Body of Proof Prop Sculpture
for ABC and Disney Studios
I was asked by ABC Television and Disney Studios to do a "forensic" skull-to-face reconstruction sculpture for use as a prop on the television series Body of Proof with Dana Delany and Jeri Ryan. These are photos from the set of the show in Los Angeles. The episode, called "Occupational Hazards", was written by Corey Miller and produced by Matthew Gross.
This is my finished facial reconstruction sculpture on the set on Body of Proof.
Actresses Dana Delany and Jeri Ryan posing with the reconstructed murder "victim" in dramatic lighting on the set. How fun!
Before flying from Texas to Los Angeles, I prepared the reconstruction in several phases to facilitate filming...sort of like they do it for cooking shows!
Actress Jeri Ryan was tasked with "creating" the sculpture and it was my job to coach her so that her hand actions would appear authentic. She was a very attentive student and worked hard to do the procedure "just so". I was appreciative of her diligence and attention to detail to perfect her craft...and we had a lot of fun together.
In between takes...and with dozens of people swirling around us...Jeri and I would practice the next step for her to sculpt.
As we worked, we were under the constant guidance of Producer Matthew Gross...in red. He's a real pro and was also a pleasure to work with.
Jeri was so good at mimicking the sculptural manipulations I showed her, we were able to use her hands for filming. With some other shows like CSI:, my hands have been intercut with the actress's hands. Here she is holding my favorite handmade sculpture tool. She got SO excited about sculpting those lips herself!
Jeri is adding some finishing colorization here.
This is the young actress Jessica Raimondi who portrayed the "murder victim" who became skeletonized. I actually gave input for the casting of Jessica. I wanted to help choose an actress whose face would have bony structural elements that could be reflected in the reconstruction sculpture...just as it would happen with an actual forensic case.
With writer Corey Miller on the set.
With Produce Matthew Gross on the set...and Jeri Ryan on her phone photobombing us in the background!
Actresses Jeri Ryan and Dana Delany with my sculpture on the set.
Immediately following the airing of the "Occupational Hazards" episode, Jeri Ryan did a Twitter session. It was fun to get her perspective on the work we did as she responded to the tweets.
