think that’s all the more strong feelings towards this piece,” Shinji reflects on the experience.
“I assumed that I had acquired plenty of experience in toy making from the resin figure Lady Butterfly and the high-end prop replica Tomenosuke Blaster, but what awaited me were the challenges and excitements unique to vinyl.
“The task at hand was to create a model for mass production without sacrificing the nuance of the original sculpture, while clearing certain limitations involved with forming from metal mold,” Shinji continues. “I thought that I knew fully well of the material’s characteristic of being sensitive to heat, but due to the high temperatures in the summer, the base of the figure’s feet had deformed and could not support itself. As a result, We had to make the feet from scratch.
It’s only sofubi, but it’s still sofubi… not something that could be done in a brief period of time.”
Previously on Stingy Jack, An Anatomy III: The flashing is cut, the tests are assembled and the Pantones are picked. Now: troubleshooting, colour-castin’ and package graphics!
After the test-pulls were sent to New Mexico and green-lit by Brandt, Stingy Jack took another spin through Obitsu, this time for colour-casting. What you see above is not paint application — but actual coloured vinyl which is then painted. Scroll a bit and you’ll see what I mean:
This is one of the first paint tests. Two paint masks were developed for the eyes and collar, along with applications to Stingy’s hat and hands. After this first pass it was determined that another mask would be added to Stingy’s right hand as the cigar looks like a finger. The pom-poms on his belly would also be painted for added emphasis.
Unlike Brandt’sStingy Jack, there was no pre-existing master sculpt for the Calliope Jackalope, which meant she had to be made from the ground-up. With Teodoru Badiu again at the helm of 3D rendering, he created the digital turns of the figure. Stingy Jack sculptor Yohei Kaneko of Mirock Toy would return as sculptor for this project.
One of the really interesting features of the CP sofubi project is the goal to have interchangeable heads between all of the figures. That also presents many obstacles, however, as was discovered while sculpting Calliope: in order to support Jack’s head and have it look natural, Calliope’s backline and shoulder width had to be adjusted. This element of interchangeability will have to be taken into account with each subsequent release and, while a challenge, may very well yield both impressive and playful results.
And here she is, in all her glory: after repeated modifications and adjustments to the figure to accommodate Brandt’s Stingy Jack and preserve Kathie’s signature style, the prototype was approved the evening of the Monsters & Misfits II opening in Takayama, Japan, last April.
Previously on Stingy Jack, An Anatomy II: Stingy Jack sees double after he’s made into a wax model! Five metal molds are created and the folks at Obitsu start casting Stingy’s individual parts. Now: we return to the factory and watch as Stingy’s clone army comes to life one by one.
After all of Stingy’s parts have been poured, spun and popped, the sculptors at Obitsu are left with dozens of lone limbs that need to be reassembled. But before doing that, the flashing needs to be cut off — these are the cone-like scraps you see on the left side of the picture below. The flashing makes it easier to extract the vinyl from the mold, so it can be discarded after the figure is pulled. That’s when the fun of reanimation begins …
Previously on Stingy Jack, An Anatomy:Brandt Peters and Tomenosuke-syoten’s Shinji Nakako join forces and found an ambitious new designer toy project: Circus Posterus x Tomenosuke sofubi. This particular blog series follows the production of Brandt’s Stingy Jack, the first of an entire line of sofubi figures from different Circus artists. Part I saw Stingy go from resin prototype to mods to re-sculpting for sofubi format. Now: we head to Obitsu, a long-established Japanese plastics manufacturer, where Stingy prepares to be cloned. ***
Following Stingy’s sofubi facelift, the master sculpt is taken to Obitsu to determine how many molds it will require. With all of his accessories and details, Stingy is considered a fairly complex sculpt by sofubi standards, with seven separate parts (hat, head, torso, two hands, two feet). It’s determined that he’ll require a total of five molds, as illustrated by the colour-coding in the image above.
For molding purposes, the master sculpt is re-cast in wax, which is then used to create the metal molds.
And heeeeeeeere’s Stingy! I mean, can you get more metal?! With these molds, Obitsu casts the first test-pulls. As you can see, the body parts are made slightly longer than necessary to account for the flashing (i.e. cone-like ‘leftovers’ which make it easier to pull the pieces out of the mold).
Now, let us all hold hands and watch Stingy be birthed. It’s actually quite an interesting process:
1) The vinyl is poured into the mold.
2) The mold is then put into a large drum where it’s spun (the number of times a figure is spun is in direct correlation with the thickness of the vinyl).
3) The mold is then briefly dropped into a chemical bath, drained and cooled.
4) The sculpt is then plucked from the mold and set aside.
5) This is repeated with every part of the figure.
Up next: we cut some flash, assemble some Stingies and start planning the figure’s first colorway! (My kind of party!)
Shortly after production began on Brandt Peters’Stingy Jack sofubi, Shinji Nakako of Tomenosuke-syoten has been diligently chronicling the figure’s production process from start to finish. The idea of CP sofubi was first sparked last year and since then, we’ve all eagerly watched this jester-like Jack-o’-lantern come to life, one sketch, WIP shot and prototype at a time.
But now, for the first time, experience the process from a completely behind-the-scenes perspective; the digital models, the revisions, the wax models and pantones … a glimpse at just how much goes into creating the toys we covet.
This is the first instalment of Shinji’s ‘Making of Sofubi Stingy’ series, with many more to come. Enjoy!
