Everyone's favorite frowning feline, Grumpy Cat, is hitting the small screen in her movie debut this holiday season. Grumpy Cat's Worst Christmas Ever, which stars Parks and Recreation star Aubrey Plaza as the voice of the famous cat, will premiere on the Lifetime network just in time for the holidays.
News: Grumpy Cat Finds Her Grumpy Voice in 'Parks and Recreation's' Aubrey Plaza
While the real-life Grumpy Cat is used in most of the scenes of the movie, Lifetime reached out to Jim Henson's Creature Shop to create a few different puppet versions of the internet star to be used as stunt doubles and in some wider shots. Creature Shop Creative Supervisor Pete Brooke talked to Et about the steps they took to build the famous feline.
"We're actually going to do three versions for this movie," Brooke explained. "One of them is going to be the puppet version which will have rodded hands and emote...
News: Grumpy Cat Finds Her Grumpy Voice in 'Parks and Recreation's' Aubrey Plaza
While the real-life Grumpy Cat is used in most of the scenes of the movie, Lifetime reached out to Jim Henson's Creature Shop to create a few different puppet versions of the internet star to be used as stunt doubles and in some wider shots. Creature Shop Creative Supervisor Pete Brooke talked to Et about the steps they took to build the famous feline.
"We're actually going to do three versions for this movie," Brooke explained. "One of them is going to be the puppet version which will have rodded hands and emote...
- 11/11/2014
- Entertainment Tonight
Geoffrey Holder, the only theater man who at 6 feet, 6 inches could look Tommy Tune right in the eye and say “Abosolutely maaaaah-velous,” died Sunday in New York City. He was 84. Charles M. Mirotznik, a spokesman for the family, told the New York Times the cause was complications of pneumonia.
As well known for the honey-smooth bass-baritone that resonated through countless voice-overs as for the white linen suit and Panama hat that set off his gleaming Caribbean features — saucer eyes, broad-as-the-George-Washington-Bridge smile and shaved head — Holder became an advertising icon in the 1970s and ’80s as the pitchman for 7Up, declaring it “the Un-Cola — you know, Sev’mup – wet, wild, all that…” :
But Holder, born in Trinidad, was much more than a seductive accoutrement to Madison Avenue. He left an enduring stamp on virtually every field in the performing arts, as musician, choreographer, actor, director and designer, winning two Tony...
As well known for the honey-smooth bass-baritone that resonated through countless voice-overs as for the white linen suit and Panama hat that set off his gleaming Caribbean features — saucer eyes, broad-as-the-George-Washington-Bridge smile and shaved head — Holder became an advertising icon in the 1970s and ’80s as the pitchman for 7Up, declaring it “the Un-Cola — you know, Sev’mup – wet, wild, all that…” :
But Holder, born in Trinidad, was much more than a seductive accoutrement to Madison Avenue. He left an enduring stamp on virtually every field in the performing arts, as musician, choreographer, actor, director and designer, winning two Tony...
- 10/6/2014
- by Jeremy Gerard
- Deadline
In this very special 19th Episode of the Hey You Geeks podcast we’re taking you into the Jim Henson Creature Shop with special guests Peter Brooke (Creative Supervisor) and John Criswell (Animatronic Supervisor), both Mentors on the the new Syfy series Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge. With the new Syfy series set to premiere on March 25th, a new Muppets film in theaters and this week marking the 15th anniversary of Farscape, theres no better timing for an episode devoted to the imagination geniuses at Henson Studios. From the Creature Shop itself, Peter and John discuss past projects including the Dinosaurs TV series, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles films, Where the Wild Things Are and more. Then, we discuss the practical effects vs. CGI debate and what that might mean for the future of special effects. Give a listen, and don’t forget to share your reviews of Hey You Geeks on iTunes!
- 3/21/2014
- by Tony Nunes
- SoundOnSight
Think Project Runway, but with creatures!
That’s one way you could describe the new Syfy series Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge, on which 10 aspiring creature creators compete to bring the wildest beasts they can think of to life. EW has an exclusive first look at a promo for the series, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at how some of these creatures are made.
Brian Henson, chairman of the Jim Henson Company and Jim Henson’s son, will serve as lead judge on the series. Creature designers Beth Hathaway (Jurassic Park, The Walking Dead, and Edward Scissorhands) and...
That’s one way you could describe the new Syfy series Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge, on which 10 aspiring creature creators compete to bring the wildest beasts they can think of to life. EW has an exclusive first look at a promo for the series, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at how some of these creatures are made.
Brian Henson, chairman of the Jim Henson Company and Jim Henson’s son, will serve as lead judge on the series. Creature designers Beth Hathaway (Jurassic Park, The Walking Dead, and Edward Scissorhands) and...
