Adam Savage Remembers His Mentor in Model Making

Adam brings back to his workshop an important part of his early model making career: a Yoda-like figure representing his mentor and friend Mitch Romanauski. While fixing up and restoring this artifact, Adam reminisces about the lessons he took from working for Mitch, both professional and personal. Join Adam for this walk down memory lane in appreciation for the mentors in all our lives.
Fonco's archive of Yoda figure castings and sculpts: www.foncocreative.net/yoda/Ga...
Shot by Adam Savage
Edited by Norm Chan
Music by Jinglepunks
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Intro bumper by Abe Dieckman
Thanks for watching!
#AdamSavage #ILM

[@tested]

Hear more ILM-stories from Adam here: kzbin.info/aero/PLJtitKU0CAejBoL6zH5FYchIAK5seBTbd

[@Charok1]

That's a lot of freaking models.

[@Rustbukkit69]

Note to self. In future, remove your boots when shooting a video so your listeners aren't distracted and annoyed by them echoing through the wood beneath you. That, or invest in a thick piled throw rug for video shoots.

[@patrickwatkins7572]

w o n d e r f u l adam. b i g thx fon

[@jeromeranft2439]

Hi Adam, the yoda castings were made on James. Mitch was my Mentor too, I love and miss him allot.

[@joelfriesch7483]

I made the "Mitch Yoda" you have restored. I worked for Mitch on both shows. We made these on James'. Its good to see it again

[@user-zz3cx6lu2k]

Sounds like an interesting story

[@joelfriesch7483]

@@ccriztoff who did?

[@JS-rp7qb]

@@ccriztoff yes, surely he went and created a KZbin account under the name of a model maker who is credited online with having made this Yoda (and others). Very cool, Joel

[@lukedabbsmusic]

Yep, this guy is the actual maker. He's credited on the website for this model, which is linked under the video. I believe you, Joel! ;D

[@taddyj6579]

Do you remember what the model was?

[@Bad_Wolf_Media]

The editor(s) for this video did a commendable job, choosing to change up the order of events for the storytelling and then the perfect music selection. Flawless emotional resonance.

[@SeanPaulNotTheSinger]

I was thinking the same thing. Lovely, and well done.

[@joshuamartin7756]

I'm not ashamed to say I teared up. Well done.

[@ethnomuse]

That is now one of my all time favorite videos from you Adam. As a community college professor getting pretty close to retirement I have been thinking about my mentors (and telling my students stories about them!) and hoping that I have been an equally positive influence on some of my students.

[@ultimatebailer]

I’m sure you have.

[@acopernic]

We need an audio book on these memories.

[@Chayat0freak]

Every tool's a hammer has a bunch in and Adam reads the audiobook version. Highly recomend

[@MechVince]

"Glitter is the herpes of crafting" - Adam Savage Omg, this is my favorite thing I have heard in a long time. Thank you Adam!

[@tomgdownhill]

It has been my quote to why i hate glitter for years, best saying I`ve ever learned for him XD

[@analogrest5733]

Demetri Martin is the origin of the glitter joke, years ago.

[@analogrest5733]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/iGjEn5xmjq5lgbc

[@annwagner5779]

Glitter is HORRIBLE for art. Same deal - the museum hosts a prom, the kids wear dresses with glitter. They look at sculpture, the glitter gets into weird places. you try to get it out of all the texture of a sculpture. You shine a light over it, and there is still more. And more.

[@LowellMorgan]

Ha yes this quote gets around. I work in theatre and some houses straight don’t allow it because of the difficulty of cleaning it off the stage.

[@mattcolvin338]

Adam, seeing this video had a strong impact on me. I lost my filmmaking/screenwriting mentor unexpectedly last May. We had been estranged for a while and I deeply regret that. However, seeing you take us through your experience with your own mentor, good and not so good, was deeply moving. It really shows how like you said "a mentorship isn't necessarily an unfettered joy," but we have to take them for who they are and appreciate the knowledge they pass on to us no matter how it's packaged. Thank you for the clarity. RIP Mitch and Raymond

[@robkarnosh117]

That little laugh of joy at the end. Perfect.

