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Grande Illusions: A Learn-By-Example Guide to the Art and Technique of Special Make-Up Effects from the Films of Tom Savini
The classic "how-to" textbook of special effects makeup. Fully illustrated and thoroughly explained instructions on creating a wide range of effects, including fangs, foam latex prosthetic makeups, mechanical masks, blood and gore effects and much much more! A "must-read" for anyone interested in special effects makeup and mask-making as a hobby or career.
135 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1983
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 22, 2022
Who would you call if you had a burning need to make the dead get up and walk around?
Well, there's Victor Frankenstein, but as I recall, that didn't work out too well for anyone.
I'd call Tom Savini, makeup and special effects artist for dozens of motion pictures, including George Romero's classic zombie-fests - Day of the Dead and Dawn of the Dead. Perhaps no one has ever done a better job of bringing the dead back to life.
In this book, Savini offers a step-by-step guide for creating monsters, maniacs, exploding heads, and teenage slasher victims. There are hundreds of photos, many of them quite nauseating.
One chapter concentrates on the creation of "Fluffy," the thing in The Crate from Romero's Creepshow.
I got to see Tom Savini give a Q&A session in Pittsburgh in 2006. Afterward, nice guy that he is, he signed my book and tried to talk my oldest son into attending his Special Makeup and Effects Program: https://www.dec.edu/ts/ (I wish he'd been successful. I'm sure it would be W-A-Y cheaper than college!)
Savini told a great story about an incident that occurred during the making of Day of the Dead. Since I don't have a blog, I'll share it with you here.
It seems the crew had acquired some fresh pig guts to use during one of the climactic scenes from the film. They loaded them in a freezer, then headed to Florida to shoot some exterior footage. Upon their return, they discovered that somehow, the freezer had gotten unplugged, and the pig guts had spoiled. It was too late to get "new" guts if they wanted to stay on schedule, so they used what they had. I have new respect for all the actors in this scene, knowing they were working in such close proximity to smelly, rotten animal offal:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cn0QFe... - Warning! Not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach!
Well, there's Victor Frankenstein, but as I recall, that didn't work out too well for anyone.
I'd call Tom Savini, makeup and special effects artist for dozens of motion pictures, including George Romero's classic zombie-fests - Day of the Dead and Dawn of the Dead. Perhaps no one has ever done a better job of bringing the dead back to life.
In this book, Savini offers a step-by-step guide for creating monsters, maniacs, exploding heads, and teenage slasher victims. There are hundreds of photos, many of them quite nauseating.
One chapter concentrates on the creation of "Fluffy," the thing in The Crate from Romero's Creepshow.
I got to see Tom Savini give a Q&A session in Pittsburgh in 2006. Afterward, nice guy that he is, he signed my book and tried to talk my oldest son into attending his Special Makeup and Effects Program: https://www.dec.edu/ts/ (I wish he'd been successful. I'm sure it would be W-A-Y cheaper than college!)
Savini told a great story about an incident that occurred during the making of Day of the Dead. Since I don't have a blog, I'll share it with you here.
It seems the crew had acquired some fresh pig guts to use during one of the climactic scenes from the film. They loaded them in a freezer, then headed to Florida to shoot some exterior footage. Upon their return, they discovered that somehow, the freezer had gotten unplugged, and the pig guts had spoiled. It was too late to get "new" guts if they wanted to stay on schedule, so they used what they had. I have new respect for all the actors in this scene, knowing they were working in such close proximity to smelly, rotten animal offal:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cn0QFe... - Warning! Not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach!
January 26, 2018
This 'how-to' book of horror movie fx will be equally interesting to movie fans and aspiring movie makers, although it can get repetitive by the end. Covering Savini's fx work from Deathdream(1974) through Creepshow(1982), the original sketches and production photos are a real treat.
March 29, 2020
“I felt like an assassin. I load up my car, drive someplace, and kill people.”
An overview of how Savini created some of his amazing practical effects in some of the most iconic 80s horror films.
An overview of how Savini created some of his amazing practical effects in some of the most iconic 80s horror films.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews