The Kraken Gemini

The Kraken Gemini was the fourth large-scale puppet project undertaken by the Colossal Collective. It is essentially an updated version of the original Giant Squid we built back in 2012. These creatures have some major upgrades! First, instead of the giant gas generator that I relied on for the first squid, the Kraken Gemini used rechargeable batteries. We chose 3-cell lithium polymer drone batteries, and we get about an hour and a half on a charge. Next, these puppets have color-changing LED lights instead of incandescent and fluorescent light bulbs, which not only removed considerable weight, but also gave us much more control over what the puppets look like. We had to innovate several ways to protect the LED strip to make sure that it doesn't bend too sharply and damage the embedded circuitry. Lastly, we made major upgrades the the eyes, using a printed vinyl graphic and some custom-made housings that really bring the squid to life.