When I was a kid, I was hungry to read everything I could about how movies were made. That wasn't exactly easy in pre-Internet, rural Saskatchewan. But through the local library, the Scholastic Book Club and occasional trips to the city, I managed to get my hands on a few books and magazines that showed me how it was done. I could only dream that one day I would be part of such a production, but that didn’t seem too likely for a small town farm boy like me.
One area in particular that fascinated me was movie makeup, especially special effects makeup and prosthetics. Through Scholastic, I picked up a book called Movie Monsters, which showed me how to create my own versions of the classic Universal monsters--Frankenstein, the Wolf Man, the Mummy, etc. Soon, I was making my own fake blood out of food coloring and corn syrup, taping my nose back to look like the Phantom of the Opera and otherwise distorting my visage in new and disturbing ways. I probably knew far more than I should have about foam latex appliances, spirit gum, pancake makeup and people like Lon "Man of 1,000 Faces" Chaney, Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi and Peter Cushing.
Another person I knew far too much about during that time was splatter effects pioneer Tom Savini. He's one of a handful of guys who figured out new and innovative ways to kill people onscreen in films like Friday the 13th, Dawn of the Dead, Creepshow and, most recently, Planet Terror. While I've never been a huge fan of splatter films, I admired Savini's novel approach to his work and the degree of creative problem solving it entailed. After all, like George Lucas's special effects team in Star Wars, Savini and co. didn’t just use traditional makeup techniques in new ways. They pioneered the very techniques themselves. From Rice Crispies to corn syrup to real pig entrails, they tried anything and everything until they got the look they wanted.
Which brings me to Tuesday, January 7, 2009. After 30 years of reading and dreaming about being involved in such an enterprise, I found myself in a makeup chair doing a makeup test for a role I’m about to perform in a major Vancouver production. Over the next 10.5 hours, I was air brushed, painted, dabbed with bloody sponges and otherwise covered in gore. Best of all, when I mentioned the name “Tom Savini” to the makeup artist, she actually knew who he was! Finally, a vent for all of my pent-up and apparently useless knowledge! When she was through with me, the props guys came in and attached all sorts of gizmos to my face and body. Let’s just say that when my transformation was complete, I didn’t dare take a photo for the kids, because it would be far too frightening.
In a few hours, I’m going back to the set so they can do it all over again, this time for real. While on set, I’ll have my own makeup artist, contact lens technician and props team on hand at all times. I even get my own trailer! (Well, a small cube inside a trailer.) The fulfillment of a childhood dream? You bet it is. A good reminder that anything is possible, even for farm boys from small town Saskatchewan.
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