Final Day of Shoot

Dancers turned up half an hour to an hour late. Had a dance studio booked for them to have some rehearsal time and some space for me to apply the masks and makeup. They practiced till about 1:00pm in doing so leaving me with only an hour to apply four full face makeup and glue the masks on. Didn't have time to glue the masks on at the dance studio so we decided to quickly apply them on location. After rounding everyone up we set off towards Trafalgar square, unfortunately we were unaware of a scheduled live event and so I had to make a snap decision to relocate and shoot elsewhere. I chose Leicester square and everything went very well after that. Shot a few takes and it was received by the public very well. On the whole the project had many problems and issues, however it all went very well in the end and I am proud of the end result.  

Stills from the flash mob

The making of the masks...

The liquid latex was extremely messy and let off a very strong smell. Not to mention that it took a long time to dry. In the end I had to resort to using a hairdryer to dry in-between layers. It was a long lengthy process but I think they were very effective in the end. When painting them I wanted it to have the 'aged, cracked look' I think it looks more sinister if it wasn't perfectly painted. For example 'the joker in batman, the dark knight'.

Styling Ideas for Phantom

After receiving good feedback from many potential dancers, I decided it was time to really start brainstorming looks and interpretations of the Characters that I want to use. Below will include images of inspiration.

Phantom of the Opera
For his styling I wanted it to follow the theme of the original costume but I wanted to put a different twist onto it. After researching I found a style called 'Steampunk'.

"Steampunk is a genre which came into prominence during the 1980s and early 1990s and incorporates elements of science fiction, fantasy, alternate history, horror, and speculative fiction. It involves a setting where steam power is widely used—whether in an alternate history such as Victorian era Britain or "Wild West"-era United States, or in a post-apocalyptic time —that incorporates elements of either science fiction or fantasy. Works of Steampunk often feature anachronistic technology, or futuristic innovations as Victorians might have envisioned them, based on a Victorian perspective on fashion, culture, architectural style, and art."

I wanted to make the phantom mask myself. I decided that I would experiment with liquid latex and different molds. In the meantime I looked at possible shading techniques for the face uncovered by the mask and also how best to shade the mask in to give it a really sinister deathly look.

Phantom of the Opera [film]

Phantom of the Opera [Musical]

Image manipulation

His hair I believed would be best slicked back, it would be easier for the model to dance in and also it wouldn't draw attention away from the masks I will make. Also the idea of slicked hair, represents sleekness and neat. Presentable and a 'well-groomed' gentleman, possibly with a 'slimy/evil' side. Perfect for Phantom.