How To Make Kill Bill’s ‘FUCK U’ Shoes
In Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill, one detail that appears on-screen for only a second are the soles of Uma Thurman’s shoes. Those sneakers aren’t off-the-shelf Onitsuka Tigers–they have the phase “FUCK U” molded right into the treading. It’s a prop we’ve wanted to replicate for a long time, and we’re finally able to do it with the help of effects artist Frank Ippolito. Here’s how you can make your own pair! (This video was brought to you by Premium memberships on Tested. Learn more about how you can support us by joining the Tested Premium community!)
Video shot and edited by Joey Fameli
Music Library provided by Jingle Punks
70 thoughts on “How To Make Kill Bill’s ‘FUCK U’ Shoes”
Leave a Reply
One Day Builds
Adam Savage’s One Day Builds: Life-Size Velocirapt…
Adam embarks on one of his most ambitious builds yet: fulfil…
Show And Tell
Adam Savage’s King George Costume!
Adam recently completed a build of the royal St. Edwards cro…
All Eyes On Perserverance – This is Only a Test 58…
We get excited for the Perserverance rover Mars landing happening later today in this week's episode. Jeremy finally watches In and Of Itself, we get hyped for The Last of Us casting, and try to deciper the new Chevy Bolt announcements. Plus, Kishore gets a Pelaton and we wrack our brains around reverse engineering the source code to GTA …
One Day Builds
Mandalorian Blaster Prop Replica Kit Assembly!
Adam and Norm assemble a beautifully machined replica prop k…
House of MCU – This is Only a Test 586 – 2/11/21
The gang gets together to recap their favorite bits from this past weekend's Superb Owl, including the new camera tech used for the broadcast and the best chicken wing recipes. Kishore shares tips for streamlining your streaming services, and Will guests this week to dive into the mind-bending implications of the latest WandaVision episod…
One Day Builds
Adam Savage’s One Day Builds: Royal Crown of Engla…
One of the ways Adam has been getting through lockdown has b…
Making
Adam Savage Tests the AIR Active Filtration Helmet…
Adam unboxes and performs a quick test of this novel new hel…
Making
Weta Workshop’s 3D-Printed Giant Eyeballs!
When Adam visited Weta Workshop early last year, he stopped …
One Day Builds
Adam Savage’s One Day Builds: Wire Storage Solutio…
Adam tackles a shop shelf build that he's been putting off f…
Show And Tell
Mechanical Dragonfly Automata Kit Build and Review
Time for a model kit build! This steampunk-inspired mechanic…
high-res reference scan here: http://www.mediafire.com/view/39l3rzbvpnsiv0n/kill_bill_insole.jpg
and the vector file here: http://www.mediafire.com/view/smhc149vc0kyly0/kill_bill_insole.ai
post your questions about the build here in the comments!
These ‘Kill Bill’ shoes are f*cking awesome!
Who wouldn’t want a pair? 👍
Guys, this was one of the best videos in terms of production value you’ve made yet. Super super good job– loved it. Sharp cutting, great narration, relevant and engaging content… it hit all the beats beautifully. How far you’ve come! Nice flourish at the end with Adam too 🙂
The great thing is if you wear them til the soles wear out no problem, just make a new pair of soles with the molds you have 🙂
Love these kinds of vids…would of loved to see even more of the making!
Awesome video. I absolutely want a pair now.
When is going to start making these for the public?
Thanks for the great videos guys, especially the ones about movie props. You have inspired me to start my own attempt at one. I’m tackling the wallet from “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”, which is an awesome movie by the way.
Thanks again guys, keep up the good work
Okay, stuff like this makes me want to get a premium membership, just to make sure stuff like this keeps getting produced! Nice job Norm and Frank. Loved it!
Great video. MORE FRANK!
great video…. more about the laser cutter! or laser cutting in general, I want one but I need to know more before I shell out that kind of money.
Brilliant! Great work guys 🙂
*Buy new pair of shoes. Immediately make a mold of the soles. Wear shoes. Wear down soles. Cast new soles in suitable urethane rubber. Replace soles. Never buy more shoes.*
Hi, great video I did a reverse search on the font and came up with http://www.fontbureau.com/fonts/Ravie/ , it’s very similar but not exactly the same.
Awesome work ! Love the mold work.
Awesome video, great work!
Great Video! One thing bothers me tho…
Shouldn’t the text on the sole of the shoe be inverted, so that footprints (in the mud OR your enemies face) are able to be read?
At least that is what I would do.
