Battles With Bits Of Rubber

Brick In The Yard isn't the most obvious name to give to a successful FX material supplier. There is a good reason for it though, as you will hear in this podcast. Mitch Rogers is the evil genius behind Brick In The Yard (BITY), one of the largest suppliers of FX materials in Texas and from the store, they ship out all kinds of materials worldwide. Mitch took some time to show me around the shop and hang out so we could talk Gorezone magazine, silicone babies, the craft of making moulds and the perils of homemade explosives. And why they are not a good idea. Mitch has a great sense of humour, and the workshop is peppered with motivational posters and ironic stories, many of which stem from insane phone calls from - erm - dare we call them customers? (One demanded Mitch know that "This is create!!!" and became a T-Shirt). That's how Mitch deals with insane phone calls. He either turns them into T-Shirts or posters, or (if you are a telemarketer with a moral compass as twisted as a barbed wire pretzel) maybe ev

Rob Burman is a damned nice fella and kindly took some time to share some of his wisdom, and we are all grateful he did. Thanks, Rob!     If you don't know the name 'Burman' then you must be pretty new to the FX world, because frankly the name is as synonymous with makeup and practical effects as The Rolling Stones is to music. (The blog post to accompany this podcast is at http://www.learnmakeupeffects.com/rob-burman/)  ) Rob is a third generation Burman, and the name is found in the credits of some of the most well-known horror and Sci-Fi movies ever shot. Being from the Burman legacy doesn't get you a free ride though - this guy has forgotten more than many will know and has a hefty list of credits to prove it. I mean, he worked on The Thing for crying out loud… …and T2… …and Tremors… …if this doesn't mean anything to you, then we can't be friends. Just sayin'…. Even more, he regularly teaches as a guest tutor, demonstrates at trade shows like IMATs where he regularly blows everyone away with his larger-th

The last time we talked about making foam latex, the craft and materials involved in actually producing the foam. This time around, we figured it would be a good call to look at painting and art finishing. Painting foam latex is different from painting skin or translucent appliances like silicone or gelatine, as naturally you have to create the appearance of translucency on something which is opaque. Thomas Surprenant is long serving makeup artist with a hefty list of credits, from Deep Space 9, Donnie Darko, The Grinch, X-Men The Last Stand… but not only is he a working makeup artist, he also has developed his line of prosthetic paints and brushes which are  well regarded by industry figureheads. You know when Rick Baker calls you up to order some that you're doing something right. As you'll hear, his exposure to painting skills and a pragmatic approach combined with creativity produce amazing results, but more importantly than that you'll come to see the depth of understanding required. It makes it attainab

Podcast #10 - Foam Latex: It's Smelly But Good! Foam Latex was the main material appliances and pretty much anything skin-like was made of for long time. It is only relatively recently that silicone has taken it's place, and with good reason. There are a lot of benefits to silicone as an appliance material, and because of these reasons it may be that if you're new to makeup effects, you may not have yet laid hands on foam pieces. It may be that you'll never want or need to run foam latex yourself, but will apply a premade piece and we will look at that in another podcast, as this area deserves some thorough discussion. However, if you are keen to know more about foam latex then this podcast is for you. Check out some astoundingly good ready made pieces from Roland Blancaflor's RBFX studio. Anyhow, check out and download our latest podcast on this from soundcloud or iTunes: My first ever job was as a foam runner, and I spent three months mixing and running foam latex in the 'Animated Extras' foam room in Shep

#9 - Symmetry, Schools & Fools   Symmetry in sculpting appliances Whilst teaching a class recently, a student was hung up on getting the nose perfectly symmetrical. I explained as I often do that the human face isn't symmetrical, so going for complete mirror image reflection necessary. That said, asymmetry owing to sloppy work isn't good either - the fact that there is little perfect symmetry in nature doesn't let you off the hook! I remember at college sculpting a full size head and a full size figure from life and using a plumb line - basically a piece of string with a lead weight on the end to keep a straight line. That helps you keep on target with the centre line, and you can use callipers to measure and plot common points to sketch out boundaries like where the eye corners start and finish, where the mouth is in relation to the nose etc. This sounds like a video to be honest - again comment, write and let us know what you think.  stuartandtodd@gmail.com …also check out our facebook page!   Folio Whi

