The Makeup Artist Handbook
Page 31
A “kit fee” is also called a “box rental,” and is based on a daily fee paid to you to cover the cost of working out of your kit. It covers your makeup brushes and makeup products—your kit. Almost always, expendables are provided by the makeup department (in film), but always pack plenty of supplies in case they are not there when you start work. Always be ready to work!
Expendables include tissue, cotton balls, sponges, puffs, alcohol, brush cleaner, Q-tips, and so on. In commercials you provide everything. If something is needed for the commercial that you have to purchase, you can turn in the receipt for reimbursement. Kit fees are negotiated for each job; most artists have a standard fee they charge along with their rate. In day checking on a film, the kit fee is determined by production and the makeup budget; it is not negotiable with day checkers (Figures 12.4 and 12.5).
Figure 12.4 East Coast makeup trailer—outside
Figure 12.5 East Coast makeup trailer—inside
When arriving on-set for the first time, if you do not know where to report, check in with the department head so that he or she knows you are on site. Knock softly and peek in. There isn't really any need to go into the trailer unless invited. Remember, the makeup team may have already been working for hours before you arrive. Keep your energy calm and soothing. Makeup trailers bounce, so watch how much you need to go in and out. Do not slam the door. Lift the handle gently to open and close. If invited in, keep most of your things outside the trailer until you get an idea of where you will set up and what you'll need. I usually leave my set chair outside. If you have already been told where to report, do not go to the makeup trailer. You do not need to check in with the department head. They have assigned a member of the makeup department to “run” the additional hires or day checkers, and this is the person you will be checking in with (Figures 12.6 and 12.7).
Figure 12.6 West Coast makeup trailer—outside
Figure 12.7 West Coast makeup trailer—inside
Pro Tip
East Coast trailers are more stable, and built for cold weather, so they are heavier with less “bounce.” West Coast trailers are not built for cold weather so they are lighter and can “bounce” when someone steps inside. “Stepping up” is called out before entering a makeup trailer for this reason. They tend to be wider with more floor space. In Europe, work is done out of customized buses. European buses and trucks are narrower to accommodate the environment—narrow streets and tight parking.
It is great to get notes or directions on where you are supposed to report and what makeup you will be doing that day. Many times you will be asked to go and set up, and the key Makeup Artist will find you to explain what they want. This could also be the third or fourth Makeup Artist. Whoever is in charge of supervising the additional Makeup Artists and the look of the background artists will be the person to go to with questions.
A typical makeup department has the following personnel:
Makeup Department Head (Chief Makeup Artist in Europe) in charge of designing and running the department
Assistant Makeup Department Head
Key Makeup Artist
Makeup Artist
Additional Makeup Artists
There can also be a makeup designer. If there is a makeup designer, the department head will work with them in running the department and implementing their designs.
Crowd Scenes
“Background” refers to background artists (actors) or extras working in a scene. You will hear many terms for background: BG, extras, background players, background artists, and background actors. There can be from 1 to 500 or more background in any given scene. Imagine a park scene with two principal actors sitting on a bench. Everyone around them has been placed by the ADs, with directions from the ADs for their actions and motivations. These background actors have already gone through the costume, hair, and makeup departments before being brought to set.
Instructions you will hear follow:
Working with Background: That means you are hired to do makeup for the actors in the background.
Report to Background Holding or Extras Holding: Where to show up for work, or where to go. Usually a large room or tent away from the set, designated for the background.
Check the Background: You are being asked to look at the background that the AD has assembled for you, and to decide who needs makeup and who is ready to go to set. The department head will decide who has this responsibility.
Working in background, you will often work on many actors in one day. The department head will give you directions on what he or she wants regarding the look for the actors. Descriptions of special background can be found at the front of the call sheet. In some cases, the supervising Makeup Artist will give you a list of the different looks for the background that day. Swiftness is important when working in large crowd situations. Having an idea of what makeup colors and products work or do not work speeds up the process. Always follow specific directions from the department head or supervising Makeup Artist.
On-set note: Never touch up a principal actor on set unless you have been asked to cover that person! You do not know the actor's continuity, so never assume that they need to be powdered or touched up. You are there to take care of the background artists that are around them. So know who the actors are and who you are responsible for, and don't try to impress your department head by being an overachiever and powdering everyone in sight. If you are unsure, ask!
There are certain makeup looks that are used regularly in film and television. A few of those would be police officers, homeless people, drug addicts, pedestrians, diners in a restaurant, waitresses, bartenders, news reporters, news anchors, and children. The other common makeup situations are for period makeup.
