Their fur is just one of the things that makes bears so adorable but as I was to learn, replicating that comes at a price. About £40 per metre, to be exact...
It turns out there's quite a lot of 'faux' fur for sale on ebay, and almost none of it looks like bear fur. If you want to make a deer or a fox or a wolf or a badger or yes, even a panda, then there's plenty of options to choose from but no one really seems to have nailed bear fur. Perfection is hard to replicate, but they could've at least done these majestic creatures the service of devoting their lives to the cause.
Of course the ideal solution would be to get custom made fur but this is prohibitively expensive so instead I've been receiving samples through the post.I've tried wetting them, lighting them, photographing them, everything short of actually making a bear out of them, to see if they're suitable. None have been perfect but three have been okay:
I liked the top one for its colour but Kasia the director said it looked like a Labrador. I don't think she's ever seen a Labrador (or 'laborador', as she said) let alone cut off a square of one's fur, wet it, lit it and photographed it* so I don't see how she can say that but she does have a point; it's definitely too short.
She liked the right one. It's the perfect length and consistency. I would've liked a more vibrant colour but that is something I can live with. Something my producer can't live with though is the price. All of these are £40 per metre. I need 5 metres and although there's a bulk discount so that it 'only' costs £169, it's still too much.
Ordering fur samples online isn't an exact science and there's a thrilling element of randomness to the whole process. Some sellers photograph their fur in very different ways. Some light it and lay it out nicely so that it looks better than the real thing and some take what may or may be a photograph of something that could be fur but it's too dark and blurry to tell so you won't be sure until it arrives. Even the good photos aren't a great indication.
Therefore it was with an shriek of surprise that I opened a package this morning to find the sample in the first photo, which is identical to the bottom left one in the second photo. The shriek was not because they are the same, that's an experience I've already had twice during this process, but because the seller from which the sample arrived is selling the fur for only 60% of the price.
I've still got more packages coming, which may or may not contain something that may or may not be a faithful replication of bear fur, so I'll be holding off buying fur for now, but at least I won't have to sell a limb to pay for it.
*No Labradors have been harmed in the making of Pandamonium. I can't say the same for humans.
You can help us pay for the fur by funding the project on kickstarter. You can get a credit on the film, a DVD, a t shirt, exclusive artwork and even the completed panda costume so what are you waiting for? Donate now, and be part of a project to remember!
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/499149634/pandamonium-short-film
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