Horns
Having already researched the film Horns, I decided to look at more examples of horns in films, trying to relate it to animal/human hybrids. The examples I found were all examples of mythical creatures, which is another sourse of hybridisation.
The Chronicles of Narnia
Adamson, A. (2005) The Chronicles of Narnia
Mr. Tumnus is the faun character from the Narnia films. Howard Berger
produced the prosthetics for this character. They are very small horns,
just peaking through the top of his hair. They are quite organic looking, I
mean they are in-keeping with the rest of the characters natural form and
the brown colouring suggests themes of nature. The shape is also not
perfectly defined, which is accurate, as flaws are a constant in nature
(nothing is perfectly smooth or symmetrical, and so flaws add realism)
Although some mountain goat horns can be huge and curly, I think because of the soft nature of the character, more tame horns are appropriate. I think the type of goat horn they were trying to recreate was more like a farmyard goat, who's horns are small, not menacingly pointly and quite smooth, with little texture.
Minotaurs (Bull Horns)
The minotaurs in Narnia typically play the
more aggressive roles, which make sense
from a physiognomical point of view.
Again, bulls horns come in many
shapes and sizes. I think they chose
to sculpt the horns upwards to
make them look more menacing and
aggressive, which is still accurate
with regards to real bulls.
I'm not sure about the mottled
dark colour all over the horns,
I think that might just be for that
minotaurs character, to make him
look more evil in comparision to
the other minotaurs.
Pan (Del Toro, G. 2006, Pan's Labyrinth)
Pan is another faun character, but his physiognomy is
totally different to traditional faun characters, and
he contrasts hugely with Mr. Tumnus.
I think because he is more of a fairytale/legend
creation rather than a traditional faun, and the design
of the film is very other-wordly and bizarre, that the
design of his makeup was much more unlimited than
that of a Narnian faun. Theres obviously a tree-like
element to his aesthetic, which gives him a more
elderly, wise appearance. This also helps tie-in with the
large nature of the horns which I think are much more
comparable to ram's horns than goats. This maybe
to give the character a slightly more devilish element,
as although he helps Ophelia, he seems craft and
beguiling with a slightly ambigious character.
The makeup took 5 hours to apply and was made mostly
of foam latex. The nose down was animated by Doug Jones
but above there was all animatronics to make the
brows, ears and head move.
These horns seem to be the most extreme, in size
shape and texture. Observing them has made me
appreciate the detail involved in horns - that they're
not a smooth surface by any means. I'll consider this
reasearch when sculpting my horns.
KNB effects Minotaur (2005) [online] Available from:http://monsters-werewolves.tumblr.com/page/4 Accessed: Febraury 22nd 2015]
Goat (uknown) Available from:http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/x/young-goat-little-horns-15424090.jpg [online] Accessed: February 23rd 2015]
Pan's Labyrinth (2006) [online] Available from:http://fairyroom.com/WP/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/fairyroom_pans_labyrinth.png [Accessed: February 23rd 2015]
Rams Horns (uknown) [online] Available from:http://ep.yimg.com/ca/I/yhst-71834276129357_2227_932912615.jpg [Accessed: February 23rd 2015]
Maleficent (Stromberg, R. 2014. Maleficent)
Makeup Artists Magazine, Issue 109 August/September page 62
This article explains the designing process and decision making involved with creating the Maleficent horns. There were 3 designs overall, and the animals looked at for inspiration were the bighorn sheep and the kudu antelope.
Different urethane materials were mixed together to create lightweight horns that were virtually indetructable for stunt purposes.
Baker decided to make them detatchable by applying magnets to them and a skull cap which was vacuformed to fir Angelina Jolie's head perfectly.
Horns in Nature
Foy, S. (1982) The Grand Design. USA: BLA Publishing Ltd. pages 205-212
All Narnia Images:
Weta Workshop (2008) The Crafting of Narnia. USA: Harper Collins Publishers
pages 114-182
Looking at these images, it becomes clear how nature influences makeup design for horns.
Maleficant's horns are curled, like the kudu's, yet thicker at the base and curtailing to a point like the rams horns which give them a demonic flair.
Similarly, the inspiration for Narnia's minotaurs is also evident and that their decision to go for a more cow-like appearance is apparent in the image of the highland bull,.
This book states that "There is no apparent reason for the extroadinary variety of shapes and sizes amoung horns", which i think lends a level of artistic freedom when one is sculpting their own horns, whether they be based on nature, or completely fantastical. You'd assume there would be a reason as to why rams horns look different to antelope horns, but I think depending on the image you want to convey with your horns, you can take inspiration from different sources and merge it with new ideas.
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