Zack Buchman - Founder and Creative Director of Furry Puppet Studio
Zack Buchman is the founder and Creative Director of Furry Puppet Studio, a custom-puppet design studio, in SoHo, New York. He and his team develop puppets, creatures, mascots, rod puppets, and marionettes for television, advertising, and music videos.
1. Out of all your puppets, which was the hardest to create?
Probably the likeness marionettes we made for Missy Elliott and Pharrell Williams's "WTF" video. The street performers who operated them each had a distinct movement style, so we studied that movement and built it into the rigging. Marionettes are genuinely difficult to control and engineer, which made the project challenging and really fun.
2. What inspires you the most?
I keep noticing faces in old buildings, crumpled paper, and pretty much everywhere when I walk down the street. Our brains are always looking for expressions, and mine seems especially excited by them. Sometimes a face sticks with me and becomes the beginning of a character.
3. What or who was your biggest inspiration to enter your field?
Jim Henson was probably the biggest one. The early Muppet and Sesame Street characters could be made from a couple of simple shapes, but a great puppeteer made them feel completely alive. That still amazes me. He and Frank Oz just invented so much.
4. Do you prefer to work alone or with others?
I definitely prefer working with other people. I largely taught myself by doing the work alongside people who knew things I did not. Our best ideas usually start with a small group sketching and brainstorming together, because everyone sees something a little different.
5. How has your profession impacted your life?
Making puppets has made me pay attention to the world differently. A shape, expression, or scrap of fabric can suddenly suggest a character. As a kid, I wanted a machine that made toys. Now I get to make characters for a living. It does not feel like a job.
6. What difficulties have you faced in your profession or leading up to it?
Not going to college was difficult. I really do think a good education is invaluable, and I missed out on parts of that. Having said that, teaching myself forced me to question basic rules and work closely with people whose skills were different from mine.
7. What is the hardest part of your job?
Handing the finished puppet over. We spend so much time with a character while it is being designed and built that it becomes part of the studio. Then one day it has to leave for a shoot. I get too attached. I'm still working on that.
8. What part of your job do you have the most fun doing?
I have the most fun when a character takes shape in the workshop in an unexpected way. We sketch together and carve a foam mock-up, but the eyes usually go in near the end. That is often the moment when the puppet suddenly feels alive.
9. When did you start your career and how has it progressed?
I moved to New York at twenty with no real plan. I tried animation first, but it did not last long. I was always drawn to puppetry, so I learned by making things alongside people I admired. That gradually turned into Furry Puppet Studio.
10. What are some of your favorite memories working in your profession?
Working with Apple's team in Japan is one of them. We designed and built the characters in New York and then went to Tokyo for the shoot. Local designers joined the team, the campaign was extended into a second year, and I took that as a huge compliment.
11. What advice would you give young people who are interested in pursuing a creative career?
Keep the work personal and low stakes for as long as possible. Make things because you need to make them, not because you think they will impress somebody. You will make plenty of mistakes, but that is how you start figuring out what you actually like.
Zack, thank you for taking the time to share your creative journey with our readers! It was fascinating to learn about your industry. Please follow Zack on social media and keep shining!
Website: https://www.furrypuppet.com/
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