Curiouser and Curiouser

I found myself with a few hours in the days before Halloween, so I decided to set up the wishing well prop from the film I just finished next to my Haunted Tombstone (a new one that I just put together out the morning of Halloween (I'm telling you, it doesn't get any easier than this!)).  I also hung up the Halloween windsocks from an old friend.  I may not have had time for a full haunt, but at least I could pass out candy.

I'd say we had about 10 trick-or-treaters, but we heard another 20 kids walk right by throughout the night without knocking.  I don't know how normal these numbers are for homes that don't go all out like I used to, but three or four other houses on our street got really into the decorations, and there are plenty of kids who live on the street.  I tried different configurations of porch light, strobe light, sound effects.  Nothing seemed to make a difference.  It felt like an episode of The Twilight Zone: The Halloween No One Knocked.


Incidentally, I need to get rid of this wishing well.  Shoot me an email if you'd like to have it.

The End of The End of Forever, part 1: Blisters and Muscles

Whew!  Where to begin?  This past Sunday, we finally wrapped on "The End of Forever," the short film I mentioned a few weeks ago.  It was probably the most intensive and draining project I've done to date.  Sure, I've had haunts that include a lot more, but this was compressed into a few short weeks doing props, sets, costumes, makeup effects, a creature suit, and probably a dozen other things that have since slipped my mind.  I prepped for a couple months for two weekends of shooting.

Like the film I did last fall, I'm going to break this into a few posts.  This first one will focus on the makeup effects for the film.

First was this large torn face an neck, done as a two piece gelatin prosthetic. In the story, one character makes a wish that causes his girlfriend to undergo gruesome changes.   I also had a prosthetic on top of this prosthetic that acted as the skin she tears off to reveal the muscles and bone underneath.

That's our wonderful beauty makeup artist, Jenny Hou doing touch ups.

There was also a tiny prosthetic I called a "starter," which started the tearing sequence.  It was basically just a little flap of skin she could pull down.

Next was this cheek piece.  Originally this was supposed to be the first time her skin peels off, and the larger one would last the rest of the film, but when we did the makeup test, it became clear that this piece would be much better in movement and comfort for multiple scenes and days of shooting.  Though originally cast in a stone mold, I remolded it for the second weekend with silicone so the sometimes tissue thin gelatin appliances could be made more easily.  It was a great experience getting to apply this piece four times, learning and improving my technique with each one.

I would apply and color the prosthetic, and then Jenny would apply beauty makeup on top of it all.  The first photo is my underpainting, and the second is with makeup.

Okay, now the fun stuff.  Not only does her face peel off, but blisters burst on her arms.  I was having trouble figuring out exactly how to do the effect when Steve Johnson put out a video on a technique used at his studio using plastic.

Here's a video of the effect I ended up with.  Note that this was taken while demoing the effect for the crew after the actual shot for the film, so the seam at the beginning is visible, but check it out.  Everyone seemed really excited about how it looked.



Basically, the effect was achieved by hiding a plastic bladder under a pre-slit gelatin cover prosthetic.  I stood behind the actress and just blew air into the tube.

Up next: Building the top of the creepy wishing well.

This Year's Big Project (You Can Help!)

I'm in the process of preparing for a really big thesis film, for which I am designing both the sets and creature effects.  It's called The End of Forever, and it's shaping up to be really cool.  Read on to see how you can help out.

The film (which is directed by a good friend of mine) shoots in the middle of October, so it's full speed ahead (and then some!) now.

I spent this weekend building the creepy wishing well.  I supplemented this picture with the sketch of how it will be when completed with a metal arch and thorny briars growing up it.  I also threw in a little man so you could see the scale-- it's big!

In the evenings, I've been sculpting the makeup appliances for one scene in which a character's skin peels off her face.  Concept art and sculpts-in-progress below.

I'm also making a full creature suit for the monster at the bottom of the wishing well.  Here's a bit of concept art for that. He's going to look almost like he's made out of twisted, gnarled roots with no eyes and a collection of coins and treasure people have thrown down the well.

We already did lifecasts of his head, arms, and torso to start on the creature suit sculpture once some of the other projects are completed.

But I'm also building (with any help I can get) a big set on a soundstage of the bottom of the well.  It's going to look like the walls of the well have eroded away to a mess of reveal dirt and roots and a ground littered with coins from people's wishes.

Here's where you come in.

It would be a huge help if you could donate a couple of bucks to the film.  None of the crew is getting paid (it's a student film, after all), but between the set we need to construct, the makeup effects, and the forest location we need to pay to use, it's not going to be cheap.  So, the producing team put together a Kickstarter page to help get some funding in exchange for some cool shirts and DVDs.

But!  I have a special bonus gift for you all.  If you pledge at least $10 (and email me or comment here to let me know), I will send you the plans to build your own creepy wishing well based on my design.  It's 5 feet wide by about 11 feet tall, so it will certainly make a statement in any haunt (I think it would look great in a cemetery).

Anything you can contribute would be a big help.  Even one dollar is one bottle of craft paint closer to completing the set, you know?

I really want to use this film to show the new generation of filmmakers (hundreds of whom will be at the premiere screening) that practical creature and makeup effects still have a place and can be seriously impressive, even on a relatively small budget.

Please check out the campaign, watch the video (featuring yours truly), and consider sending some spare change our way.  Thanks!

The End of Forever Kickstarter page

HYDE

I just wrapped a senior thesis film for which I was charged to design the makeup for an infected, cancerous version of Mr. Hyde.

First I did a few quick sketches of what the makeup could look like, and let the director choose what he liked.

I then took an impression of the actor's face.

If you recognize that hair in the foreground, it's because it belongs to the lovely model of my first old age makeup.  She's now the Aunt Jack to my Uncle Frank (Mrs. Doubtfire, anyone?).

I sculpted the makeup on the plaster copy of his head.  This is the sculpt before the finishing touches, which come right before the mold is poured.

And then made molds of both pieces (the side of the face and the nose).

They were cast in gelatin and applied in about two hours on set.  The original plan was to have blood or pus coming out of the broken blisters, but the director and cinematographer liked it without.  I think it turned out pretty well, regardless.  Of course, in the end, the one shot the makeup was needed for turned out to be pretty dark, so you couldn't see much of it anyway.

Oh well.  It was still a great experience.  Listening to people's reactions to seeing him for the first time was worth it, alone.  The actor, Richard Halverson, was very tolerant of the whole process and great to work with, as well.