Before starting this course, I’d had very little experience with makeup other than practising on myself and friends. I initially struggled with the breadth and depth of hair styling and cutting, and now, although I wouldn’t go out of my way to pursue hair, I am much more confident in my hair styling skills. This is largely due to the History and Reality in Context project, which was hair-based. 

My strongest unit from level 4 was Fantasy and Contemporary Transformation, which I believe is because due to the prosthetic basis of the unit and the creative freedom to design something entirely unique. Although this only offered a brief glimpse into prosthetics, it definitely confirmed that this was my area of interest that I wanted to pursue. It also taught me the possibilities to think outside the box, to use whatever works and that being experimental is key to producing a good piece. I experimented the most in this unit and I think that really helped me achieve a good final piece and a better grade. 

I also pursued quite a few fashion based shoots in first year which built up my confidence when working on set with people, taught me how to behave on set and acclimatised me to that side of the industry. Although I enjoyed them, I still plan to pursue prosthetics as I enjoy the film set atmosphere more than that of a fashion shoot and the character development that comes with prosthetics. 

I did not transition well into level 5, as my mark for Dramatic Contexts reflects, being my lowest grade so far. This really upset me, as I was quite happy with my final piece and I thought i’d done enough research and produced a relatively thorough website. What concerned me most was that what i’d thought i’d handed in was acceptable, but I received a 2:2. I was worried that if I maintained this perspective, it could affect my future grades, as what I perceived to be good would result in a low grade. I worked to find out where i’d gone wrong through the help of feedback tutorials and class mates and learned what I needed to do to improve my grade. This was reflected in the next unit, where I received my only first so far which I was very pleased about. As I’d focused on prosthetics for this unit, it confirmed that I was skilled in the area that I wanted to pursue, as one comment in my feedback stated that my work was reaching a professional level. 

I also worked on more extravagant fashion shoots in level 5 which I really enjoyed as I could plan the looks myself and be more creative. A horoscope themed shoot I worked on meant that I had the opportunity to make a large pair of prosthetic horns as part of a headpiece, and I really enjoyed the cross-over of fashion and prosthetics. I also collaborated with a class mate on a film which involved making a face piece and ears which was really good experience. We didn't have long to make the pieces and worked to a brief which we designed around. I learnt a lot about working against time, with a budget and with actors. 

I think that I tend not to cover enough breadth or depth in my research, which is something I need to consider for upcoming units. This also applies to planning out my final makeups so that when it comes to the day, small but important things go wrong. I can also tend to get scared when I think something can’t be done, and so rather than try and problem solve this or ask for someones help, i’ll just change my idea to something less difficult which means i’m not pushing myself enough. Such as with this current project where I thought I couldn’t do a cowl piece because we didn’t have an oven to cook foam in. If i’d’ve pushed myself, I could have made a foam oven with the help of tutorials from my prosthetic tutors.

 

 

In level 6 I plan to focus my projects around creating larger scale prosthetic pieces, using advanced mould-making techniques and experimenting with as many materials as possible. This way I can prepare myself thoroughly for industry and acquaint myself with various methods and techniques so I know how to produce the best pieces in the future. I want to avoid doing any more hair or wig work, as I feel confident enough with my abilities in this area, but would definitely be open to any hair punching or postiche work. I also plan to try and collaborate more with people, as this is something I need to work on in order to become more confident with having other people help me. Although I do enjoy fashion work and would like to pursue that in between prosthetic jobs (I also think this would also be a good idea from an economical point of view), I think having the parent title could cause me to miss out on prosthetic opportunities, as having that parent title doesn't show as much commitment as having the prosthetics title. I also think I could have a separate fashion portfolio for the purpose of pursuing fashion work. I have decided that I now need to be a lot more selective about the extra opportunities I take on whilst in level 6. Previously I have agreed to do most jobs for the experience, but now I know what I want to work towards I should avoid jobs that don’t fit into that category, such as theatre work and simple or beauty makeups. This is also so that I can utilise my time to the best of my ability, as I want to focus as much as my time on level 6 as possible, I won’t be able to afford to waste my time on projects that won’t benefit me. 

I would love the opportunity of any kind of prosthetic work placements, whether they be in workshops, on set, or shadowing a prosthetic artist. I have tried writing to individuals and companies and have had no luck so far so I would really appreciate some specific advise in this area, as I am not confident with networking and approaching people in person.

 

 

My initial ideas for this project stem from deities pertaining to a specific elements, such as Poseidon, God of the sea. I intend to research all kinds of myths, Gods and the pantheons they belong to as a starting point for my research which I can then narrow down. This will predominantly involve reading and book based research, as well as any films I can find that depict deities. I like the idea of producing some kind of film for a final piece for the project, as then I would be working towards a film context.

The god(s) will involve a lot of prosthetic pieces, which will cover areas I haven't looked into before, such as making hand pieces. It reflects the prosthetic named award most heavily, but one of the characters may involve a lot of body painting or hair work as part of their character development. With regards to my professional identity, I hope to produce something unique and creative which will showcase my ability to research historically with cultural depth whilst working towards a context.

As well as my website containing all my research, designs and development, I shall also be handing in photographed images of the final makeups, an edited video, the wig, two fibreglass moulds and three flat piece moulds.

My decision making with regards to making the head piece for my prosthetic character shows how my technical skills informed my practical process. I didn’t have a head cast of my model to make the head piece and had decided that sculpting the shape into the bald cap would not give a professional enough finish. So I overcame this by arranging to talk to my tutors and decided that making a fibreglass copy of the red head to sculpt on would produce  a surface accurate enough to sculpt and make the piece from. Other examples include how I experimented and worked around creating the nail pieces and how I overcame sound recording issues on the day of the filming to create a movement piece instead of a scene with a script. 

I collaborated with various people to produce professional looking final images and an edited film. I thought carefully about how I wanted to present the piece as a film, and researched relevant films so I could create the correct mood for my scene. I thought about the shot list, angles and colour schemes, which demonstrates how I considered the overall presentation of the scene and how it what it would communicate to the audience. 

I have been very critical of my work in this project and tried to evaluate all areas of my project. I have identified in this PVP what I want to do next year to work towards the prosthetic named award and how pushing myself to work with and around problems rather than avoiding them so I am able to create bigger and better prosthetics.

My research demonstrates how I have acquired prosthetic based research from various resources; magazines, books, online sources and youtube. I also think that one-to-one tutorials are also a key way to acquire knowledge and to help problem solve specific issues that you maybe can’t overcome with research.