Working out of Your Kit
You will need a variety of products and palettes in your makeup kit so that you can create any of these looks. “Working out of your kit” is a term used by Makeup Artists to tell you that you will be creating looks with what is in your kit, and not specially purchased products that are given to you by the makeup department. You rely on industry standards that are in your kit. As we've mentioned before, the palettes from Skin Illustrator, Stacolors, and Reel Creations are industry standards that encourage mixing to create a more realistic makeup that is long lasting and abrasion resistant. They are essential in working out of your kit, and for those unplanned makeup situations where you have to work quickly on-set. There will also be many times that instructions are given to you in “makeup slang” for products. For example, you are asked to “use MV005” or “use Visiora005,” or just “use 005.” These three terms are referring to the same product; if you do not know what it is, you will not know that you are being asked to apply foundation using a specific color (industry standard). Makeup and film slang abbreviate just about everything, including products, and sometimes instructions. It is confusing at first, but you will get the hang of it. Remember, if you don't know, ask!
Having trouble remembering what colors to use or which looks to create for a certain period makeup? Tape a color chart and notes on each period inside your makeup kit for a quick reference guide.
Remember color mixing from Chapter 3?
Red: You can mix yellow and magenta to get red.
Blue: Mix magenta and cyan.
Green: Mix cyan and yellow.
Purple: Mix violet and magenta.
Black, White, and Gray: Mix white into black until you get the desired shade.
Knowing combinations gives you so many choices to work with!
Now separate the three background actor looks of homeless (Figure 12.8), drug addict (Figure 12.9), and illness (Figure 12.10) to see their differences.
Figure 12.8 Homeless person
Figure 12.9 Drug addict
Figure 12.10 Person with cold
Homeless
• Red or sun-damaged skin with various sizes and colors of sun spots.
• Skin tone has rough, leather-like surface due to exposure to the eleme
nts.
• Broken capillaries around the nose and cheeks to reflect substance abuse and weather damage.
• Lesions of various sizes due to illness and injury.
• Ground-in dirt on the body, under fingernails, and even built-up grime from lack of grooming.
• Facial hair would be untrimmed, unshaven, oily, and dirty.
• Darkness, puffiness, and redness under and above the eye.
• Small cuts or scabs on the face, with weathered lips.
• In some situations, the feet must be done as well. The soles of the feet should be blackened with heavy grime, cuts, and bruises.
Drug Addict
• The skin tone tends to be pale and clammy from drug abuse.
• Darkness forms under the eye area from lack of sleep.
• Skin lesions form from drug abuse and illness.
• Track marks on the body from shooting up.
• Bruising on various parts of the body, old and new.
Illness
There are many possibilities for illness: cold, flu, high fever, and disease. You will be directed as to what the illness is, and what the desired effect should be, from the department head or supervising Makeup Artist. For this example, your instructions are for a cold/flu.
Cold/Flu: Red tones around the nose with dry, flaky skin. Eyes can appear red and droopy, even watery. Pale skin tone, which could be clammy. Dryness to the mouth.
Would you apply foundation or do any corrective makeup on these characters? No. The worse they look, the better, in all three scenarios; and you do not want an even skin tone.
Red pencil can be used for rimming the eye area or applying right on the lower lash line for irritated eyes. Several shades of red makeup colors are used for broken capillaries, red noses, and lesions. Have on hand various colors of brown or colors to mix browns for dirt and grime. One black is used to deepen or darken an existing color, plus one white to lighten any existing color or to make grays. Yellow is used for nails, skin tones, and festering lesions or old bruises. Care needs to be taken when working around the eyes. Use a cream-based makeup or a freshly sharpened pencil.
Police Officers
One of the first things you'll do is clean shave all law-enforcement characters. There should be no facial hair, with exceptions given only by your department head. Moustaches are allowed for most police departments. Sometimes sideburns need to be trimmed. The back of the neck needs to be clean shaven. The officers should have a clean-cut appearance. On all shoots, be prepared with a good electric razor, shave powder stick, astringent of choice, and a small groomer for eyebrows, ears, and nose.
News Reporter and News Anchors
News anchors and reporters usually have a clean-cut appearance as well. If there is a time period issue, you will be told to address that. If it is present time, the anchor look is what to aim toward. Work quickly, and spot cover up only the problem areas. Apply a slightly heavy beauty makeup to achieve a matte, perfect look. Most of the time, lipstick, blusher, eye shadow, and brows are all you will have to do to achieve a news anchor look. The hair department will pull the look together. Reporters and anchor types sometimes are pulled ahead of everyone else to go through the makeup department because they are usually featured in the scene.
