Project Evaluation

I found this project really interesting, because we got to focus on the Gothic and I had the opportunity to learn something new in our Makeup sessions. Although I like learning new skills, I think that SFX makeup is definitely not my forte and all the wounds that I made during the project tended to be very theatrical rather than looking realistic. I think that on the occasions when I do need to do SFX makeup I will concentrate more on the application of the makeup to make it lighter and more believable.

For my continuity assessment I chose Frankenstein's Monster from 'Frankenstein' by Mary Shelley - it is one of my favourite books and I wanted to do a portrayal of the Creature that was slightly humanised. I definitely needed to think more about how I wanted him to look- my idea to use Collodion to create a long scar across his forehead may not have been dramatic enough. I think that possibly Tuplast would've been a better product to use, or I should've experimented more with trying to colour the scar.  I experimented with colouring the scar and wasn’t happy with the result, perhaps I should have pursued this further. When comparing the two photos I am proud that I managed to get the makeup looking pretty similar across both Timed Assessments - however I am annoyed because I can tell the light setting is slightly different and I should've double checked that it was exactly the same before I finished taking the photos.

For the second half of the project I loved the freedom we were given to create the two characters we wanted to do for our chosen TV show, and I think I was a bit more confident in my skills by then to do something a bit more adventurous. I felt this especially with my second character- Mrs Laderman. I was apprehensive about whether my idea would actually work, however I am proud of the final result. It was quite nice to force myself out of my comfort zone! One element that was frustrating was the fake blood that I ordered from Kryolan.  It is much lighter than I anticipated so in future I think I need to do more research into the products before I buy them.

In comparison to the previous semester I felt a lot more comfortable with my blog, I think that learning from the previous project allowed me to realise how important it is to update the blog with lots of detail. Although I did a lot of research into the Gothic, my chosen book and TV series, I didn't focus enough on the work of other professionals. This may have been more beneficial to me so I could learn some other techniques and get more inspiration for both parts of the brief. If I was to do the project again I would focus on some of the smaller elements and not give up so easily - especially in terms of colouring wounds. My choice of Frankenstein’s Monster might have been slightly predictable, in retrospect I could have chosen a different character from my novel - possibly Walton, Justine Moritz or Elizabeth.