[@modularcuriosity]

That understanding that a mentor can also be a real jerk at times is a very mature view on life. It takes a lot of maturity to get to that level of compassion.

[@davidgriffiths2223]

This was amazing to hear, yet sad that Adam has lost a mentor that obviously meant so much to him. Every time I hear one of these stories I can't help but be overjoyed that Adam has been able to give so generously to share parts of his skill-set with all of us online. When you think about the number of masters of the craft that never had the opportunity or platform to share their skills on, it's depressing how much has been lost over the years.

[@dternst]

Thank you Adam taking the time to express your admiration for Mitch. It’s very special when you can take a moment and bring to light an individual who left a lasting mark in your life. Enjoyed the time. God bless.

[@nigelhirth2181]

Serious comment; it is always fascinating to see these peeks into the personal history behind the films we know. It seems like such a small world sometimes, how these same great names keep popping up in story after story from different creators.

[@neilatkinson174]

I share a workspace with my wife and to hear "glitter is the herpes of crafting" has totally vindicated my years of frustration 😆 thank you!

[@ClankBoomSteam]

Adam, for the record, the original Yoda these were cast from would have been an old commercially available hand puppet from around 1980 or so. I still have the one I had as a kid in my art studio, and I recognized the sculpt instantly. Thought you might like to know!

[@blackcatgraphics1483]

R.I.P. Doug Trumbull. If you hadn't heard, Doug passed last night. I'm really grateful I got to meet him and go see his amazing studio, his art has been deeply meaningful in my life. He seemed like a genuinely kind person, even though I only got to spend a short time with him. To those younger folks who might not be familiar with him, he was the photographic effects genius who pioneered motion control effects, and created such masterpieces as 2001: a space odyssey, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Blade Runner, Star Trek the motion picture, Silent Running and many others.

[@Iwasthere1415]

The fact I can watch the guy I grew up on still makes the world complete . Thanks adam 💪🏼

[@MuppeSixtyFour]

Finally! I have something in common with Adam Savage!! Several decades ago I was working for a small company producing product--launches for a variety of manufacturing companies. Having only recently taken delivery of one of the earliest bespoke computer animation systems, which was still in its development phase, I was tasked with creating a jet engine animation (For a world famous jet engine company who also make expensive cars)... with no manual or instructions! Having overcome that obstacle, the computer system itself decided it was not going to cooperate with our video suite. This meant the only way to get around this was to pull an all-nighter, and sit waiting for each frame of the video to slowly be rendered, and then capture the individual frame accurately to video tape. Like stop motion, but infinitley slower due to the rendering of each frame. It was a hard slog, but it worked... So this story flashed me back 40+ years and almost had me sweating again just remembering. B-D (Fun fact: I made a VHS recording of the animation at the time, and I rediscovered it a few years ago and cobbled together a heath-robinson batch of cables to transfer it onto my computer. A reminder of how far we've advanced.)

[@jordanmarble6469]

Mitch was my moms first husband before meeting my dad. They stayed good friends threw my life and he was a real father figure to me while growing up. Eventually when my mom and dad got divorced she moved in with Mitch I remember seeing that yoda so often in his room. I know this is the internet and most people won’t believe this but it true I remember meeting Adam and grant at Mitch’s wake. I was only 12-13 and his death took a massive toll on me but I remember making a small speech at the wake, talking about how we’d go to the gun range how he love food and food trucks especially. I’m at work rn and I’m on the verge of crying from just the good times. Thank you Adam, from Jordan Paula’s son

[@leemarsh3569]

I’ve been lucky to have a few over the years in model making. These days from Adam to Kayte and Fon. All great inspirations

[@bennyfactor]

Adam, you have such an incredible wealth of knowledge and expertise, information, and all these wonderful stories of people you learned from and worked with. Thank you so much for sharing it with all of us.

