In these times of doom and gloom, it’s nice to read something heartwarming for a change.
Weta Workshop in Wellington, New Zealand, are a company specialising in special effects for films and were responsible for, amongst others, Lord of the Rings, even winning an Oscar for that one.
Nadya Vessey, who lives in Auckland, is a double amputee, losing both legs below the knee through illness as a child. A couple of years ago, she wrote to Weta with a very strange request and was absolutely amazed when they agreed.
Since childhood, Nadya Vessey seems to have always had a special dream, to be a mermaid. And so she wrote to Weta and asked if they could make a prosthetic attachment, much the same as one would request prosthetic limbs.
The company agreed to the challenge and now, Nadya swims like a mermaid. The suit was made mostly of wetsuit fabric and plastic moulds, and was then covered in a digitally printed sock. Mermaid-like scales were painted by hand.
