Tested: When Netflix debuted its original horror show Hemlock Grove this year, one of the things that got viewers and critics talking was the gruesome werewolf transformation in the first episode. It was a uniquely designed metamorphosis--and yes, it was gory--but if you ask me, it was held back by the production's reliance on computer generated graphics. The transformation looked too fake, shiny, and even rubbery. Which is ironic because the horror monsters of yesteryear looked better when they were actually made of rubber. Specifically foam latex.
5 comments:
I find makeup and prosthetics to be utterly fascinating. There is just so much that can be done with makeup and latex and its always ever expanding. I love how informative this article was by having external links to industry professionals and books. I thought that the article had a great balance of references, while maintaining the reader's attention. Prosthetics are becoming such a large topic and is always expanding. The show Face Off on Syfi channel specializes in special effects makeup and illusion. i would love to take a class on prosthetics and experiment more with mold making. It will be interesting to see where this field is at in years to come, if it still exists. Technology is constantly advancing before we can possibly catch up and I think there will come a time where almost everything is done with computer animations.
This article was so interesting- I've always been fascinated by prosthetics and make-up ever since I took a stage-makeup class over the summer one year. I remember I really liked making prosthetics, and making things look realistic was way harder than it seems it would be! I agree with the article where it says that CGI transformations, although they technically look "real," always seem to have something off about them. When I see something in a film or TV show that was achieved with computer animation, I often find myself looking for mistakes in the animation rather than focusing on the actual plot. Thank goodness we don't have this issue in theatre- everything we do has to be real!
This once again brings up the battle between CGI and the classic special effects methods. You can create things that are simply not possible to do with traditional makeup but they don't always look real. They fall out of the uncanny valley and you can tell when effects are computer generated. Traditional special effects make-up can be limiting but it is much easier to make it look realistic.
The great thing about foam latex is that it is very flexible and therefore more realistic. Though very "low-tech" it is effective and looks good if applied correctly. CGI can do more detail, but often looks less like it's part of whatever it's applied to, and thus does not make it more believable. A good amount of the makeup for monsters in the Harry Potter movies was done in foam latex and it is very believable. The goblins for example were mass molded by character and were very cohesive.
This has always been something that has interested me since I started assistant designing sound for a haunted house on Long Island. As you can probably imagine, after setting up the rig for a haunted house there is not much that you need to do to run it on the day to day. During the span of the haunt I would love occupying time looking at how the makeup artists transformed these normal people into monsters. The amount of realism that these people can produce is just astonishing. I personally believe that these traditional methods make it seem much more realistic that the common CGI methods.
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