Digital Special Effect Makeup vs. Physical Makeup in Movies

Digital Special Effect Makeup vs. Physical Makeup in Movies

The special effects work of John Knoll’s special effects team has certainly raised the bar in believability of a fictitious character. His Industrial Light and Magic team created Davy Jones for Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Man’s Chest. In this sequel, Bill Nighy is the actor who portrays Davy Jones’ movements and voice. He wears a dark grey motion capture suit, and two motion capture cameras were used as opposed to the 16 needed in the past. The process of Computer Generated Imaging (CGI) then morphed the actor into a convincing depiction of a cursed pirated who because he lives underwater, he literally becomes a creature of the sea.

This special effects “makeup” of this film was fascinating to watch and it really does trick your eye into thinking Jones’ is “real”. But does this mean that special effects artists need to trade in their brushes for a computer mouse any time soon? The answer is thankfully…no!

There will always be a need for makeup artist to apply their special skills to film, television, or theatre. There is one “living” character on the Flying Dutchman, actor Stellan Skarsgård, who plays Bootstrap Bill…he had wonderful “live” barnacles protruding from his face.

By the other side of the coin Michael Chiklis was transformed into Fantastic Four super hero “The Thing” through a time consuming and detailed process.

“Sixty pounds (27 kg) of latex, it was hellish.” said Chiklis. But he did the project because of the potential the movie had to being a franchise. “It’s employment potentially for 10 years. It gets your name out there in an international context that puts you on all those lists that you must be on as an actor in order to get movies green lit. That’s why he was willing to go through the “hellish” process of being the hulking Thing for the film.

Then on the other hand, I understand that Bill Nighy was disappointed that he didn’t have to wear the pirate costume for any of the film shooting. Just the grey motion capture suit…so he didn’t have to endure the heavy makeup appliances or masks required in the past…but it didn’t let him “play” act in costume as if he were Davy Jones either. This is testament to Nighy’s acting abilities, because he gives a terrific performance as the character.

Although Industrial Light and Magic will always strive to “wow” audiences with the newest visual effects, the basic need for the “human” factor helps ground the movie experience. E.g. the whole last three Star Wars movies were visually incredible but fell far short of the first three films that had “real” characters, actors in suits and makeup interacting with each other. Otherwise we have a movie that is not much more than a video game, lacking our own ability to control the plot.

I think makeup special effects wizard Rick Baker put it best when he said “I still think a marriage between the two techniques is the best way to go. They each have their strong points.” Baker is absolutely right! It’s important to move forward and push techniques to new limits and respect the place that both technologies have in this field. So as with most professions the integration of computer knowledge creates advantages with a mixture of honing in on physical skills of makeup effects. Baker also says “…I do all my design work on the computer now. It’s like my favorite tool. I can do so much more and it frees me up so much more because I can save it anywhere down the line, so I’m not afraid to screw it up.” Perfecting bloods, latex appliances, and skin blends will have a place within the movie making world. Thank goodness there are many movie makers who simply can’t afford expensive visual effects in the first place.

That fact harkens makeup artists back to the days when makeup artists have to use their problem solving skills and creativity to create physically realistic effects. This is the fun in special effect making. Creating something that audiences say to themselves “wow!” or “gross!” or just smile.

Article Citations

“Interview with Creature Creator, Rick Baker” From Rebecca Murray, Your Guide to Hollywood Movies. http://movies.about.com/cs/interviews/a/baker050304.htm

“Michael Chiklis a bigger Thing in Fantastic Four”, By Christy Lemire http://www.theage.com.au/news/film/bigger-thing-michael-chiklis/2005/07/10/1120934121205.html

Question by : How can I improve my video making techniques?
Other than getting a better quality camera.
Like, should I spend more time editing? (I can’t afford a Mac, so I own a Windows 7 which only has Movie Maker on it.)
Should I record from different angles?
I just need tips on recording and editing quality videos, because my friends don’t seem to like my work. 😐
Here’s a sample of one of my videos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVMfjzJysoI&feature=channel_video_title
Thank you in advance.

Best answer:

Answer by cornflake#1
I’m gonna suggest that you look at your local main library for some books specifically on film making to get the vocabulary needed to identify what different types of shot there are.

Then you can have a look at some of the great directors – what are your favourite films – who directed them – and what inspired them???

It doesn’t matter what quality of camera you have when you’re learning. As your skills, knowledge and understanding grow, you’ll read reviews of good cameras and bad. You’ll learn that some cameras are good in some conditions, while others suit different conditions.

Consider all of the above as being background theory… get out there and make videos.

Make videos of static things – make videos of moving things – make videos of people and places and … well… everything.

Like they say for a certain band of sneaker – JUST DO IT!

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