- 2/28/2014
- by Jake Perlman
- EW - Inside TV
This has been a terrific season of Face Off so far, with a lot of amazing hits and very few misses. I was afraid that last season’s Veterans vs Rookies would be hard to match, but Season 6 has taken over without missing a beat. Tonight’s spotlight challenge looks particularly cool:
TV Spot: Face Off – 604 Preview
And if you are a Face Off fan like me, you may want to check out Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge, which premieres next month: TV Spot: Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge
Syfy debuts the new reality competition series, “Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge,” Tuesday, March 25 at 10 p.m. Et/Pt following an all-new episode of Syfy’s acclaimed “Face Off.” The eight-episode series provides a fascinating window into the imaginative and wildly creative environment of world-class creature design, fabrication and mechanization.
Syfy introduces ten hopeful creature designers who have...
TV Spot: Face Off – 604 Preview
And if you are a Face Off fan like me, you may want to check out Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge, which premieres next month: TV Spot: Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge
Syfy debuts the new reality competition series, “Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge,” Tuesday, March 25 at 10 p.m. Et/Pt following an all-new episode of Syfy’s acclaimed “Face Off.” The eight-episode series provides a fascinating window into the imaginative and wildly creative environment of world-class creature design, fabrication and mechanization.
Syfy introduces ten hopeful creature designers who have...
- 2/4/2014
- by Erin Willard
- ScifiMafia
"Jim Henson's Creature Shop Challenge" has cast Gigi Edgley as host of the new competition series coming to Syfy. The "Farscape" actress has a long history with the producing Jim Henson Company.
In the "Creature Shop Challenge," competitors will design and build various characters ranging from mechanical creations to whimsical beasts. Those that can best bring such creatures to life will vie for a $100,000 prize and a contract job for Jim Henson's Creature Shop.
Starring as Chiana on "Farscape" -- a co-production with the Jim Henson Company, Edgley later went on to appear in numerous projects in both her native Australia and in the United States. Her credits include the USA mini-series, "The Starter Wife," and the acclaimed Australian drama, "The Secret Life of Us."
Edgley will be joined by a trio of judges on the show. Creature fabricator Beth Hathaway and creature designer Kirk Thatcher will critique the various...
In the "Creature Shop Challenge," competitors will design and build various characters ranging from mechanical creations to whimsical beasts. Those that can best bring such creatures to life will vie for a $100,000 prize and a contract job for Jim Henson's Creature Shop.
Starring as Chiana on "Farscape" -- a co-production with the Jim Henson Company, Edgley later went on to appear in numerous projects in both her native Australia and in the United States. Her credits include the USA mini-series, "The Starter Wife," and the acclaimed Australian drama, "The Secret Life of Us."
Edgley will be joined by a trio of judges on the show. Creature fabricator Beth Hathaway and creature designer Kirk Thatcher will critique the various...
- 11/8/2013
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Zap2It - From Inside the Box
Press Release:
Syfy Greenlights Jim Henson’S Creature Shop Challenge (working title) From The Jim Henson Company, Showcasing The Creation Of Elaborate And Awe-inspiring Life-like Characters Brian Henson To Judge New Reality-competition Series Coming To Syfy In 2014
New York – October 8, 2013 – Syfy greenlights an eight episode order for Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge (working title), a competition series featuring ten aspiring creature creators competing to out-imagine one another in a series of challenges where they will build everything from mechanical characters to whimsical beasts, bringing high-end inanimate creature designs to life. The contestants compete for $100,000 and the opportunity for the job of a lifetime – a contract working at the world-renowned Jim Henson’s Creature Shop™. The announcement was made today by Mark Stern, President of Original Content, Syfy.
Brian Henson serves as lead judge on the series. Henson is the Chairman of The Jim Henson Company and the Creature Shop.
Syfy Greenlights Jim Henson’S Creature Shop Challenge (working title) From The Jim Henson Company, Showcasing The Creation Of Elaborate And Awe-inspiring Life-like Characters Brian Henson To Judge New Reality-competition Series Coming To Syfy In 2014
New York – October 8, 2013 – Syfy greenlights an eight episode order for Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge (working title), a competition series featuring ten aspiring creature creators competing to out-imagine one another in a series of challenges where they will build everything from mechanical characters to whimsical beasts, bringing high-end inanimate creature designs to life. The contestants compete for $100,000 and the opportunity for the job of a lifetime – a contract working at the world-renowned Jim Henson’s Creature Shop™. The announcement was made today by Mark Stern, President of Original Content, Syfy.
