Makeup for Short B&W Movie
 

I am starting shooting a short this weekend that I will be making black and white and I have never worked with makeup...

Can anyone give me advice on how much I need to use make-up for mid/close shots on my actors? Does B&W even matter to whether I use it? To what I use?

Does anyone have general suggestions for what type of make-up I will need?

Thanks in advance.

ahhh... more info...

A few of the scenes will be dark bar-type scenes and a few will be full office light... I am lighting the bright scenes with 2 500w softboxes and a 1000w umbrella...

Thanks..

Check the library for several books on this.

Barry,

What kind of style are you going for? And is it makeup for females, males, or both?

From my still photo B&W portrait days, I can tell you a few little tricks that I picked up from makeup artists or the models themselves. It depends on what "look" you're shooting for...but generally for "glamour" shots:

- lipstick needs to be a bit darker than usual. If you want the very glamorous look for women, you'll need to use a dark liner pencil, a dark shade of lipstick, and then a high gloss finish.
- for a natural look, match the facial makeup to their natural skin tone and just use enough to cover any blemishes or uneven skin coloring. For a glamorous look, you'll need to pack it on more heavily, and for women with medium to fair complexions you'll need a slightly lighter shade than their natural coloring...don't forget the powder to soften.
- if you or whoever is applying the makeup knows what they're doing, you can apply shadow to certain parts of the face to get a more glamorous, angular look. Use it in the hollow of the cheeks running from almost the edge of the mouth back up toward the ear to create the sunken cheek look. Use eye shadow, of course, to emphasize the eyes. You can also brush some shadow along the temples to make the forehead seem less broad. You can also use it under the chin and jaw to make the neck appear thinner and to deemphasize their "waddle." (How do you spell that, anyway...the thing Richard Fish loves)
- unless you want a gritty natural look, have the actress put Preparation H under her eyes lightly to tighten the skin and get rid of wrinkles. Then, apply a lightener first under the eyes before applying the makeup to get rid of dark circles.

But to be honest...unless you're going for a "Vogue" look or a Vivien Leigh appearance, just going with their natural look...or their normal amount of makeup...will probably do fine. It depends.

<<<-- Originally posted by John Locke :
to deemphasize their "waddle." (How do you spell that, anyway...the thing Richard Fish loves) -->>>

I can't believe I got that reference. :)

"Wattle," you know, Turkey's have one right under their beak.

We have a winner...Mike Fish...er, Rehmus

wat·tle _(_n.)

1.
a. A construction of poles intertwined with twigs, reeds, or branches, used for walls, fences, and roofs.
b. Material used for such construction.

2. A fleshy, wrinkled, often brightly colored fold of skin hanging from the neck or throat, characteristic of certain birds, such as chickens or turkeys, and some lizards.
3. Botany. Any of various Australian trees or shrubs of the genus Acacia.