Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/636504
29 to the skin. It allows the pressure to be divided so that his skin is not distressed by the constant strain of his ears being pulled back. PA: In order to move in and out of continuity and the aging process of the character, I designed several additional pieces that would show this, like receding hairlines. I also used detailed research photos of President Obama and his aging process as well as photos of Dr. Omalu to create Will Smith's character of Dr. Omalu. JM: We gave Will what we called "The Obama Aging." It was an anecdotal term we made up to describe an aging process that was subtle. Not really the result of actual year aging, but rather the result of how stress ages one from their position in life and life experiences. This was achieved by creating subtle light and shadows in the face; specific to the way that different cultures and skin tones tend to show aging. PA: To show this, I had the meticulous task of hand- laying a blend of hand-picked natural hair fibers that con- sisted of multiple colors including grey, lighter brown and even hues of red. It was a blend of natural and synthetically colored hairs. In addition, I also hand-cut very fine fibers of hair and laid over the top of Mr. Smith's hair to blend and cancel any lines of demarcation. This was done from scratch daily! Let me tell you, one can only imagine one's neurosis for detail and continuity having to re-create the exact thing every day by hand and from scratch. JM/PA: Our interpretation of Dr. Omalu was carefully guided by our director, Peter Landesman, and inspired by Will Smith's passion and skill. • When we began this film, the idea was never to re-create Dr. Omalu but rather to 'take away' some of Will Smith to allow Dr. Omalu to develop. PIERCE AUSTIN: When comparing Dr. Omalu's hairline to Mr. Smith's hairline, I noticed a drastic difference. In order to take Will Smith out of his personal look and move him into a character look, I decided to manufacture two inches of additional facial hairline. This extended his natu- ral hairline that frames his face by two inches. It gave the appearance of a rounder and fuller face; while still keeping Mr. Smith recognizable. I met with the wigmaker and care- fully chose the texture of hair, even though the hair color was not identical to the character of Dr. Omalu. Chosing the direction that the hair would be added to the additional lace front piece, gave it natural movement. Once I designed the shape of the hairline, I directed the wigmaker to lay the hair in a very specific growth pattern. After achieving the desired look, I then matched the additional hairline color to the color of the character's hair. I also cut the hair in order to give a natural appearance JUDY MURDOCK: When I approached this, I decided to take Will's ears back because it is such a prominent feature. By doing this, it allowed the audience's eyes to find another focus. We did this procedure on Ali, so when I readdressed it this time, I thought I could find a new and improved method. However, after a whirlwind of tests and calls to make-up effects colleagues, I found that sometimes it isn't necessary to reinvent the wheel. So ironically, with little time to spare, I went into my make-up closet and found the very same piece I used 15 years ago! I used those pieces until I had new ones copied. These pieces are two very small half-moon latex appliances that secure the ears A N I N T E R V I E W B Y H A I R S T Y L I S T P I E R C E A U S T I N & MAKE-UP ARTIST JUDY MURDOCK TRANSFORMING CONCUSSION'S WILL SMITH INTO DR. BENNET OMALU Left to right: Will Smith, Dr. Bennet Omalu and director Peter Landesman