[@uncletoy774]

I really like the way Adam did the ending on this one. The aspect of reflection on a person, place or thing. I could feeling the fact that he is thinking about all the moments he spent with Mitch and how much they meant to him.

[@rowein8775]

I worked security at ILM 97' to 2003. I remember watching you guys work thinking you really were wizards. I love hearing these old stories.

[@tested]

Amazing!

[@paulhennessy5627]

The enthusiasm that comes across in EVERY.SINGLE.VIDEO is beautiful. Keep it comming Mr Savage.

[@barry.w.christie]

The time you spent restoring the "Mitch Yoda" is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen, the music matched the subject matter perfectly 👍

[@zc9407]

That restoration job in the end was very therapeutic and perfectly capped with that endearing small laugh.

[@alwaysfallingshort]

We don't always get to choose our own mentors, but the internet is a magical place because we get to be mentored by you, Mr. Savage, in even the smallest ways. Yet it seems so significant, at least to me. Thanks for sharing these memories with us.

[@shaker7804]

Great story and very well told. You are a very genuine person and natural teacher.

[@thegodofhellfire]

Fantastic story telling! Looked up when I thought it was over and it was only halfway through, loved that.

[@kendalozzel3503]

thank you Adam for the heartfelt sharing. Just so incredibly wonderful.

[@SKR_89]

Wow. Its unreal how adam can dig down and understand what a true moment was on all levels and somehow explain to us what those feelings were.

[@srmiii90]

Thank you so much for including the second half of the video of Adam fixing the Yoda, to see the care of something that represents a mentor Adam had fond memories for, and restoring that object gave me time to reflect on those I care about in the same way.

[@EJFXxx]

he helped Adam become the great creator we all wish we were ... thanks M.R.

[@joshsimpson6856]

I had a "mentor" once. I started work at this cabinet making factory in 1999. They put me off bearing a machine that was ran by one of the biggest, meanest, craziest people I have ever met. When I messed something up, he would lay into me with the yelling, cussing, and name calling all while explaining what I did wrong, and how to avoid that mistake again.I figured out that this guy had been working there for 15 or 20 years at that point, so he probably has some idea as to what it was he was doing. This made me realize that I should listen to what he was saying when he was yelling at me, but don't listen to HOW he is saying it. After he saw that was what I was doing, we got along great after that. So good, in fact, that since we are both big guys (I am 6'3" and at that time weighed about 230 lbs, while he is 6'4" and 275 lbs) and we were both bald, some people made jokes about us being father and son. I started calling him dad, and he would say "You just wish I was your dad because then you would be somebody". The best thing I got out of working with him was that I eventually took over operating that machine. He was the guy who drove the truck on which it came, and then he helped put it together, and after that, he ran it as its very first operator. I was his last off bearer before he took a different job in the pant. I ended up being the last operator of that machine. He went to work at Disney World and his last night was on a Friday morning, while my last night was the very next Monday. The moral of this long story is that if you find yourself as the "new guy" on some job, and you get paired with people who have been their awhile, pay attention to them, they will lead you in the right direction. Now, if they just happen to be leading you in that direction loudly and in your face, you still pay attention. The only difference is that you should not take it too personally when they do.

[@SeanPaulNotTheSinger]

Thank you for sharing the stories behind it all. Absolutely fantastic.

[@scottr2279]

Love the casting of the Kenner ESB Yoda puppet!

[@TheVillainsProjects]

I really enjoyed listening to Adam speak of his friend and mentor, felt very touching.

