Earlier this year I was asked to design & create the Accutech HazzTech Exo-Skelton Arm & the Cordco Sonic Fire Extinguisher for the Iron Man 2 internet viral campaign. The Exo-skeleton arm had to be able to move & allow the actor to perform tasks unhindered. I had 16 days to build both from scratch. Thankfully all the Sonic Fire Extinguisher had to do was light up!
For the Sonic Fire Extinguisher i looked at the understructure of the prop forearm from the first film & drew out rough templates onto card. These were assembled & modified then new & more precise templates were drawn up on foamboard & cut out & assembled into a more refined mock-up. I added wires & cables from an old PC & once i'd got approval from the director i set about making the actual prop.
The templates from the foamboard mock-up were drawn up in photoshop & the files transferred to a CadCam Lazer (not mine, i havent got one!) which cut out the pieces from foamex.These were then heated & formed into shape. Bolts & wires along with electro luminescent cord & a small speaker unit were added.
With the Accutech HazzTech Exo-Skeleton arm i once again created a foam board mock-up of the understructure. This helped me figure out how far i could push the sculpt in terms of size & still allow good movement.
The structures where then used as formers to sculpt the forearm & upper arm onto. I had 3 days to sculpt them so they're not as finished as i'd like. However they were approved & moulded with silicone & plaster.
Fibreglass casts were made & the pieces assembled & painted. The glove was to be replaced with a CGI model. In the end the whole arm was replaced with CGI. Oh well! That's show business! I'm glad i got the chance to make it though.
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