Plastic makeup: possibilities and main features

Expert: Olga Vishnyakova, commercial director and plastic makeup specialist at the plastic makeup and physical special effects studio “Plastic Forms” (Moscow).

Plastic makeup is a complex technique of applying elastic details to the actor’s skin, changing not only the original anatomical forms of a person, but also facial expressions. Using the technique of creating complex plastic makeup, one actor can create any image conceived by the director and screenwriter, or several different images.

Prosthetic makeup falls under the category of physical special effects (denoted by the magical acronym FX). In the CIS countries, this type of modern special effects began to develop relatively recently: with the advent of new technologies, materials and, of course, specialists fascinated by the possibilities of makeup. Those film companies that have tried the idea of complex plastic makeup in making films are keeping up with the times, are considered companies of a higher level, and are also finding more and more positive responses from the film public.

Possibilities of plastic makeup

Let's now look into the process of creating complex plastic makeup, understand what capabilities it has, and go through the artistic nuances.

So, for the initial creation of an image (for example, to transform a young man into an old one, a thin person into a fat one, one person into a copy of another), it is necessary to study in detail many photographs, portraits of the required image, to understand what the main anatomical feature and peculiarity of the facial expressions of each face are , each characteristic fold on it. Not all actors agree to plastic makeup, believing that they cannot cope with the “new” face of their hero or will not accurately convey the image of a famous person. Very often, the special effects manufacturing company refuses to participate in the creation of a particular image, which is associated with a lack of time to work on the artistic sculpting of the image, a lack of reliable materials to recreate an exact copy of the image, or the inability to convey to the author the idea of changing the image in one direction strengthening character, its brightness and memorability.

Actors who have played a role in modern cinema in plastic makeup rise in the ranking of demand, popularity, they are talked about more and admired. Anna Ardova, who played many roles using FX in the sketch comedy “One for All,” became a well-known people's favorite not only throughout Russia, but also in the CIS countries. According to the actress, at first it was difficult for her to get used to each of the roles, being in a kilogram of silicone (mostly plastic makeup parts are cast from soft platinum silicone, similar in its qualities to human skin).

The makeup process itself takes about 4 hours, of course, with short breaks, but this creative process is worth it. We see the result of this skillful process on movie screens, or rather, we don’t see it! Because we don’t even recognize well-known actors in makeup. This happened with the main role in the sensational film “Vysotsky. Thank you for being alive”: many could not see the actor Sergei Bezrukov in this image for a long time, but it really was him!

The main secret of plastic makeup

The secret of plastic makeup is that one actor, changing his appearance and, accordingly, his role, is unrecognizable to millions of viewers. Only a true actor is capable of complete transformation in plastic makeup.

After the pilot version of the sketch comedy “One for All” was released, its creators more than once had to answer questions like: “Who played that old lady Seraphim?”, “What a wonderful actress in the role of a Jewish mother!” Who is she?!". And in response to the answer that this is the same actress (hence the name “One for All”), there were many surprised, incredulous looks, complete lack of understanding of such reality. It's funny. And how flattering it is for the creators of such special effects!..

Difficulties of working with plastic makeup

The biggest difficulty in plastic makeup is to hide the so-called junction of the elastic part with the actor’s skin, so that the viewer cannot guess where he is being acted out. But plastic makeup has its limitations: it stays firmly on the face for 4 hours, after which it begins to slowly peel off in the most moving places (nasolabial folds, in the corners of the eyes, at the junction with the eyelids). Therefore, the most moving scenes and close-ups are discussed in advance with the director and filmed at the beginning of the shift, as soon as the plastic makeup is completed.

An actor who spends a long time filming in plastic makeup (several days in a row or a 12-hour shift) has a hard time: he gets tired quickly, constantly needs drink, fresh air, and food containing a large amount of carbohydrates. It is imperative to ensure that the actor is provided with all this. As a rule, complex plastic makeup is performed by 2 people in one shooting day: firstly, because of the labor-intensive process of applying its details, and secondly, because of the distribution of tasks when creating such makeup (one specialist mixes the glue for makeup, the other prepares part, holds it, the first one brings the edges together, then one of them paints the part to the desired shades, the other removes the greasy shine of the silicone, etc.).

In the entire history of the Plastic Makeup and Physical Special Effects Studio “Plastic Forms”, the most complex plastic makeup was the image of Bigfoot for the film “Female”, where Alexander Strizhenov played the main role. Firstly, the approach to the issue of creating the very image of the modern Bigfoot was long. As a result, the director (and also the screenwriter) decided to place the main emphasis on the face and shape of the yeti’s head, taking as a model something between Avatar and a brutal male type. After the final approval of the image, the filming process began in the beautiful expanses of Kandalaksha (Karelian region) in winter conditions, on location shooting. This period was the most memorable for the studio, since the make-up of the actor and his “snow friend” (the image of a snowman-woman) often had to be done right in the cold (which in itself is problematic), the glue hardened with difficulty, and there were many active scenes. For example, a fight in the snow between two humanoid creatures damaged the paws of both, and this was part of the image; the paws were made in the form of silicone parts (gloves with claws and natural fur) that were glued into the hands of the actors. So there were difficulties...

The work of a plastic makeup specialist and a make-up artist is closely related, because the former can sometimes do the work of the latter. Often, after creating special effects, it is necessary to work on the actor’s hairstyle or apply makeup without affecting the details of plastic makeup - and here only a specialist in such makeup can masterfully handle it, otherwise the edges, so well hidden, may appear! And this is the most dangerous thing for the camera's eye.

Also, a plastic makeup specialist who is well versed in the technique of applying it must have the qualities of a psychologist, since quite often an actor has to be adjusted to work in special makeup both when he first gets acquainted with the technique and on subsequent shooting days. The actor gets tired, it seems to him that his face is suffering from glue, from silicone parts, and the face for a representative of this profession is always the most important thing. Here you have to constantly be in contact with the “ward”, explain to him what limitations the makeup has, what conditions are necessary, try to support and always monitor the physical condition of the actor (if necessary, insist on the end of the shift and immediately remove the makeup).

You can tell a lot of things, remember the features of creating plastic makeup on film sets. Such complex makeup evokes a lot of jokes, excitement, and emotions. However, for the further development of this industry, it is necessary to give specialists involved in the production of plastic makeup the opportunity to pay more attention to the artistic development of the image, take into account the peculiarities of filming, the wishes of the actor, as well as his skin type.

The article was first published in MAKEUP&YOU Professional magazine.