Period Makeup
This refers to a specific time period for the look or trend of that time. Assume that you are asked to do a period makeup, taking five minutes for each actress because the actresses are in a large crowd scene. If you could do only three things on the actress, what would you do to execute the makeup properly for the following time periods? And what sets each time period apart from the others? We will give you some very general looks for each decade. You must do your own research for each decade to recognize and know a more detailed history of the trends.
1950s (Figure 12.11): Red lips, pale eye shadows applied to the upper eyelids, nice liquid eyeliner across the upper eyelid next to the lash line, no eyeliner on the lower eye lash line, beautifully shaped and filled in eyebrows. Apply lipstick, eyeliner, and brows. This is a very clean, sometimes innocent, classic look. Note the shape of the lips.
Figure 12.11 1950s makeup look
1960s (Figure 12.12): Pale, flat or frosty (but never glossy) lipsticks, strong upper and lower eyeliners, contrasting eye shadows on the eyelids. For example: light shadow on the lid; a deep, dark eye shadow in the crease; followed by a light eye shadow applied on the brow bone. The look is about eyes, so note the style in eye shadow, eyeliner, eyelashes, and brows, as well as the lips. Apply lipstick, eyeliners, and eye shadows.
Figure 12.12 1960s makeup look
1970s (Figure 12.13): Women and men in the early 1970s were riding the wave ushered in by the counterculture from the 1960s. Freedom of expression through fashion and makeup was seeping into mainstream society. Men had cast off the “above-the-collar” hair restrictions of previous decades, and began wearing their hair much longer. In addition, facial hair had become popular, which included long sideburns that often widened as they extended down the face, as well as full moustaches. Hence, facial hair is a large part of re-creating the 1970s look for men. By the mid 1970s, women kept their hair natural whether long or short. Natural, meaning that it was devoid of hairspray, hairpieces, and setting gels of any kind. Eye shadow was colorful and warm (greens, blues, brown) with or without eyeliner; blush and lips in corals, pinks, and frosts. Sun-tanned skin.
Figure 12.13 1970s makeup look
Example of a Decade in Makeup
Makeup varies from the early 1970s to the late 1970s, so questions should be addressed to the makeup department head on what look they are trying to create. In general blues, greens, and brown colors were worn as eye shadows. Makeup was applied, but not heavy or over-the-top. Dark brown tones or black would be used around the eye area as liner, but much softer than in earlier years. Lipstick colors were found in corals, pinks, oranges, and soft reds. If you had only three things to do to create a 1970s makeup, what would they be?
1980s (Figure 12.14): In the 1980s, no matter what colors you were using, makeup was applied heavily. Makeup and hair were used as an art form. Depending on who you hung out with, everyone today has a different take on what colors were used in the 1980s. The colors ranged from the punk look (with black liners and dark eye shadows) to the preppy look (girls with rust or fuchsia-colored lipsticks with purple eye shadow). Of course, Madonna always comes to mind when one thinks of a 1980s look. Three things to use for a 1980s makeup: colorful lipstick, full eye shadow, and blusher. Use lipsticks in pinks, purples, fuchsia, rusts, and reds. Apply eye shadows all over the lid and crease, with a dramatic but lighter shade to the brow bone. Complete the look with a dramatic contouring blusher across and just under the cheekbone in a matching color to the lipstick.
Figure 12.14 1980s makeup look
Pro Tip
There is a transition for each decade in the looks and trends. It does not happen at the beginning of each decade, but a few years later. So there is an overlap of trends between the beginning of one decade, and the end of the previous decade. Lifestyle, environment, economics, and character play into it as well. Know the year to achieve the look. If the project is not being year specific but wants a general feel of a period, choose to go for the obvious trends associated with the decade. Research, research, research! Know the trends by heart—it puts you at a great advantage.
On the Job with Daniela Eschbacher
When I started out in the fashion industry, I contacted as many photographers and stylists as possible to do “test shooting” first to build up my portfolio and contacts. In the beginning, it's hard contacting everybody and running after magazines. But all that hard work pays off. After working for magazines and commercials, people will get to know you and pass your name and number along. That's what happened to me. Still, in a city like Paris, it is hard to break in. In fashion, sending out your newest editorials to Photographers and magazines will keep them updated on your work.