Blog

Get up-to-date coverage and learn more about current projects, special events, and any interesting experiments that I'm working on.  Please feel free to leave comments if you feel so inclined, and I will try to answer any questions you may have.

Awesome FX Makeup Class!

This past Monday, senior Scare makeup artists Donald, Jenna, and Tomey joined me in teaching a two-and-a-half hour Introduction to Scare Makeup and Special FX course at Paul Mitchell the School in North Austin; it was an awesome time, and it seemed like a rousing success; something like 60 people showed up to take the class!

The school was kind enough to donate the teaching space to us, and the Paul Mitchell instructors and administrators were the nicest bunch and extra-helpful in working with us to get it all set up.  Some of them even stayed and took the workshop with us!

We tried to cover all the basics of some of the techniques we use most frequently: latex and appliances, tips and tricks for airbrushing and zombie makeup, and stage blood creation. The combination of demonstration and class participation seemed to work out really well.

 

Everyone on our team had a lot of fun, and I hope that everyone that took the class did as well.  And as a bonus, we raised a handsome sum to benefit Scare for a Cure, and we even gained a few new volunteers!  Hopefully we'll do it again sometime soon, and perhaps we'll offer more specialized workshops as well.

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Fairy Tale Nightmare Teaser is Finished!

The teaser trailer for the Scare for a Cure 2013 interactive haunted adventure, "Fairy Tale Nightmare", has been released! Check it out over at the Scare Facebook page!

Here's a handy link straight to the video: Fairy Tale Nightmares Teaser

Thanks again to the Scare makeup team, all the awesome actors and crew, and a special thanks to David Bessenhoffer for directing, filming, and editing the video together.  I think it turned out super-awesome!

 

George Takei at Dragon's Lair

Now, I've met and worked with celebrities before, and I'd like to think that when I do I maintain a certain sense of decorum and professionalism; I tend not to get 'star-struck' as the term goes. That having been said...

It was an absolute pleasure to do some natural event makeup for Mr. George Takei for his meet-and-greet appearance at Dragon's Lair in Austin on Monday.  From his online presence, I had already known that he was clever and had a good sense of humor, but never before have I met someone so humble, so gracious, and so kind and accommodating to his myriad fans.

What was supposed to be a short two-hour event stretched out to six hours as people continued to join the line that snaked around the store for a chance to tell Mr. Takei about fond memories of watching Star Trek with loved ones, and thanking him for his activism and support for the gay community.  This included one gentleman who purposefully removed himself to the back of the line, just so, as the last person, he could have an extra minute to tell his story of how he was shunned and faced a court martial in the military years ago for coming out, and let Mr. Takei know how much of an important influence was on his life. Tears were shed, hugs were shared, and it was impossible not to be moved.

If the scene at Dragon's Lair on Labor Day were any indication, it would seem evident that George Takei has made a positive difference to the lives of countless individuals, although to hear him tell it, it's all of us working together to make a difference for each other; in his words, "We're all pulling the same wagon".

Not only is it 'OK to be Takei', but a little Takei is something that we should all strive to be.

Fairy Tale Nightmare Trailer Video

The Scare for a Cure makeup team headed out to the Hill Country this past Saturday for the "Fairy Tale Nightmare" trailer video shoot. The cast included witches, werewolves, an excessively bouncy dwarf head, and some of your favorite iconic fairy tale characters.  It was another scorcher of a day and the shoot lasted about twelve hours, but we were out of the direct sun for most of the day and the team did a great job if I do say so, myself.

The trailer should be up on the Scare for a Cure website soon! (and maybe YouTube, too!)

Austin Fit Magazine Photoshoot

Austin Fit Magazine came down a few days ago to do a zombie themed photoshoot centered around a new zombie survival pack to be offered by REI. With the help of four other makeup artists, we got five zombies in various states of decay ready for the shoot.

Despite the Texas heat and lack of air conditioning, the folks from Austin Fit were super-cool, and we had a lot of fun with the shoot. Keep an eye out for the article in the October issue of Austin Fit Magazine (it's free) .