[@markmilligan8773]

I was blown away by you lovingly restoring the ear and cigarette. You are an amazing person who clearly misses your friend and mentor. If it weren't fort social distancing I'd give you a hug

[@thelongingforflight9644]

I love the story. Adam always tells great stories. But I came here to say that the editing of this video is absolute perfection. Obviously the model was restored before Adam told the story. He even refers to the model as "the Yoda you've seen me fixing up," but putting the model restoration at the end really made the video. Adam takes us through the meandering story of his mentor and ends with the great line, "Let us be grateful for our mentors." And after that beautiful story of Adam's grattitude for his mentor, he then lovingly repairs the model. And the restoration sequence is quiet and almost without verbal interjection at all, just some music as we watch Adam pay tribute to his mentor. And it ends with, "There it is." It's just so perfect. I love these videos. Thank you so much for putting them out.

[@tracymoon4437]

That was a very sweet and touching love letter to your mentor. Thank you for allowing us in for that.

[@wbradburn8871]

Having heard some of the background makes this IMHO, the best video that I have seen out Tested. The quiet work with soft piano underneath highlights the honor you are doing to a friend/colleague/mentor. Thank you for sharing it.

[@Tark-qs4mu]

Thank you for sharing your memories of your mentor with us, Adam. Both the good and the not-so-great. I think it's important to remind people/let them know that a mentor/mentee relationship isn't always the most comfortable thing in the world. There are times it's down right UNcomfortable. But, that doesn't diminish the lessons learned, nor the person's impact on our lives.

[@fader2701]

Great stories. And lovely ending piece with the repair

[@DaddyDoom]

Saw NIghtmare when it came out, with my girlfriend (and still my wife of 25 years) and my jaw dropped into 30 seconds of the movie. First time I saw a stop motion film with that style, detail and level of production insanity. We recently had a Tim Burton exhibit here in Portugal but sadly none of the pieces was from Nightmare...

[@mlubecke]

Love love love ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️ these stories Adam.

[@cholersludge]

This video makes me very happy and very sad. The man I consider my art mentor fell back into severe drug addiction, stole my possessions, kicked me out and has never spoken to me since. He taught me so many things I am so grateful for and every time I make something to this day I hear his voice in my mind and all the advice he gave me over the years. Mentor relationships are important and its hard when they are turbulent.

[@ErikJohnsonFMA]

I can listen to adam tell stories all day. thank you for sharing your experiences

[@charlottethehousegoat5960]

Ooh, I love it when you deep dive into your stories! This was a great video to watch. I am always telling the people around me to not take other people's emotions personally!

[@AmbrosiasDollhouse]

This was a great story and lesson for me. I have had a mentor who was the same as your Mitch. But when you look back on it all, there was so much wisdom. Thank you!✨🌟✨

[@ichabodsescape1885]

Hands Down my most relatable video Adam has done.

[@thomasives7560]

Good mentors live forever. Great story, you may not realize it but *you* are a great mentor to many of us, I only wish I had a Yoda cast to make an Adam Yodage. Now I've got something in my eye :(... Cheers!

[@robertkeable1627]

A lovely thing to do and see. Be well and stay safe. UK.

[@rehiza]

Watched this entire video and loved all the stories this was great.

[@jasondiasauthorpage615]

There's so much wisdom hidden in these talks about tools and models and film.

[@erickpc]

Lovely story, thanks for sharing.

[@kevingalbraith5528]

Absolutely amazing. Touching and just the truth. Thank you for sharing this with us Adam. Those final shots of you repairing Mitch with the drawer in the background with the painted label "AIRBRUSH" and just everything in that environment.. the sounds of turning Mitch to work on him- the sounds and sights of what it feels like at the wee hours of the am, alone, creating... brought tears to my eyes. Thank you. We can all relate. I swore I saw him wink at the end...;-)

[@MissMoffet19]

I feel you Adam. Beautiful video.

[@bassmechanic237]

One of your greatest story telling episodes.

[@unorthodoxentertainmentcom7908]

Though I have no real direct contact with you and the crew of Tested, your videos provide a distant mentorship for me and I am sure many others. For that I am extremely grateful that you continue to produce content.

