Hello to all members of the fxguide forums out there!

I am planning on doing a stopmotion short film within the next two months and apart from some fx stopmotion work have never really done this. I have already read the relevant section in the VES Handbook and I am starting the corresponding fxphd course soon as well.

My question is, what materials should you make a puppet out of? It is going to need quite a lot of detail in its facial area, so I have already considered doing it in a different scale than the environments. I am striving to achieve the \"clay\" sort of look without making it too similar to already existing stopmotion films. The character is supposed to be an elderly man, who dies at the beginning of the film. The film itself will deal with the problematic topic of death (not its results on family members, but the question what death really is and what it looks and feels like).

Huge thanks in advance for any tips, tricks or websites you can give or recommend me!

Cheers,
Max