Fake Blood

Cuts Practical

Look #1

The following YouTube clip is one of two ways in which I achieved my looks. I used the exact same method as shown.

• Firstly, I moulded a small piece of wax in the shape of a sausage.

• After blending the ended on my skin, I then used a little foundation to blend with my skin tone, before using the back of a pin, I made an incision in the middle of the area (where I wanted my cut to be).

•     After this, I put a dark red colour inside the incision before addimg fake blood.
  
  
  
  

Evaluation

Pros

• I feel that this is an improvement from my previous make up/bruises practicals in terms of it having a realistic look.

Cons

• I would have preferred if I had branched away from the exact method as shown in the clip in order to add more originality.
• I don't think this would fit in well with our genre as it isnt as likely to see such bloody wounds in supernatural horrors
• If I were to use moulded wax again, I would try and get the colour as close to the victims actual skin colour as possible or add additional colour to fit the skin colour.

Look #2

With this cut, I used liquid latex  and tissue paper instead of using the moulded wax. 

1. Firstly, I made around 2-3 layers of the liquid latex and tissue paper in order to add some 'skin' texture.
2. Whilst the latex was drying, I cut 4-5 very small pieces of black thread and set them aside.
3. Next, I carefully cut through the 'skin' area and covered the whole area with a small amount of foundation which was as close to my skin tone as possible. 
4. Once this was done, similarly to look #1, I covered my actual skin (inside the cut) in a dark red colour before layering the same are with fake blood.
5. Then I added the black thread using a minimal amount of glue to mimic stitches.
6. To finish off, I added a lighter red colour to the surrounding area to make it look sore/swollen.

Evaluation

Pros

• I like the realism of the area surrounding the wound as I think it actually looks swollen.
• I think that this conforms better to the genre as even though it looks gory, it isn't too much as it doesn't look as though it would fit in a slasher film.

Cons

• I could have made the stitches look more real if I had placed them neater (even though this could alternatively be seen as conforming to the sinister genre).
• I could have used a smaller area as the wound.

Burns Practical

Burns Practical

From my last make-up practical, I wanted to do another attempt to try and make the marks look more realistic. From my previous evaluation, I thought that to have a lot of blood and gore would'nt appeal to the genre very well, therefore I decided that it may be more beneificial to make burn marks, as they are quite subtle but would still be effective as our antagonist/victim could look "tainted" with this. I tried to use similar equipments which I used when trying to do the wound as when on set, we could be able to do a several types of wounds/marks.

Firstly I put a line of a thin layer of PVA glue on an area and left it to set until the glue was completely dry and see-through. After this, I put a black shade of eye shadow around the dried glue to make it look like dark burn marks. I paired this with a colour close to my skin colour to make the colours blend more effectively. 

After this was done, I removed the glue by stripping it away from the area which left a distinct line, which made it look like a burn mark. To emphasise this even more, I added a red colour to the area to the "wound" to make it look like my flesh.

Evaluation

Whilst I do think that this looked more realistic than my previous practical of a wound, I think that i could have done more to try and add texture to the wound. For example, by using moulding wax, I could have made it looked as though my skin was was falling off or by using shading techniques to make is look come across without having to use additional materials.  I also could hae experimented more with colours and added a purple/blue colour to make the surrounding skin looked as though it had been bruised. Furthermore, I think I could have also made the inside wound look more intense; as though it was heavily bleeding using fake blood. In addition to this, when doing the real thing, I would ensure that the eyeshadow which is used isnt glittery or has any other extra effects as this takes away from the realism.

Wounds Practical

Practical-Cuts/Bruises

Prior to doing this practical, I used several tips and methods which I could find useful, from different YouTube videos. 

