As actors, we rarely say to ourselves, “Oh boy! I want to be an actor so I can sit in a make-up chair for endless hours and be turned into a monster!”
We instead think about getting proper representation, taking classes and learning lines. We dream about our big break and what it's like to be on set.
Yet make-up is part of the job. Whether we play a burn victim, someone with lots of scars and tattoos or a creature from another planet, we must keep in mind that there's a good chance we're going to be asked to have extreme special effects (SPFX) make-up applied to our body.
Below, actress NAOMI GROSSMAN (Pepper on “American Horror Story: Asylum”) and Special Effects Make-up Artist RACHEL GRIFFIN (“Fringe,” “Once Upon a Time”) give us insight to the pleasures and pains of being turned into unrecognizable characters.
“Oh, and how! I've even been accused of snoring! I can sleep through anything -- root canal, 'Django Unchained.' It's often 5:00 AM, they lay my head back, tell me to close my eyes… What else is there to do?”
Exclusive pic to @NYCastings – Naomi pulls the prosthetic off her face.
4. Do you have help taking your make-up off after work or is it something you can do on your own?
“They take it off for me. It only takes about 20 minutes. Sometimes their edges are so seamless, even they who put the prosthetics on, have to poke around my face to find where to lift off! Requires lots of pulling and scrubbing, but in the end, I get nice, hot, jasmine towels! Where else do you get a facial after work?”
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NAOMI GROSSMAN agreed to shave her head for her role in “American Horror Story: Asylum”
1. Did you know in advance there was going to be extensive make-up for your character of "Pepper" when you accepted the role?
“Yes, my callback was essentially a meeting with the make-up department. They took a bunch of photos of me, which they then manipulated to see what I'd look like with the prosthetics. I guess I must have looked the freakiest! After I was cast, they showed me the photos, and boy, was that a surprise.”
“Yes and no. Not specifically for wearing prosthetics, but I'm in the makeup chair hours and hours, and they of course pay for that. I obviously was compensated for the head-shave.” You can watch here.
3. In the beginning, you were in the make-up chair for about five hours. Now it's perfected down to approximately two hours. Do you get to SLEEP while your make-up is being applied?
