Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1155299
make-up and tempera paint. On loca- tion, we had a tent set up with about 25 hair and make-up stations. The performers would funnel in and we would descend on them in a flurry of brushes, sponges and spritzer bottles. Nothing dainty about it at all. By the end of the process, we probably could have joined in with the BG, unnoticed. Of course, the battle took place during a tremendous rainstorm. That, com- bined with all the running and fight choreography kept us retouching all day long. I was extremely proud of our teams. Everyone rose to the occasion and we made something special. In addition to the overall make-up design, this year production tasked me with taking on the prosthetic compo- nents as well. I was able to assemble a very talented group of prosthetic art- ists. Supervisors Tony Chappell and Jason Detheridge, along with key art- ists Damon Bishop, Michael Walsh and Allan Cooke realized some fan- tastic effects throughout the season. We had many severed heads and body parts. A couple of head-and-shoulder dummies, one that had a re-settable exit wound to the face and one, in two stages, that could be stomped. A full silicone body for an autopsy scene and another full body for a graphic lynch- ing scene. Some beautiful scarring appli- ances, a seamless chest shotgun wound and even a full wrap around fat make-up. The timeline for creating these effects was extremely short. Testing gags and make-ups never happened. On American Gods, test make-ups are called "take one." In the end, it all came together and all the hard work really paid off. •