Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1277606
24 • THE ARTISAN SUMMER 2020 This page from top: Rebecca (Mandy Moore) at various ages; Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) as his character might have aged. Opposite page, clockwise from left: Rebecca's make-up; Rebecca's hands prosthetics; the make-up department. producers are all very involved in our approval process and very receptive to outside ideas and input. Even with tight turnarounds on character and prosthetic make-ups, we have an intense testing process on top of a busy shoot schedule. My goal is to design looks that are subtle in appearance where many small changes will transform the characters in such a way as not to distract from the action and emotion of the scene. These changes must hold up to extreme close-ups in an HD world. I realized early on, this could be achieved only by working closely with the cast, hair, wardrobe and camera departments in order to transport the viewer and help them connect to the characters. People don't often realize how much special make- up effects are part of this show. The majority of episodes over the last four seasons have featured special effects in some form. Stevie Bettles provides us with both traditional silicone prosthetics and peel-and-stick pieces. Prep time varies from three months to just a few days, so the "Out of Kit" system allows us maximum flexibility and creativity. We can blend custom pieces with generics or a piece we intended for another actor. J.D. Bowers does much of the sculpting for Stevie and the prosthetics are platinum silicone and custom colored for us. We pre-paint them with washes of alcohol-based colors before application to shorten time in the chair. Either Heather or I punch hair into the necks and cheek pieces for the men; this is then shaved, leaving a natural roughness that helps with a seamless blend to the actor's own skin texture. To age Mandy Moore from 16 into her 80s, I've used combinations of painted age make-up, Bluebird ager, added subtle prosthetics and applied a full-age make-up, alongside Stevie involving 27 separate pieces—from a large neck cowl down to the smallest of knuckles. Mandy's character is often in her late 60s look, sometimes for 12-plus hours per shoot MAKE-UP Continued from page 22