Great video. What type of rubber did Frank use to make the new soles?
lol… its going to be backwards. Also I might recess the words into the sole so you still get some traction while running.
i ended up going with vytaflex 60 and a little brown pigment. and a drop of red pigment.
its a little higher durometer than the originals, but looks great, and these won’t ever really be walked on.
Thanks!
I don’t know about you, but tend to get plenty of traction whenever I run on “Fuck U”.
– terrible pun of the day award
So I watched this and thought well that took way longer than it should have and I dont have to make a ton of molds and stuff. So I took the vector that you guys posted and made it into an openscad file that you can 3D print in Ninjaflex and just glue on or if you dont have ninjaflex do some molds off of an ABS or PLA print (no power tools needed) https://www.youmagine.com/designs/kill-bill-shoe
*make notes about how the soles could be improved* *make improved soles* *get better shoes*
now that i think of it, it shouldn’t be completely impossible to fix my problem of regularly wearing down the heels of my para boots.
Frank is awesome! He has an amazing skill level!
Definitely one of the cooler projects you guys have done. Absolutely stellar! Keep up the good work!
Saying it took longer than it should have isn’t really fair. They did it right and there’s multiple ways to do that. Printing on a FFF printer with Ninjaflex would not be close to reproducing the original soles. You could 3D print them but it would have to be a master done on a high-end machine and you would still need to mold and cast them.
Always learning some new things about Kill Bill never saw or paid attention to the soles before.
I think the ones molded here are same color as the movie version. Both are lighter than the Onitsuka soles.
Ahh, the look of joy on Norm’s face when Adam said it was better than the original!
Awesome video! Great job Frank, Norm, Joey, and everyone else involved 🙂
Funnily enough, I learned about durometer and urathane rubbers from dealing with skateboard wheels at a young age (softer durometer wheels make for a much smoother ride, but they obviously break down faster and come with a higher risk of “sticking” on a turn etc. to throw you forward). Who knew it would come in handy if I wanted to make some killer kicks fifteen years down the road 🙂
Come to think of it, making some custom skateboard-wheels would be a real fun project.
Awesome! Thank you so much guys for sharing this with us. By the way, I don’t want to make publicity but i made something alike for Kill Bill’s Fans on Redbubble. Thanks.
I love all the work you do with Frank but my wallet hates them. I just went and picked up supplies to try some sculpting and now I want to make these shoes. Have to agree that this is one of the best videos you guys have done to date. It hits all the right notes, entertaining, random little known facts, technical tutorials with just the right level of geeking out.
Ok I get that this is from a movie but your vocabulary could use some improvement. Your on camera casual swearing is diminishing your professionalism and credibility.
Swearing? I didn’t even notice, but that’s probably because it’s so not important my brain just skipped it. Something about the balans between what they’re doing and a swear…
“Pork Chops?” …. classic.
There has to be an easier way to do this.
Detailed work though, damn.
Although when I look at the shot from the film and the sole of the shoe, they don’t seem to match up. The Shoes in Kill Bill had the text nearly vertical and on the outside of the sole of the foot while the Frank/Tested version seems to have them neatly centered on the sole of the foot.
My initial reaction before watching the whole video was thinking to myself: “Wait, aren’t these for Adam? He’d so want a pair of those.”
Ha!
Should send a pair to Tarintino
You could also 3D print the final piece with with rubber filament.
I must admit I’ve seen that film several times and never noticed this detail… I blame shoddy DVD quality… a good excuse to invest in the Blu-Ray! Thanks for the video 🙂
That is pretty fucking rich coming from someone who called Gary a “twat” in the comments for the latest podcast. I know who comes across better.
From your law about freedom of speech: the Supreme Court extended the full protection of the First Amendment to the Internet. The Court again ruled that any limitations on the internet were unconstitutional.
So frank can say what ever he wants. and you can post whatever you want.
as for the shoe, i can only find the mexico ’66 edition here in belgium in yellow, but the sole doesn’t match. someone know the exact type? i’ll probably also do the ninja flex 3D print approach
” Twat”, Second definition: “a person regarded as stupid or obnoxious…. If you need another example, do you have a mirror handy?
Twat isn’t a swear word. It’s slang and mildly vulgar but Fuck considered worse.
*double post*
I know very well what it means. I just find it highly hypocritical to take issue with a word that carries no ill meaning in the context used, but consider it perfectly fine to call one of the podcast regulars a twat.
I know which action bothers me the most.
Considered worse by who? Personally, I don’t take a single issue with the word ‘fuck’, and it bothers me a hell of a lot more when people go around throwing insults at people.
I’m in agreement with jodie, but I agree that calling someone a twat wasn’t cool .