What I used:

• PVA Glue
• Tissue/Tissue paper
• Red Lipstick
• Eye-shadow
• Scissors
• Sponges

What I did:

1. Firstly, I put a layer of tissue paper on the area which I wanted to use with a thin layer of PVA glue to stick the paper down.
2. When this layer had dried, I repeated this step twice more (using a hairdryer to speed up the process when need).
3. When the glue had set, I pealed some of the tissue and glue away from the hand so that I could cut specific areas.
4. Using a make up sponge, I applied a bronze-like coloured eye shadow around in area which had been cut away from the skin, whilst adding black eye shadow around the remaining areas.
5. After this, I broke down a bright red make up stick and applied it on top of the bronze eye-shadowed area (leaving some lumpy bits of the lipstick).
6. At this point, I felt as though I had too much tissue paper, therefore I decided to cut out the parts which hadn't been coloured as I found it hard to blend the skin tone to the tissue/glue. 
7. With the remaining, I covered in red lipstick to mimic blood whilst lifting some parts of the glued down tissue paper in order to try and make it look more realistic.

Evaluation:

 I think that the wound may look a little too gory for a supernatural horror, as I feel that in most supernatural horror, wounds may often be a scratch or bruises. As well as this, if I were to improve my final result, I would try and make the outline look as though it is bruised so that there is a better transition between the normal skin and the wound. Also, I would also work on making it look more realistic by using a liquid (possibly fake blood) in order to make it look more realistic.

Final Result

Natural Vs. Possessed Make-up

Natural vs. Possessed 

The first look that I created was the 'natural' look that the girl will have when not completely possessed. I kept it simple so it looks like she's barely wearing any makeup, to keep her innocence and young age obvious.

Here is the finished result. I used a light concealer and powder to give a flawless yet not obvious look.  I also filled in her eyebrows lightly and added a thin coat of mascara to add a slight definition to the eye area without looking dark and heavy. 

Finally, I added some pink blusher to give a natural flush to the cheeks that is stereotypical of 'sweet' young girls and a slight pink to the lips. Overall the look is flawless yet is light to keep her innocence and just defines the features of the face.

Equipment used to achieve possessed look (girl already wearing make-up from 'natural look')

• Light-dark brown and black eyeshadows from the pallet 
• Very light pressed powder
• Eyebrow wax
• Various brushes

The eyebrow wax allows texture to be added to the look, and gives the illusion of a cut or some type of infection to the face, both of which are common conventions within possession make-up.

Here the girl has no make-up on, apart from the extra powder I have added to make her appear paler and more disturbing as the colour has been drained from her face.

Here I have added the different shades of eyeshadow to various points of the face and under the eyes, to make her appear darker and more effected by the possession that is overtaking her.

I have now added the wax to add depth and texture to the look, I placed it evenly arohnd the face so that the physical effect of the possession can be seen at any angle by the camera.

I added some of the eyeshadow to the wax to add depth to them, allowing them to look more realistic and therefore more disturbing, linking to the supernatural horror genre.

I also made sure the eyelashes, eyebrows and lips were very light as my aim was to drain all colour from the face to make the girl look extremely 'unwell'.

This is the overall look. I am pleased with the outcome as it looks realistic and disturbing, but to improve I could have added red to make the wounds look more 'fresh' and gory.

Demonic Possession Make-up

To prepare for the task, I researched it thoroughly beforehand, mainly using Youtube tutorials. These physically showed me what I needed to do to create my desired look, and the step-by-step guides made it a lot clearer to understand. These are the two best and most helpful tutorials that I found.

List of products used-

• L'oreal True Match foundation
• Maybelline Mineral Powder Concealer
• Sephora and Natural Collection powders
• Sephora Eyebrow Wax
• ELF Eyeshadow Pallet (mainly 4 or 5 colours)
• Various brushes and a sponge 

I used my sister as a model for my task. This was an advantage as she was able to create the 'possessed child' character (as opposed to using an adult.) This was her after only applying foundation and power.

I applied concealer over the lips, to take away their natural rosy colour, which made her look washed out. I then applied a brown-red eyeshadow under the eye area and also to the side of the nose. This made her look 'unwell', which is key in possession make up as the possessed are not themselves.