Blog post on this podcast is here:  It seems it would be handy to have some sensible steps to actually start making things. So check out the podcast on this very subject and also the lowdown on cap plastic.After all, the longest of journeys start with a single step, so having some steps in mind will help you start if you are not sure where to begin making.One thing to say is that you don’t have to go through all of the processes to begin with. Just sculpting is at least getting you involved in the act of making, without the added cost or time of making moulds, casts and applying. You can of course do those too if your means permit, but the point is that if you haven’t got all that, you can still start making things in some capacity. Make Small Things Well We'd recommend making small things well, and then expand sophistication and scale once you gain confidence. Wounds and casualty effects are a good way to begin, because if you do make pieces to stick on, and things go a little wrong, you can smother a bit of

In the second and final part of the interview with Geoff Portass, we talk more Ken Russel, Pinhead and FX stories plus some insights into the right way to go about learning some of this crazy stuff. Leave feedback and email your technical questions at stuartandtodd@gmail.com We love to help! Check out Stuart's Pinewood Studios workshops this year - dates on the website: http://www.learnmakeupeffects.com/workshops/  

Hey folks, it’s just me today as Todd is pretty sick with a bad cold, so get well soon Todd. Hope you get fixed up and back on track soon. We’ve got a great interview with someone who was the first person I ever got in touch with. Geoff Portass started Image Animation with business partner Bob Keen, and the company worked on some iconic genre movies and shows in the late 80’s and early 90’s. They also spawned the careers of some of the best known fx artists working today. I still have my letters from 1990 when Geoff replied to my questions when I was 16!  I sent foam samples of foam latex I had made at home and asked about the makeup they used and replied every time. Check the blog post to see these I also remember meeting Nick Dudman at my college in 1993, when I basically cornered him for half an hour and asked him all these questions that nobody else could answer – pre Goole etc.  I then went on to work for Nick on a few Harry Potter and Mummy movies. Anyhow, I drove up to Geoff’s place and we chatted for

Colour theory is a crucial part of makeup, especially if you are in the business of trying make a portion of the face out of rubber and make it look like it belongs there and is the same as the real skin which surrounds it. This podcast accompanies the article we wrote for Neill Gortons 'Prosthetics' magazine, jam packed with tutorials and great behind the scenes goodies for all things prosthetic! This is especially true when mixing your skin tone into your appliance material in the case of silicone or gelatine appliances.   The materials are different, but the principles of colour theory and how to create skin tones remain the same. This colour is IN the pieces rather than ON them. We have gone on a fair bit in the past about the importance of colour and colour theory in posts about using photoshop to match skin tones, and  7 tips for painting skin tones. The reason...?  Because it really matters and it's actually rather simple. It's important to get the base tone of your appliances right, as you don't want

Todd and I have been chatting, as we both let the blogging slip because of work - so we are back with a plan to do more podcasts to give responses to email questions on a regular basis. So, we caught up in this podcast to get the ball rolling again - listen or download it from here. It was recorded on Friday 13th....so it isn't about the movie Friday the 13th, so sorry to the Michael Myers fans.....this time we're talking plaster heads and master moulds, plastiline and apps to help design. Check out the blogpost on it here: http://www.learnmakeupeffects.com/appsolute-idiot/ We sure do love a good question too so please ask your techy FX questions to us at our email stuartandtodd@gmail.com

Read the blog post to accompay this podcast: www.learnmakeupeffects.com/shooting-guns-at-meat This time we take an interesting approach to capturing the tissue damage caused by gunshots and being able to safely recreate the three dimensional effects by moulding the results. It's a novel way of testing out some theories. All we need is some sides of meat, a range of firearms, some privacy and an afternoon in the Colorado woodlands. All in the name of FX reference. Fun times! Got an idea for a podcast episode for us?  stuartandtodd@gmail.com

Check out the blogpost on this subject too: www.learnmakeupeffects.com/lifecasting-tipstricks/ Lifecasting is an essential, basic skill used in makeup effects and prosthetics - whether to create a custom fit appliance or to make a lifelike prop without sculpting from scratch. In this podcast, Stuart & Todd share cool tips and tricks about this important yet varied subject. Got an FX question you want to see covered? Email it to stuartandtodd@gmail.com

This podcast is the first joint blog post venture with Stuart Bray and Todd Debreceni. Todd is author of 'Special Makeup Effects For Stage And Screen', what many consider to be the modern makeup FX bible. Stuart Bray is a working makeup FX artist with many years experience. Credits include 'Saving Private Ryan', 'Shaun of the Dead', 'Dr Who' and more recently 'Game of Thrones'. This one is all about the glues and removers we use with prosthetics. One thing is for sure, people get confused about which is what and why. This podcast breaks it down and you can be assured its really not as complicated as it sounds! If you have any FX questions you would like to see made into a featured blog post, then get in touch: stuartandtodd@gmail.com