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Helena Smee
Click picture to view some of
her Script Writer Credits


About - Hands Up Puppets


HuP is headed by Bafta nominated Marcus Clarke and Helena Smee.
Both are Puppet Makers, Puppeteers and Children's TV Script Writers.
HuP was formed in 1989 and located in a Studio within the Lace Market area of the City of Nottingham. It's purpose then being "To create puppet characters for Television."
Having been much inspired and encouraged by the visionary Muppet's creator Jim Henson whom Marcus had previously worked for.
Since then HuP have created over 40 TV Puppet characters and worked on over 50 TV Series as Puppeteers. As well as Feature Films and Commercials.
The partners Marcus Clarke and Helena Smee have a unique expertise in Puppet Television character creation and over 20 years experience of Children's Puppet Television programme development and production.
                               This work continues today 


Marcus Clarke
Click picture for CV
TV Series Creation and other Media product development work
Marcus and Helena have created and devised many Puppet Children's TV Series and their project development work has previously also included Real Time Performance Animation as well as  2D and 3D Animation  See Here We are always finding new and new old ways to build on our Puppetry and Puppet Character based Media, Arts and Entertainment work and have a variety of extremely innovative mixed and combined Arts and Media projects in the pipeline. Some with our Production Company   Hands Up Productions limited.
                        Recently we have begun developing Adult TV Comedy and Film Drama too.

1989 logo
Puppet Character Creation.

Marcus and Helena bring together the best in puppet design and fabrication with the highest quality of puppet character performance.

Hands Up Puppets have designed, built and performed puppets in a variety of television productions; Pre-school, Educational, Children's, Comedy, Teen and Family. They have puppeteered Live and Recorded , scripted and improvised, on the Road and in the Studio.
They have also performed puppets whilst canoeing, abseiling and hanging out of helicopters.


Credits

Puppet Making and Puppeteering Television credits include:
Other Television Puppeteering only credits include:
  • PJ's Storytime 6 x 5 min programmes,bafta Disney Playhouse, Puppeteer to puppet character PJ Mole
  • PJ's Bedtime   20 x 60 min programmes, Disney Playhouse, Puppeteer to puppet character PJ Mole
  • Playbox - Ragdoll Production for ITV.
  • "The Great Bong" - UA & HTV. Production for Channel 4.
  • "The Slow Norris" Series 1 & 2 - HTV. production for ITV.
  • Big Bag Series 1 & 2 - YTV & The Childrens Television Workshop for ITV.

Film puppeteering credits include:

Commercials Puppeteering credits include:
  • Quantas Koala Bear,
  • Talk back Radio,
  • Applejack Scrumpy,
  • Quorn,
  • Revels.

These TV Series contain a total of 50 puppets, all designed and made by Hands Up Puppets.



CGI Real Time Performance Animation.

Marcus and Helena have also been involved in the fast developing field of Real Time Performance Animation. They have worked as Performance Animators for Medialab Paris, Medialab Los Angeles, Twentieth Century Fox T.V. U.S.A. and the American Channel N.B.C. And for Nihon Itec, NHK and Sony in Tokyo, Japan. MORE
Puppet Theatre Consultancy
Hands Up Puppets were engaged by the Lego Company as consultants and designers for the first ever Puppet Show at their U.K. theme park - Legoland Windsor