I worked for Robert Short Productions on the following Effects featured in Beetlejuice:
SHRIMP ARMS
I sculpted the shrimp arms using WED clay, over a plaster arm cast taken from one of the guys in the shop. I also did the casting of all of the arms, in latex.
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BARBARA MAITLAND FACE-OFF
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BARBARA AND ADAM MAITLAND STRETCH HEADS
For the Barbara head, I built the eyeball mechanism. I did the casting of both of the heads in polyurethane foam and latex.
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THE FLAT MAN
The Flat Man was made by taking a body tracing of one of the crew, onto a piece of plywood. The plywood was then cut out in a way that enabled us to articulate it at the shoulders, elbows, waist, and knees.
The tire track was made using blocks of green foam, cut into rectangles and triangles, arranged accordingly, and the suit was a thrift store find that was pulled over the plywood and foam blocks, and then worked into place using starch and white glue.
The fleshy hands and arms were just random castings made from a mold that was laying around. The he face/head was an appliance that was sculpted by Mike Mills. The performer stood on a short ladder, behind the plywood figure, with his head hung over the top.
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TENTACLE FACE
The idea behind this gag was supposed to be that the face was so horrific, we couldn't let the audience see it; it was enough just to see the tentacles, from behind.
I sculpted the tentacles in WED clay over wire armatures. I also cast all of the tentacles needed for the gag, using soft polyurethane foam and latex.
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THE ORIGINAL BANISTER RAIL SNAKE
Before the stop motion animated Beetlejuice Snake, there was a different version! Linda Frobos and I sculpted the Banister Rail Snake and its other head out of WED clay, over a green foam armature. We actually did and re-did the snake scale pattern several times, as Tim Burton couldn't decide whether to make the scale texture as random, or if it should have a pattern to it. I also sculpted the rattle for the tail.
I cast all of the 8-foot lengths of snake, using soft polyurethane foam rubber and latex.
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THE SHRUNKEN HEAD MAN
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ADAM MAITLAND HEADLESS TORSO
Michael Moore and I built the mechanics for the Adam Maitland Headless Torso gag. It was pretty much a hollow, fiberglass torso that was made by laying fiberglass over a mannequin and releasing it. The aluminum mechanisms were built by trial and error, making adjustments until we achieved the movements we were looking for.
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WAITING ROOM AND OTHER CHARACTERS
I sculpted the rattlesnake tail and cast the tail and the shark, using polyurethane foam and latex. I created the mechanics for the afterlife DMV skeleton secretaries. I also modified the helmets to match the prosthetics, for the football players.