Brian Henson serves as lead judge on the series. Henson is the Chairman of The Jim Henson Company and the Creature Shop.
- 10/10/2013
- by Erin Willard
- ScifiMafia
Syfy has ordered up eight episodes of the reality competition series "Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge." The series will find ten aspiring creature creators competing in a number of challenges to build the sort of elaborate, life-like beasts seen in such Henson productions as "Labyrinth," "Farscape," and "Dinosaurs." The contestants will compete for $100,000 and a contract to work at Creature Shop itself. Henson's son, Brian Henson -- Chairman of The Jim Henson Company and the Creature Shop -- will serve as lead judge on the series, while mentors will include Creature Shop artists Peter Brooke, John Criswell and Julie Zobel. "As 'Face Off'...
- 10/8/2013
- by Dave Lewis
- Hitfix
Syfy has greenlighted eight episodes of Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge, which will pit 10 aspiring creature creators competing in a series of challenges where they will build everything from mechanical characters to whimsical beasts. The winner gets $100,000 and a contract working at the famed Jim Henson’s Creature Shop. Jim Henson’s son Brian Henson is aboard as lead judge. This is the puppeteering version of the network’s Face Off, in which aspiring special effects makeup artists go head-to-head, and an early 2014 premiere is planned. Serving as mentors on Creature Shop Challenge will be three longtime Creature Shop artists: designer Peter Brooke, mechanization and animatronics master John Criswell, and fabrication and artistic specialist Julie Zobel. The Jim Henson Co is producing the series, with Brian Henson executive producing with his sister Lisa Henson, the company’s CEO who also is in production on Disney’s Alexander And The Terrible,...
- 10/8/2013
- by PATRICK HIPES, Managing Editor
- Deadline TV
Interview Ryan Lambie 8 Oct 2013 - 06:19
We talk to producer Robert Watts about his remarkable career in movies, which includes the Star Wars trilogy, Roger Rabbit and more...
With a career stretching back to the 1960s, British film producer Robert Watts played a key role in making some of the most influential films of the 1970s. Just a quick glance over his credits as a producer reveals an extraordinary career, which includes Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope and its sequels, the first three Indiana Jones films, and the groundbreaking Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
Those films are but the tip of the iceberg; before Star Wars, he worked on two James Bond films - Thunderball and You Only Live Twice - collaborated with Stanley Kubrick on 2001: A Space Odyssey, and, in films such as Man In The Middle, Darling and Papillon, worked with such legendary actors as Robert Mitchum,...
We talk to producer Robert Watts about his remarkable career in movies, which includes the Star Wars trilogy, Roger Rabbit and more...
With a career stretching back to the 1960s, British film producer Robert Watts played a key role in making some of the most influential films of the 1970s. Just a quick glance over his credits as a producer reveals an extraordinary career, which includes Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope and its sequels, the first three Indiana Jones films, and the groundbreaking Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
Those films are but the tip of the iceberg; before Star Wars, he worked on two James Bond films - Thunderball and You Only Live Twice - collaborated with Stanley Kubrick on 2001: A Space Odyssey, and, in films such as Man In The Middle, Darling and Papillon, worked with such legendary actors as Robert Mitchum,...
- 10/7/2013
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
'Wrong Turn 5: Bloodlines' will be hitting Blu-ray and DVD this time next month. Declan O'Brien's latest installment in the backwood franchise will be unleashed courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment on 23 October. Those freaky faced inbreds are back to cause more havoc and a new trailer for the home release has been unveiled packed with plenty of gore, chopping and sex. Doug Bradley ('Hellraiser'), Simon Ginty, Oliver Hoare, Amy Lennox, Luebke, Duncan Wisbey, Kyle Redmond-Jones, Peter Brooke, Radoslav Purvanov (Ratzata), Georgi Karlukovski, Bobi Iliev and sexy Brits Camilla Arfwedson ('The Duchess') and ex-'Hollyoaks' hottie Roxanne McKee (below) all star. There's no immediate DVD release date for here in the UK but I'm sure an announcement is just around the corner....
- 9/25/2012
- Horror Asylum
British actress Camilla Arfwedson ('The Duchess') has officially joined writer/director Declan O'Brien's hillbilly horror follow-up 'Wrong Turn 5'. Arfwedson (below) plays Sheriff Angela in the Halloween set sequel which is also due to star a whole array of mostly British talent most likely due to its Bulgaria based shoot. Amongst the stars are Simon Ginty who plays Billy, Oliver Hoare (Julian), Amy Lennox (Cruz), Paul Luebke (Gus), Duncan Wisbey (Mose), Kyle Redmond-Jones (Deputy Biggs) and Peter Brooke as Jason. Horror icon Doug Bradley ('Hellraiser') also stars. We had reported that ex-'Hollyoaks' hottie Roxanne McKee was also on board the project but it's still not 100% whether this is accurate although her name has been attached. We'll let you know as soon as we hear the official word....
