2 answers
Shira
Student
Monterey, Massachusetts
5
Questions
Asked
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I have an interest in painting my face is there another career where I could use my artistic abilities and love for makeup?
How do I become a makeup artist to work on movies? What sort of education level would I need? I want to do something creative with my career and be able to make people feel beautiful, and I also love everything about movies and the reasoning behind the choices made in movies. #CV23
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2 answers
Briana Pelle, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech language pathology
149
Answers
Nashville, Tennessee
Updated
Briana’s Answer
Hi, Shira.
I agree with Christy. Wanting to work in arts and entertainment isn't necessarily something that requires a degree. It's largely about :
-having a strong portfolio of work to show potential customers, clients, and employers
-building good relationships with other people in the industry (lateral and horizontal networking)
-honing your craft
You can additionally take classes for cosmetology or to become an aesthetician for a more "grounded" means to be a make up artist and work in a related field while you build up your portfolio.
I agree with Christy. Wanting to work in arts and entertainment isn't necessarily something that requires a degree. It's largely about :
-having a strong portfolio of work to show potential customers, clients, and employers
-building good relationships with other people in the industry (lateral and horizontal networking)
-honing your craft
You can additionally take classes for cosmetology or to become an aesthetician for a more "grounded" means to be a make up artist and work in a related field while you build up your portfolio.
Thanks for the advice.
Shira
Christy Schmid
Producer at Christy Schmid Productions, LLC
4
Answers
Updated
Christy’s Answer
Working on film sets and professional photoshoots can make for a really fun career. This is a quick outline of what I would do:
1. Take makeup classes and learn your craft better.
2. Practice a ton and take photos of your work to start a portfolio.
3. Reach out to working makeup artists in your area and see if there is an opportunity for you to assist them on set one day for free. This way you can see what working on a film set is all about and if you enjoy the environment. This might be a tall ask for most as it will need to be approved by a producer but there may be a smaller project you could be involved in.
4. Reach out to photographers/videographers and see if they want to do any test shoots. This is where you get together with other creatives, come up with a fun concept, and shoot it to help build your portfolio. If you want to do SFX makeup, perhaps reach out to film school students who are need this for their shoots. (this will not be paid)
5. Once you have a small portfolio of decent images and/or videos reach out to more makeup artists and let them know you're looking for assisting opportunities. (this will be paid)
6. After assisting for a while and building up your skills you might decide you want to get your own jobs as a lead makeup artist or SFX makeup artist.
If you look up makeup classes in your area I'm sure you will find plenty - especially if you're in an urban area. If not, maybe start with online classes. Andrea Samuels is one of my favorite makeup artists to work with as a producer and she offers online classes https://supportcreatives.org/collections/wednesday-august-12th/products/andrea-c-samuels
If you are more interested in zombie movie makeup effects or the like, you'll want to learn SFX Makeup (Special FX). I don't know of any classes to recommend for this but I found a bunch from a quick google search.
Working in film and photography production is all about who you know. If you're good at what you do you and a nice human you will do well. You don't need to spend a fortune on classes or education. It is likely no one will ever ask to see what education you have, they will just want to see your portfolio.
1. Take makeup classes and learn your craft better.
2. Practice a ton and take photos of your work to start a portfolio.
3. Reach out to working makeup artists in your area and see if there is an opportunity for you to assist them on set one day for free. This way you can see what working on a film set is all about and if you enjoy the environment. This might be a tall ask for most as it will need to be approved by a producer but there may be a smaller project you could be involved in.
4. Reach out to photographers/videographers and see if they want to do any test shoots. This is where you get together with other creatives, come up with a fun concept, and shoot it to help build your portfolio. If you want to do SFX makeup, perhaps reach out to film school students who are need this for their shoots. (this will not be paid)
5. Once you have a small portfolio of decent images and/or videos reach out to more makeup artists and let them know you're looking for assisting opportunities. (this will be paid)
6. After assisting for a while and building up your skills you might decide you want to get your own jobs as a lead makeup artist or SFX makeup artist.
If you look up makeup classes in your area I'm sure you will find plenty - especially if you're in an urban area. If not, maybe start with online classes. Andrea Samuels is one of my favorite makeup artists to work with as a producer and she offers online classes https://supportcreatives.org/collections/wednesday-august-12th/products/andrea-c-samuels
If you are more interested in zombie movie makeup effects or the like, you'll want to learn SFX Makeup (Special FX). I don't know of any classes to recommend for this but I found a bunch from a quick google search.
Working in film and photography production is all about who you know. If you're good at what you do you and a nice human you will do well. You don't need to spend a fortune on classes or education. It is likely no one will ever ask to see what education you have, they will just want to see your portfolio.
Thank you for taking the time to help.
Shira