On a side not Kim_a. Did you ever think that your opinion might not be relevant here because you are not involved with the production of the site?
Haha, so about as relevant as yours and Jodie’s then… I’m speaking as one member of the community, who just happens to find obnoxiously rude behaviour more offensive than “bad words” and who find it laughable to go around throwing genital insults toward podcast-guests in one post and then a couple of days later spamming a message about “professionalism” and civil language across multiple topics.
Tested has a lot of content that might not be suitable for everyone, especially on the podcasts. They cover a wide range of topics and perhaps they should put a language warning in there whenever discussing, say, Tarantino films. Viewer discretion advised?
Kim, I’m sorry you are hyper sensitive and feel the need to project others damage onto yourself. It must be tough to leap to the defense of others every time someone makes an off the cuff remark. But the internet thanks you for standing vigilantly as a beacon of moral fortitude and proper internet etiquette. Do you wear a badge when you are policing the internet for wrong doers?… Just curious… Stay strong and the rest of us mere mortals will sleep soundly knowing that ” KIM_A Watcher of the web” is guarding their posts. I hope you feel a grand sense of pride and justice for showing us all the light…. Fucking Twat! 😀 But in all seriousness I do agree with your suggestion about a viewer discretion bumper.
Kogetzar ( big hug) I agree a viewer discretion tag at the beginning of a video would be most appreciated. Or better yet they could just watch their language on their podcasts and videos.
Frequently I like to listen to the podcasts while I’m working from home. Also because I have small kids I can defiantly agree with the Tested crew watching their curse words in their media. Especially because Adam is someone my 5 year old son looks up to.
Yeah, I remember when public figures were concerned with their image. Particularly when they knew they were role models for kids… sigh.
Wait, when did I become the moralist here? I’m not the one trying to control the words the guys use in casual conversation amongst friends.
duplicate
When you said one word was more offensive than another you made your stance clear.
Duplicate
My post had nothing to do with words being used, its point being that IMO acting like an asshole and throwing insults at people reflects poorer on someone than using “bad words” in the context of a movie prop… and I found it pretty laughable that you, the aforementioned asshole, took it upon yourself to be the arbiter of professionalism and credibility.
But hey, maybe you’ll get your language warning.
Don’t feed the Trolls.
I like to think of Still Untitled, and by extension Tested as a whole, as Mythbusters after hours.
He can’t help it, he has an over developed sense of vengeance. The fact that he took the time to fish through Jodie’s posts and call her out on an off the cuff remark is just creepy and a bit obsessive.
KIM_A Is a digital STALKER!!! EWE!
When I said that Gary was a twat it saw because he was coming across as a bit abrasive. If you watch the video it’s visible in the other’s peoples face and even will had to shut him down multiple times. I still stand by that statement that he was acting a bit like a twat. If you find this offensive it’s not my problem… Besides I think the post got removed.
However using Webster dictionary defined swear words, words that most mothers wouldn’t want their children hearing or repeating is vulgar and should be minimized. I’d love to see them adopt a ” best practices policy”.
The fact that tested’s talent is consists of fathers and public figures / role models should lend to a higher caliber of content.
The foolish and wicked practice of profane cursing and swearing is a vice so mean and low that every person of sense and character detests and despises it. – George Washington
Moral men will be forever admired through history – Carl Johnson
Also the fact that you crawled through my posts to single me out makes you a creepy and devilishly witless vermin and a narcissistic snake-eyed nauseating assault on the senses.
I didn’t trawl through your posts. That type of youtube-level vitriol is uncommon enough in Tested comments that it stood out to me at the time, and it being less than a week ago, I remembered it when I saw your multiple moralist spammings.
But by all means, keep up your inane ranting.
Its like. “Ow The heaven is real” <3
Kim_a, yeah you kinda did. But the 3 of you deserve each other. I agree with the swearing being toned down but for the most part I don’t mind it too much, However I do notice it escalating and it is getting to feel a little like superficial posturing. Like middle school kids trying to be cool.
You never hear anyone complain for not swearing enough.
If I can pull the costume off, Adam can pull it off.
http://i.imgur.com/o0aTgLt.jpg
So are there legal barriers in selling castings of these soles? I was hoping to see them on The RPF. I wore down the soles of my Tigers while the uppers are in fantastic shape still and was thinking about making a replacement soles anyways. So regardless, thanks for the fantastic tutorial on shoe repair.
can I please got the hi rez pictures norm took of the actual shoes I’m almost ready to try to make molds for my tigers and feel like the fonts a bit off