#The dark crystal puppets movie#

Envisioning and designing diverse races and species occupying an expansive planet was no easy task, but Froud applied his knowledge of folklore as the various creatures were brought to life.įroud enjoyed translating his drawings into physical models, telling Vice, 'Because I’m an artist, I often found that the best way to communicate my ideas to the team was visually. Froud was with Henson from The Dark Crystal's inception, and he served as the movie's conceptual artist and costume designer. His work caught Henson's eye, and the two started a decades-long working relationship in the late 1970s. By the time we reached London, he had an outline for what was to become The Dark Crystal.īrian Froud began his career as a fantasy illustrator. My father filled pages with ideas and musings. Before cell phones and laptop computers, being stranded by a snowstorm meant quiet time, time to imagine new worlds and their inhabitants.

All kinds of things came together.'Ĭheryl later reflected on the experience, too:ĭuring the blizzard, the world appeared to be one enormous blank white slate. And it all jelled during that time, so that I’m quite happy with what’s taking shape. Henson recalled, 'I had a delightful time working on the concept and talking it over with Cheryl. Three years later, when Henson was snowed in with his teenage daughter Cheryl, the pair worked together to write down the first treatment for what would become The Dark Crystal. These drawings were his earliest inspiration for the movie. 'It was the juxtaposition of this reptilian thing in this fine atmosphere that intrigued me,' Henson said. In the book, Lubin portrays two lounging crocodiles that caught Henson's attention. Jim Henson's imagination was sparked in 1975 when he saw illustrations by Leonard Lubin in the Lewis Caroll book The Pig-Tale. 'None of us could say no because he always worked harder than us.' 'It was because of Jim not accepting the impossible and as a result he would work harder than anybody I’ve ever known because he was the one who led the way by working harder,' co-director Frank Oz told an interviewer. Jim Henson's intense dedication to making every detail perfect contributed to the movie's long timeline. We used to call them 'super puppets' because that’s what they are, really. We were really working at the forefront, I think, we were pushing what was possible as far as radio controlled puppetry. Well, Dark Crystal took five years to make, if that gives you any indication! Labyrinth took three. As concept artist Brian Froud, who was brought on early in the film's production, said in an interview: This years-long endeavor was about much more than producing a fantasy film it was an attempt to stretch the limits of puppetry. The Dark Crystal's origins date back to 1975 or 1976, and the film was not completed until the end of 1982. Millions of dollars, millions of hours, and millions of foam rubber puppet parts later, The Dark Crystal is still revered by fans and has even spawned a Netflix prequel series. The Dark Crystal's behind-the-scenes stories attest to its cast and creators' brilliance, creative talent, and tireless work ethic. Henson harnessed knowledge from years of puppetry work on The Muppet Show and Sesame Street to build a unique vision that he hoped would dazzle audiences. ''The great challenge,'' Henson shared with The New York Times in 1982, ''was to create a complete world that doesn't exist and make it seem real, to create all the life forms on that world, their history, and their way of moving.'

#The dark crystal puppets movie#

Jim Henson, who co-directed the movie with Frank Oz, capitalized on the popularity of Star Wars in order to bring his tale to cinematic life. The pair must restore the damaged Dark Crystal in order to bring peace and balance back to their world. Using puppets, feats of engineering, and elaborately designed sets, the movie follows two Gelflings, Jen and Kira, who survive the end of their race after the evil Skeksis take control of the planet Thra. Stories abound about the making of The Dark Crystal, a fantasy cult classic with no human actors.