[@jeffersonspace]

Sneaky Pete was a session player who played pedal steel. He played with everyone back in the day. Lovely story telling Adam. Bless

[@markdavich5829]

I love hearing your stories Adam.

[@videoshomepage]

Man, so do I. Very much.

[@Makkenhoff]

Really enjoyed the way this video was edited, context matters. Restoration was very interesting to watch, could certainly get into watching restoration work.

[@chris-hayes]

These are the best kind of Adam Savage videos

[@MichaelBerthelsen]

8:53 Telling these stories has made Adam into Clifford Stoll!😂😂❤❤❤

[@fiftyhunnug]

I just recently had one of my mentors pass away. Not an easy thing. I'm thankful that his son is saving me a keepsake.

[@WalkRobotFilm]

Your workshop is far beyond what I have and I also have a tiny media studio that feels like it sets fire in waves with projects and I feel you on being up all night on a project and being up at sunrise the next day and feeling relaxed about the deadlines.

[@jeroenk3570]

Thank you for the stories.

[@deleathleye]

TNBC was/is one of my favourite movies. I always loved the idea that somewhere in a secret place there are doors to other worlds if you are brave enough to find them.

[@kataseiko]

That painting section made that thing feel like Adam is the Bob Ross of modelmaking. Can we have a whole episode with just painting a model please? Some relaxing music and talking for the background just in the beginning. "And here I paint the cigarrette. See how those highlights make it look almost like it's glowing from within."

[@Redfern42]

The "Puppetoons" by George Pal (producer of the 1953 "War of the Worlds", director of the 1960 "Time Machine", etc.) also used "replacement" animation. i don't know if he "invented" the process, but he certainly refined it.

[@mingusbreeze]

Thanks for sharing a cool life moment.

[@smilingeyes1938]

Found the commercial, or a least a relevant version of it. The "house building itself" part starts at the 22 second mark. kzbin.info/www/bejne/d2qnqpevmrN4kM0

[@darylmunton6262]

i started at ILM in digital in 97 and was on ep1 as well. never saw you but was so giddy to be on that show as well. was a wonderful time.

[@snmworks1037]

That's really beautiful Adam.

[@crisscrow1128]

Wish I could say I've had one, I'm so jealous.

[@xpgx1]

Thank you for this awesome, human tale - you're the best =)

[@e7yu]

A mentor is always worth remembering when there's, so many great stories to tell. 😎

[@cannednolan8194]

Let’s all celebrate the people who have passed that have inspire and taught us. How pass on the what they have taught you to others.

[@DanielRieger]

that was sweet. I like the way Adam makes us care and feel for that kind of stuff even if I have no idea who Mitch was

[@Jemppu]

Aww. What a wholesome video.

[@rytek4274]

Super touching video

[@CarboniteDreamer]

Be eternally grateful for the time you spent together and not regretful of the time away. we are all being on a journey and we have a finite amount of time to walk that journey we as humans gain immortality through those we touch and those who remember us.

[@sombertrex]

Great story Adam!

[@Nannada1212]

I'm so glad I'm not the only one that pulls my hair back all the time, even when we don't have much hair anymore.

[@joshuamartin7756]

Thanks for talking about the rough parts of your relationship with your mentor. I've experienced the same thing. For me, it was because I had undiagnosed ADHD. I didn't know why I was such a screw up, either, and I think my mentor was just frustrated seeing me fail to do what he knew I could do. I don't agree with his choices, but your example of gratitude and understanding is something I'll be thinking about.

[@dollarbill93]

May Mitch Rest is peace. Looks like he got out just before covid, in hindisight... he likely had more hope for the future than all who went through this pandemic.

