Wardrobe & Make-Up
Looking Good: Tips for the Director
There are those who say that Richard Nixon lost the 1960 presidential election because of his five o'clock shadow. For want of a little pancake concealer and a lot of translucent powder, Mr. Nixon appeared in his third and final televised debate with John F. Kennedy as a pale, perspiring and unshaven pretender. JFK, on the other hand, commanded the TV screen with his healthy tan, youthful hair and calm demeanor. Many pundits have said that Richard Nixon actually won the debates on points, but lost them (and the election) on style and appearance. We're talking make-up and wardrobe here.
Apparently, Mr. Nixon's advisors didn't know what movie directors learned earlier in the last century: Cameras are not always kind to their subjects. Unless you make some informed adjustments, the lens will often tell a true story about a person's age, health, social status, state of mind and general demeanor. Luckily, movie directors, stage directors, political advisors and thespians for two thousand years have developed amazing techniques to enhance or emphasize, conceal or reveal, fix, finish or faux the way we look.
Whether you're shooting a CEO for a promotional video or a best friend's wedding, your job is to make your subject look good, and there's more to this game than just lighting and exposure.
Paint 'Em Up
Let's start with make-up. Women are generally more knowledgeable about make-up than men, at least as far as everyday life is concerned. In front of a camera, though, you'll want to be able to provide a little extra advice. Since most women will prefer to apply their own make-up, your responsibility is to come prepared to enhance or refine what they've already done. Along with your camera equipment, you'll want to include a make-up kit (see the Sidebar). This can be as simple as a choice of powders, eyebrow pencils, hairspray, combs and brushes or as extensive as the professional on-set artist who lugs a suitcase arsenal of cosmetics to every shoot.
For men, your job involves hiding blemishes, evening out skin tones and killing shine. Most men do not have a lot of experience with this, so we have to explain a few things to them now that the shoot is about to begin.
The reason many people need foundation or base is to give the viewer a cleaner, clearer picture of the contours of the face without distractions, which the camera often magnifies. Early television cameras were notorious for making slight wrinkles look like saddlebags under the eyes, a minor mole on the forehead like a map of New Zealand and a drop of perspiration a tidal wave. There are two basic kinds of stage make-up: greasepaint (cream) or pancake. Pancake comes in a wide variety of skin tones and is less likely to "melt" under hot stage lighting or warm sunshine. You apply pancake with a sponge to create a matte finish, which generally doesn't require additional powder. It cannot be added to like greasepaint. If you're covering more than a freckled face, say a couple of freckled arms, freckled legs and a freckled chest; pancake is your best option. It's cheaper and quicker than cream.
On the other hand, a cream (greasepaint) foundation is more flexible and adaptable. It comes in an endless array of colors and skin tones and can be applied right from the bottle (or tube) to cover a tiny blemish or a whole face. It's purpose is to make an entire area of skin the same color and it provides a base for other make-up to be blended into.
Keep Your Powder Dry
The next ingredient is powder, which you'll use to set cream make-up. The cream and powder work together to establish a dry looking matte finish that will absorb moisture and skin oils that can shine in almost any light. A colorless translucent powder is the most versatile for keeping the shine off a bald head or upper lip in bright sunshine or under hot studio lights.
While women have the option of perfecting their make-up with blush, rouge, lipstick, liner, mascara and eyeliner in endless combinations of colors and effects, men typically don't. Just getting them to sit still for a light brush of powder along the ridge of the nose and forehead might be problematic. You should make every attempt to make the talent feel as comfortable as possible for their make-up session, but you need to do it with your lights on and with the talent in position. It might help settle any make-up anxiety by explaining that even Rambo, Arnold and Hulk Hogan wear cosmetics on camera. It's just required, that's all. And you might remind them that nearly 25% of American men now use some form of cosmetic on a daily basis. Or you could explain how Nixon's "black beard" cost him the 1960 election. In the end, confidently assure them that they will look better with just a dab of powder. It'll make them look good, which, in turn, will make you look good.