- 4/27/2012
- Horror Asylum
With writer/director Declan O’Brien currently filming Wrong Turn 5 in Bulgaria, here’s an official casting update from the studio which just landed in our inbox. Read on for details!
As we previously reported (and can now confirm), television actress Camilla Arfwedson has joined the cast of the film as ‘Sheriff Angela,’ the female lead who finds herself at odds with the series’ backwoods nemeses. Joining her are actors Simon Ginty as ‘Billy,’ Oliver Hoare as ‘Julian,’ Amy Lennox as ‘Cruz,’ Paul Luebke (Djinn) as ‘Gus,’ Duncan Wisbey as ‘Mose,’ Kyle Redmond-Jones (The Edge of Love) as ‘Deputy Biggs’ and Peter Brooke as ‘Jason,’ with the previously reported horror vet Doug Bradley (Hellraiser) accompanying them for what will undoubtedly be some rather grisly happenings. No confirmation as of yet on the rumored casting of Roxanne McKee ("Game of Thrones") from 20th Century Fox, although as the above is a partial cast list,...
As we previously reported (and can now confirm), television actress Camilla Arfwedson has joined the cast of the film as ‘Sheriff Angela,’ the female lead who finds herself at odds with the series’ backwoods nemeses. Joining her are actors Simon Ginty as ‘Billy,’ Oliver Hoare as ‘Julian,’ Amy Lennox as ‘Cruz,’ Paul Luebke (Djinn) as ‘Gus,’ Duncan Wisbey as ‘Mose,’ Kyle Redmond-Jones (The Edge of Love) as ‘Deputy Biggs’ and Peter Brooke as ‘Jason,’ with the previously reported horror vet Doug Bradley (Hellraiser) accompanying them for what will undoubtedly be some rather grisly happenings. No confirmation as of yet on the rumored casting of Roxanne McKee ("Game of Thrones") from 20th Century Fox, although as the above is a partial cast list,...
- 4/26/2012
- by Sean Decker
- DreadCentral.com
Although the French screenwriter Jean-Claude Carrière has collaborated with Tati, Buñuel and Schlöndorff, he is the invisible man of film
To read the newly published This Is Not the End of the Book, a conversation between Umberto Eco and Jean-Claude Carrière, is to eavesdrop on two highly erudite minds. Digressive, anecdotal and humorous, they reflect on their love of the printed word and where the destiny of the book might lie, ranging from neglected French poetry of the 16th century to a forthcoming first edition of Waiting for Godot in the revived Nahuatl language of the Aztecs. But while Eco is internationally famous for his bestselling historical novels, Carrière has a relatively low profile even in his native France. Low, that is, for someone whose career as a dramatist has encompassed collaborations with an unparalleled array of directorial talent from film and theatre, and 50 books, in addition to the 80 screenplays,...
To read the newly published This Is Not the End of the Book, a conversation between Umberto Eco and Jean-Claude Carrière, is to eavesdrop on two highly erudite minds. Digressive, anecdotal and humorous, they reflect on their love of the printed word and where the destiny of the book might lie, ranging from neglected French poetry of the 16th century to a forthcoming first edition of Waiting for Godot in the revived Nahuatl language of the Aztecs. But while Eco is internationally famous for his bestselling historical novels, Carrière has a relatively low profile even in his native France. Low, that is, for someone whose career as a dramatist has encompassed collaborations with an unparalleled array of directorial talent from film and theatre, and 50 books, in addition to the 80 screenplays,...
- 5/20/2011
- The Guardian - Film News
Where The Wild Things Are director Spike Jonze comparing concept art for "Ira" to the clay maquette built by the Jim Henson Creature Workshop. Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures. However you feel about Spike Jonze’s treatment of Where the Wild Things Are, you can’t be anything but dazzled by the way he and his team brought Maurice Sendak’s beasts to life. Often choosing the path of most resistance—the film took six years to make, after all—Jonze opted not to rely solely on computer graphics to render the Wild Things. However advanced C.G.I. technology has become, it simply wouldn’t have looked substantial enough to recreate those terrible teeth and those terrible claws. Instead, he called up the Jim Henson Creature Workshop, which created elaborate full-body Wild-Things suits of otherworldly, grotesque beauty. Computer imagery was only brought in as a final veneer, to animate the creatures’ faces.
- 10/17/2009
- Vanity Fair
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