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Not a great help with character development, but have you seen THESE?

Danny Jay wrote:Would just like to thank everyone for their advice so far, most of which has been orientated around costume. What would you guys also recommended in as far as showmanship for a silent character?

I actually had some ideas on that and I forgot to post them.

The first thing is to ask if you've seen all of Tim Burton's films, in particular Edward Scissorhands (I just feel that's the live action character who may be closest to what you want).

Other thoughts - silent films, especially German expressionist cinema, like The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (maybe have a look at Cesare the somnambulist). Cesare was played by Conrad Veidt, who was the lead in The Man Who Laughs and some think the character from that film was the inspiration for the Joker (coming back to Tim Burton films!).

Watch some puppet shows and mimic the movements. Marionettes and stick puppets will probably be what you want.

Going a bit wider, maybe take a mime class, or a workshop on silent clowning.

Pretty nifty advice Part-Timer, thanks!

And yeah Edward Scissor-hands is fairly close, I had marked it down in my mind to maybe give it a watch-through again Partly because the film just rocks


Matcult: Those cards are NIIIICE!! - Not a bad price either. They give me a sort of spooky-carnival/funfair feel. Might just use them, depending on how this project evolves

There's also the cards on this page. They're part of a game, but standard poker size/index cards too.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/tre ... l_projects

If you're looking for 'Scissorhands' type boots, check out these badboys .

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GOTHIC-STYLE- ... 80146c20b9" target="_blank" target="_blank

You can get them in leather or suede, and in any colour. Hope this helps.

watch movies. That's where your initial idea came from.

Absolutely. Immerse yourself in early 20th century German Expressionist cinema. F.W. Murnau's "Nosferatu", Robert Wiene's "The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari" and Fritz Lang's "Metropolis " are all good starting points. It's where Tim Burton got most of his ideas, anyway.