Life size display bust sculpture prop of David Kessler – American Werewolf – played by David Naughton.
To make the American Werewolf in london life size display bust, I first collected photographs of the animatronic puppet head made by Rick Baker, and made screen captures from the movie scene in question. The aim was to make him look like the second “chango” head from that scene, but slightly less asymmetrical. He was sculpted in water based clay over a simple steel armature screwed to a wooden base. He was then sculpted for a couple of weeks until i was happy. Once completed, it was sealed and moulded in fibreglass, front and back. Next a silicone rubber copy was produced and fitted upon a fibreglass underskull. The skin was then painted in various tones to try and match what’s seen on screen as closely as possible, but also add a touch more realism for in person viewing.The teeth were sculpted in a wax based clay, moulded and produced in dental acrylic. These were then attached inside the head and blended in. Next was the hair application, all hand punched and mostly human, with some grey artificial thrown into the mix. Very time consuming, but the end result makes it worth while. Once this was completed, the bust was glued to a matt black base, and the final touches added, such as saliva and a liberal dose of hairspray to hold everything in place.
