Fans of Face Off, tonight after the new episode we get a peek into a different type of character creation, the kind that doesn’t use makeup. Tonight is the premiere of Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge. Made in the mold of Face Off (sorry, some things are just begging to be said), this show starts with 10 contestants with creature-making skills, with weekly challenges and contestant eliminations.

Here’s the full description, followed by a featurette of excerpts from Brian Henson’s TED talk about puppetry, animatronics, and the new show, followed by a clip of the opening minutes of the show:

Syfy debut’s the new reality competition series, “Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge,” Tuesday, March 25 at 10 p.m. ET/PT following an all-new episode of Syfy’s acclaimed “Face Off.” The eight-episode series provides a fascinating window into the imaginative and wildly creative environment of world-class creature design, fabrication and mechanization.

Syfy introduces ten hopeful creature designers who have come to Los Angeles with an incredible shared dream: a contract working in Jim Henson’s Creature Shop™. The competing creature designers are allowed unprecedented access to the world-renowned Creature Shop, gaining hands-on experience to learn every aspect of what it takes to become a master creature designer. Following a series of elaborate challenges, only one will be awarded a prize worth up to $100,000 and the job opportunity of a lifetime.

Brian Henson, Chairman of the Jim Henson Company and the Creature Shop, serves as lead judge on the series and Gigi Edgley (“Farscape) is host of the series, charged with introducing each week’s challenge to the group of contestants.

Challenges on the series explore all aspects of the creature design field, from sculpting and animatronics to full-body creature creation. Some episodes are inspired by Henson film and television classics “The Dark Crystal” and “Farscape.” Evaluating the designs are the esteemed panel of judges, led by Brian Henson and including creature fabricator Beth Hathaway (“Terminator 2,” “Jurassic Park,” “Batman Returns”) and creature designer Kirk R. Thatcher (“Star Wars: Return of the Jedi,” “Dinosaurs,” “Muppets Wizard of Oz”). The judges will be evaluating the creatures for overall creativity and originality, technical execution and, most importantly, how convincingly the creature designers bring their creations to life. Each episode, the creatures will be featured in a screen test in which professional puppeteers showcase the creatures’ abilities to perform and transport an audience to another world.

Serving as mentors on the series will be world-renowned designer Peter Brooke, mechanization and animatronics master John Criswell and fabrication and artistic specialist Julie Zobel. The three are longtime Creature Shop artists who have dedicated their talents to the Henson legacy. Their tenures with The Jim Henson Company span decades and they bring a specialized knowledge having collaborated directly with Jim Henson himself. Working alongside the creature creators inside their workplace at the Creature Shop, they will be available for consultation and hands-on assistance.

“Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge” is a production of The Jim Henson Company. Brian Henson serves as executive producer with his sister, Lisa Henson, the company’s CEO. Also executive producing Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge are Joseph Freed (“Little People Big World,” “Rachael Ray”) and Rob Bagshaw (“Paradise Hotel,” “Top Chef Masters,” “Project Runway All Stars”).

Featurette: Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge – Brian Henson TED Talk Excerpts
Clip: Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge – 101 Sneak Peek

Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge premieres tonight at 10/9c on Syfy.