I did the exact same as before to the other eye. I did not make sure they were both accurate and the same as the randomness of the darker colours on the face makes the look more disturbing and effective. I added this colour to the sides of her head, mixing in more black on the right side.

I countered the cheek-bones and jaw-line to make the face appear more sharp. I put eyebrow wax on the right cheek, lips and top left side of the head (adding a tiny bit of brown eyeshadow to it.) This added texture and appeared as a wound or diseased part of the face, which would be distressing for the audience as it is gruesome and unsightly. 

I darkened the inner corners of the eyes with darker brown eyeshadow. This made her look more unwell and deteriorated. I also added more colour down from the sides of the nostrils, to again contribute depth to the face and make the overall look appear darker, more flawed and to add more shadow to the face.

I put black eyeshadow over the teeth to create a dirty, gory effect. Even though this is possession make-up, slightly gruesome effects distress the audience as the character is obviously demonically influenced and this is the effect that is having.

The wax adds depth and texture, making it look like an infected cut or diseased area. The fact that it is only in specific little bunches of the face and the lips makes it look more realistic, but disturbing at the same time.

Overall, I am extremely happy with the way that the final result has turned out. She has the dark shadows of the face and diseased areas to represent her possession, which is clear to the audience and would cause distress as it adds a lot more depth to the character (links in to supernatural horror genre.) To improve I would use white contact lenses, as this would look unrealistic and therefore prove even more distressing for the audience.

Use of Cults and Symbols in Horror

• Many supernatural horrors use cults or other sinister groups of people to scare the audience into thinking the film is more realistic. A cult is a relatively small group of people having religious beliefs or practices regarded by others as strange or as imposing excessive control over members. The use of cults in particular is scary to the audience because they are usually associated with sinister motives, e.g. Satan worshipers.  As in lots of horror films a main theme is religion, cults fit in very easily with the film.  An example of a cult is the paranormal activity 4, there is a group of women who could be described as a cult of witches.  This cult is portrayed as very sinister as they are only shown at night and all have very blank, expressionless faces.  This could be a sign of brainwash or possession, two common associations with cults.  They are also all moving on mass and have matching necklaces to show they are all one group and are very close knit.

An example of a use of symbols would be in the film Signs.  This is a horror which incorporates the use of aliens.  They use the tradition crop circles as the sign that the aliens are on earth.  When crop circles are mentioned, most people would automatically think of aliens are inexplicable happenings so the film producers already have the audience wondering if aliens do really exist.

A main use of symbols within horror films is for satanic or demonic reasons.  These symbols are usually drawn on a wall or door, probably in blood, or etched into a person's body.  They are used to present are meaning to events that have gone on or give some sort of an insight into a character or their past.  For example in Sinister, the demon leaves the same symbol where ever it goes, usually after it has just killed people.  So when you see the symbol, the audience know to expect the worst as they associate it with the demon. 

 When symbols are etched or tattooed onto people's skin, it usually gives a hint as too what sort of character the are or if they have had a past troubled by cults or demons.  An example of this is in The Devil Inside where the mother has an upside down cross etched into the inner lip.  This is a sign of the anti-Christ and so is ominous to the audience about the character.

I wanted to make a response to my research to get some more practical experience.  So I researched various demonic symbolism and decided to use the symbol for anarchy because it is a bit different to the commonly used religious symbols.  I felt that when symbols are etched into the skin it is much more effective than when they are just drawn on a wall, so I tried to recreate a simpler version of cut special effects.  I do not own a full, professional special effects kit so I used materials that were available to me; eyeliner, eye shadow, glue and food colouring.   

• The first step was using a pink eyeliner.  I used this to create a base shape and to make the skin look red and irritated.

• The next step was using black eye shadow to create a dark, more intense line.  It also make the skin look bruised.
•  I then used a mixture of PVA glue and red food colouring to create a raised effect of blood and broken skin.  

 I then added more light tones of black eye shadow to create more bruising.  This makes the symbol look more realistic.

I then added some black eye liner to the edges to create an almost burnt look as though the symbol had been branded onto the skin.