Variety: In HBO’s “Paterno,” director Barry Levinson tells the story of the Penn State pedophile scandal — in which assistant coach Jerry Sandusky was charged with a pattern of child molestation that stretched over 15 years — and its effect on Joe Paterno, the winningest head football coach in NCAA history.
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This article highlighted the true importance of collaboration between departments on a film (or theatrical production for that matter). The interview with makeup artist John Caglione was truly wonderful to read, as it seems he has mastered not only the art of makeup and prosthetics, but also how to work with actors and directors alike in a close and intimate way. Caglione describes working with actor Al Pacino and how Pacino really likes to try different prosthetic noses when transforming into his characters. It seems like the making and fitting of these noses must be a time consuming project for Caglione, but he knows how important it is for Pacino, and has learned that his job really is there partially to serve the process of the actor. While makeup artists and costumes designers, etc. are there to provide the aesthetic of the entire film, they also work closest with actors out of all types of film artists, and therefore must learn to cater to them in some ways. Caglione also talks about his work with the AD of the film, and again, seems like a well seasoned film artist because of his understanding that the AD will be in charge of how his makeup ends up looking on screen.
This is extraordinary. Al Pacino has been such a diverse actor throughout his career with an incredible range, and a special gift for playing a wide array of characters both in look and personality. Whether it has been the vulnerable and calculating Michael Corleone in the GodFather, the unpredictable and unhinged Tony in Scarface, or a Cop with the troubled past in Insomnia he has always managed to have a chameleon-like ability to slide into a role. This performance in Paterno looks to be no different. The work from the makeup and prosthetics artists is amazing. This movie is poised to be extremely important given the national conversations we are having about sexual assault. Unlike Hollywood, Penn State handled the revelations of sexual abuse by stripping the records and legacy of Paterno who did not do enough to stop this from happening. Imagine if Hollywood treated celebrities who knew about Harvey Weinstein the same way.
In this situation it seems as though the relationship between Al Pacino and John Caglione Jr.I think it's interesting that actually Caglione has been working with Pacino since Donnie Brasco. Since makeup is such a delicate and intimate process, as I’ve seen in other articles that the relationship between the makeup artist and the actor is crucial for successful collaboration. It shows how important and developed the relationship between a makeup artist. Even though makeup is a department in its own right, as an important part of creating the actors look, combined with costumes it is a hue part of finding the character. All those little details like the weathered skin and the scar, combined they all help to tell the audience who this man is, and it's a particularly interesting part of the story. One of my favorite things about makeup is that even in “simple” situations the details are as important to creating the character. I am interested to see how the film handles the delicate situation that Coach Paterno was in.
I loved that this article was so short yet managed to convey so many different aspects both of the relationship between actor and makeup artist and about the story itself. I think it is amazing that the makeup artist has been working with Al Pacino through nearly all of his quite diverse portfolio, and I love the comment about the noses. I have gotten a taste this semester of everything that goes into makeup and noses are not an easy thing to do and do well. I can't imagine having 6 different options. I also really appreciated the commentary on the wigs and the justification behind them as well as how they plan to execute the transformation of someone undergoing cancer treatments. I also really liked the comment about texture and how that plays such a large role in this makeup design and execution, especially how it relates to the characters years under the sun and what that would have done to his skin.
I am always so fascinated by what can be accomplished these days through the use of practical make up and effects. In this case, similarly to The Darkest Hour, they have been used to transform a usually recognizable actor into a completely different person. I am simply floored by the success of the transformation in this article, which is no doubt in some part due to the make up artist's long running collaboration with the star, Al Pacino. I must admit, I haven't seen Al Pacino in anything recently, but this HBO biopic looks worth a watch, and the makeup work puts it over the edge for me. I can't wait to see how Pacino's performance is elevated through his impeccable make up and costuming. I hope to keep seeing practical effects used, as I personally believe that computer generated images will never be able to capture their magical realism.
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