I first started writing poetry when I was in the
third grade. Some of it was really terrible. Then I started
writing about things that really mattered to me and it got lots better.
Over the years I have used poetry as a means of healing and of communication.
Now I have hundreds of poems that I feel are worth
sharing with others. I will feature a different poem here every month.
I figure is someone likes my work enough to come back here monthly for
years and years and years, they deserve to have a complete collection of
my poems. (At least of the good ones. You have to really beg
me to get the bad ones.)
This one was written after reading "Women in Akido"
I'm not much for arguing. I'd rather create
a mood, take you into a scene or share something personal. Once you
take it in, any change that comes about depends upon you own reaction to
what you've been given. The effect comes purely from my ability to
communicate and your acceptance or rejection of my message. I'm a
lot more comfortable with that than I would be with persuasion and advertising
tricks.
"Movie Makeup" was written during the filming
of "Road Killers" at Plain Dealing, Louisiana.
Movie makeup
by Joy Lynn Rosser
Makeup artist and special effects person Ton Thies
doesn't seem to mind working under difficult conditions. He's standing
in the woods, late at night, using a generator to cast light on the man
in the chair. He pulls a funny looking piece of rubber out of one
of the many large pockets on his denim vest. It reminds me of a strawberry
fruit roll up.
"It's torn, so I'll have to be careful to get
it just right."
He asks Richard Jackson, the actor in the chair, to hold the photo of the
wound he's reapplying to his neck. They talk about upcoming makeup
problems while he carefully places the latex appliance. (That's
makeup talk for the rubber things that are put on the actors to make them
look different. Think of the clown's nose -- that's an appliance,
too.)
He constantly checks the photo to make sure the
placement is just right. Since this same makeup is used in another
scene, he has to be sure it looks the same, or people will lose the feeling
of belief when they notice the differences.
When he has it situated right, he reaches into
another pocket and pulls out a bottle of liquid latex. He takes
the photo out of Richard's hand and tucks it into a fold in Richard's jacket.
"I need you to hold this now."
Richard is careful not to move his head when he
reaches for the bottle. We make jokes abut cricks in the neck and
job related injuries.
Tom opens the bottle and uses the cap brush to
brush latex on to the edges of the appliance. This holds the appliance
in position and helps to make a transition between the fake wound and Richard's
skin.
Jim Hoffpauir, who plays the biker Tigger, climbs
up the hill to Tom and Richard, complaining about the vines that lie all
around. He's tripped on them several times, especially along the
dark trail leading from the shoot site. They can't light the trail,
or the it might mess up the lighting for the scene. "How much longer
you got on him?"
Tom purses his lips as he considers. "This
stuff's got to dry, and I've got to color it."
"You work on me while you're waiting for him to
dry?"
"Yeah, I can do that. They want you next?
Or do they want Weed next?"
"They want me and him next. 'Cause we're
dragging him out of the patrol car."
Tom nods and Jim pulls another tall chair into
the light. Tom adds a few final strokes of latex to Richard's neck.
"Hold your picture again." He double checks the match and nods.
"Put your head like that for a while till that stuff kind of dries out.
I'll whiten up Tigger here. If I can find the white makeup."
He rummages through pockets, rejecting several
whites until he finds the special mix he created for zombie skin.
It has a slight purple tint to it and is thin enough to let the tattoos
show through. While he turns Tigger into a zombie, the talk turns
to ancient Celts.
Tom and I mention their art. Jim is interested
in their fighting techniques. We talk about the wrong impressions
many people have of them because the Romans called them barbarians.
Jim points out that the Romans called anyone who wasn't Roman a barbarian.
It simply meant not Roman, and had nothing to do with being civilized.
Tom turns back to Richard and gingerly touches
the latex to see if it's dry enough for the next stage. He decides
to give it a few more minutes and returns to Jim. It's and eerie
feeling to watch the changes happening to the biker as the makeup covers
more and more of his face.
When Tigger/Jim is finished, Tom begins on Richard
again. He checks the photo continuously as he adds touches of color
to Richard's skin and the appliance. Slowly it changes from looking
like a fruit roll up to bruised skin and a gaping gash. Tom's used
so many different colors of red and brown that I've lost count.
The jars of colored makeup disappear back into
Tom's pockets. Finally Tom is ready to apply his special blood mixture.
(Tom makes his own blood. "It tastes like chocolate," he confides.)
Richard reminds him that he will have to use the
costume for an earlier scene that will be shot later. He has
a spare t-shirt, but not another jacket, so they have to keep the jacket
clean. Tom carefully brushes the blood into the "wound" and directs
the blood flow to go down his neck to the t-shirt.
Someone from the shoot site calls over a megaphone,
asking how long until Richard will be ready. Tigger shouts back "He's
almost done!"
Tom decides Richard needs blood on his hand because
he will be holding his neck in this scene. He applies blood
to the outside of Richard's hand and cautions him on not getting any on
the front of his hand, so he can keep the jacket clean. Richard feels
that will work because the front of his hand isn't seen in this scene.
After a final check on both actors, Tom lets them
go. Richard calls "I'll be back!" Reminding Tom that he has
to remove everything as soon as this shoot is done.
"Right." Tom answers. He eases his
bad knee into a more comfortable position as he sits down to wait for his
next call. After all, he's just been working for seven hours.
The workday is only about half over.
