About The Skin ShopThe Skin Shop is the place to look for custom plastics design and fabrication.
Created by Michael Traxler to allow him continue to design and manufacture plastics for the themed entertainment industry.
Michael started the company after 20 years of experience, with the last 13 as a Principal Plastics Designer for Walt Disney Imagineering’s Production Division. There he was responsible for the development, design and fabrication of plastics for most of the high end Animatronic figures.
The Skin Shop opened in June of 2007 and since has completed projects for a number of the top theme parks in the world, doing both plastic design/manufacturing as well as consulting.
We aim to give our clients high quality, long lasting plastics as well as the insight and service only 20 years of working with/for the world’s premier production companies can give you.
About Michael Traxler:
Michael Traxler started out in the themed entertainment industry in 1986 ... apprenticing under some of the industries most clever and ingenious professionals.
In 1994 Michael went to work at Walt Disney Imagineering’s Production Division .. again enabling him to work with more of the industries brightest minds.
In June of 2007 Michael left Disney and started a boutique style plastics shop called The Skin Shop Inc.
Since then he has completed projects for a number of the top theme parks in the world, doing both plastic design/manufacturing as well as consulting and vendor Liaison.
During Michael’s career he developed a working knowledge of the following:
-Plastics Materials development and application.
-Animatronic Figure Plastics Design, Prototyping & Fabrication
-Costume Plastic Design, Prototyping & Fabrication
-Figure Finishing (all aspects)
Shows Michael Has Participated In:
1. Madam X – Vegas Stage Show – Plastics fabrication – 2 figures
2. DMV drunk driving commercial – fabrication – 1 model
3. Various spaceship posters – 6 models
4. Japanese space movie – fabrication – 1 model
5. E.T. Adventure – Universal Studios – 10 figures
6. Robotic Bugs – Backyard Monsters Creative Presentations – figure finishing/fabrication – 8 figures
7. Festival Fountain Figures – Caesars Palace/Vegas – figure finishing/plastics fabrication – 5 Figures
8. Babe and Paul Bunyan – Mall of America – figure finishing – 6 figures
9. Alwin – Bush Gardens – prop fabrication – 1 figure
10. Adventure Island – figure finishing – 9 figures
11. Hoy Hay/Chinese Story Teller – prop fabrication – 1 figure
12. Hungry/Traveling Dinos – Fuji Television Plastics fabrication and figure finishing – 7 figures
13. Dinosaurs/Circus Circus – plastics fabrication and figure finishing – 7 figures
14. T-Rex – Knott’s Berry Farm – plastics fabrication and figure finishing – 2 figures
15. Camels – Luxor/Vegas- plastics fabrication and figure finishing – 2 figures
16. Jungle Cruise - Disneyland – skin/substructure design & fabrication – 2 figures
17. Indiana Jones - Disneyland – skin/substructure design & fabrication – 4 figures
18. CTX - Disney’s Animal Kingdom – skin/substructure design & fabrication – 12 figures
19. It’s Tough To Be a Bug – Disney’s Animal Kingdom – skin/substructure design & fabrication – 2 figures
20. Little Red – Safari Ride Disney’s Animal Kingdom - skin/substructure design & fabrication – 1 figure
21. River Iguanodon –River Rider Disney’s Animal Kingdom - skin/substructure design & fabrication – 1 figure
22. Shelly – Conservation Station Disney’s Animal Kingdom – plastics design & fabrication – 1 figure
23. Space Ranger Spin – Walt Disney World – plastics fabrication – 4 figures
24. Paul Hoffman Head – Minimatronic Discovery Awards - skin/substructure design & fabrication – 1 figure
25. CTX Rehab – Disney’s Animal Kingdom - skin/substructure design & fabrication – 8 figures
26. It’s Tough To Be a Bug – Disney’s California Adventure - skin/substructure design & fabrication – 2 figures
27. Indiana Jones – Tokyo Disney SEA - skin/substructure design & fabrication – 4 figures
28. 20 K – Tokyo Disney SEA – plastics/skin/substructure design & fabrication – 4 figures
29. Journey to the Ceneter of the Earth – Tokyo Disney SEA – Participant – 1 figure
30. Aladdin’s Magic Lamp Theatre- Tokyo Disney SEA - skin/substructure design & fabrication – 1 Figure
31. TDL/HK Buzz – Plastic Fabrication – 8 figures
32. Kuzco – walk around costume Disney Entertainment – plastics design & fabrication
33. Moliere – walk around costume Disney Entertainment - plastics design & fabrication
34. Mike & Sully – walk around costume Disney Entertainment - plastics design & fabrication
35. Lilo and Stitch – walk around costume Disney Entertainment - plastics design & fabrication
36. Ben – walk around costume Disney Entertainment - plastics design & fabrication
37. Little Red Rehab – Disney’s Animal Kingdom – skin/substructure design & fabrication – 1 figure
38. Lincoln Head Development – skin/substructure design & fabrication – 1 figure
39. Monsters, Inc. – Roz – skin/substructure design & fabrication – 1 figure
40. Pirates of the Caribbean Overlay – WDW/Disneyland - skin/substructure design & fabrication – 6 figures
41. Forbidden Mountain Yeti – plastics design & fabrication – 1 figure
42. Finding Nemo Submarine Ride - plastics design & fabrication - multiple figures
43. Replacement Dinosaur Skin - Jurassic Park Ride – skin/substructure design & fabrication – 1 figure
44. Flick Characters - Pixar Parade Bugs life Float – figure design & fabrication
45. Various costume elements for the Pixar Parade – plastics redesign & fabrication
46. Sindbad Ride – Lotte World, Korea - Consulting/Vendor Liaison/Management for Artistry Entertainment International responsible for Art Direction & Supervision of plastics, managed silicone/fiberglass shop.
47. Fantasmic Dragon - Disneyland - Consulting/Vendor Liaison, Fabrication for Garner Holt Productions.