[@TheBassistninja]

Thank you Adam for giving words to a phenomena I have felt for a long time. I have long felt like I was weird for nto being super affected by other people's eotional outbursts towards me. I would often deflect towards neutrality, but it is that I do not take emotional outbursts personally

[@ddvorak777]

Thanks for sharing this story Adam. Watching you rebuild the model was cathartic in a way I have seldom experienced. I felt an unexpectedly non-contradictory feeling of nastalgic, hopeful, melancholy, nihilism. Only Zima Blue has ever made me feel the same.

[@wolfe1970]

My best mentor was my dad, gave me solid foundations as a kid that helped me in my adult life, He died when i was 17 and im now 8 years older than he was when he died yet i still look up to him with a great deal of respect and pride.

[@sanches2]

I know what you mean, mate. Now that i have a son of my own i feel like i suck big time compared to him :/ But i keep trying though:)

[@dirkkrohn1907]

Lost my father myself going on 18 years ago next month. The anaversiry still hits hard to this day, more so when it falls on the day of the week as when we lost him.

[@wolfe1970]

@@sanches2 Your Son feels the same way you feel about your Dad

[@wolfe1970]

@@dirkkrohn1907 Sorry to hear that, it never gets easier but you learn to live with it, i lost my Dad in '88 and still think about him alot

[@sanches2]

@@wolfe1970 Thank you, i hope i can be even half of what mine was for me. We assemble train models and we're playing with the 3d printer for now but he's only 5. I have a "cave"(my office) with robots, machines, computers and many cool things waiting for him to grow up :) my father worked in a large atudio and had all the machines and stuff one might need - he was a puppet designer in the theater i grew up there - stayed almost every day after school:) There were puppets and costumes being made around me while i was writing homeworks. So many great memories. Now when i watch Adam it is like getting back there in the theater studio.

[@tomiselepe7066]

I am grateful to my mentor too. Mean S.O.B but a great mentor. May he rest in peace.

[@woolly2426]

Your description of mitch and his moods and how nasty he could be is exactly the same as my boss i,m working for rn . And like you adam i have gotten use to and worked out how to take his moodiness . Love listening to your stories .

[@johnabe3122]

Thanks for cool memories as a kid- you brought my family together around the TV appreciate u

[@MxPotato84]

Aww. Funny and wholesome!

[@MadSpacePig]

This entire video all I could think about was that model sitting precariously on a wobbly table with Adam vehemently gesticulating right next to it.

[@joshbauer2223]

Oh, just woke up and get this surprise!

[@BeardymanP]

I believe it goes without saying Yoda Mitch deserves a platform and backdrop in the cave

[@bobdole4916]

I was an animation major at a junior college here in the Bay Area where the head of the department had some real connections in the industry because he'd worked in the industry. It was before I'd started at the school, but they'd had someone from Nightmare Before Christmas come in who had boxes of those replacement faces to show to the students. Luckily, they taped his visit, so I got to see all of it too. It was dang fascinating seeing all the standard mouth shapes for animating speech laid out like that, and there were tons for all the main characters because you had to do the full set of mouth shapes for every facial expression - quiet, loud, sad, happy, angry, etc... It's been decades, so I'm not super solid on how many faces for Jack the guy had brought in (can't remember his name), but I think he'd said there were over 200 individual faces just for Jack. Doing it like that must have been such an awesome way to get consistent animation for the way the characters talked, but a massive amount of work maintaining all those faces and replacing them as needed.

[@MatthewBryce]

at first I wondered why the story of Mitch was before the work on the Joda then as I watched the care that went into working on it I started to understand.

[@vonkug]

I call it: "A Lulluby for a Master Model Maker" Or: "Do Not Go Gently into That Good Night, WE STILL HAVE SIX HOURS UNTIL SHOOTING"

[@sclogse1]

They were shooting Nightmare a block away from my photo lab on Russ St. They'd shoot stills of the fully lit sets and send rolls over for development and 8x10's and 5x7's. I still have a box of these first generation pics.