Head makeup artist Carly Herbert has always been obsessed with period cuts, and the ’70s has always been a favourite, and “there was a lot of self-expression,” she says. So, when I had the opportunity to work on Minx on HBO Max, I picked it up.
A certain scene, in the middle of the first episode of the show, posed a unique challenge to Herbert. Joyce of Ophelia Lovibond was given the task of selecting models for Minx, the first porn magazine designed for women. What follows is a display of male models walking around and strutting for the call.
Herbert, whose credits include “College Girls’ Sex Life,” “Ratched” and “American Horror Story,” said director Rachel Lee Goldenberg and showrunner and writer Eileen Rapoport were excited about her presence with her background in prosthetics.
“They said, ‘It’s great that you have prosthetics because we’re going to get some,'” Herbert says. ‘I asked, ‘What are we going to do?’
The make-up head manages the entire gamut of prosthetics – from cutting the throat to bleeding parts of the body. She’s even done a penis, but, says Herbert, “I’ve never done a full prosthesis.” With that, she happily accepted the challenge.
Herbert points out that the trend of penis prosthetics is something that has seen a rise in the past few years with shows like “Scenes From Marriage,” “Ecstasy,” and “Outlander” featuring complete nudity from the front.
“We’re still thinking about a penis prosthesis,” Herbert says.
It started with Herbert’s script and collaborations with Rapoport, plus every actor. “It will depend on the character, the actor, and what they were supposed to look physically,” she says.
Herbert relied on Jason Collins, owner of the F/X autonomous car. The approved photos were shown by Rapoport and he was tasked with making the necessary prosthetics.
“We had plastic parts, and one character was tough,” explains Herbert of the “various shapes, shapes, and sizes.” Then I left it up to Collins to sculpt and build what she needed.
Sometimes Herbert would use glue during the application process and other times he would use the belt. “It really depends on how we use the prosthesis,” Herbert says. She also paid attention to dressing her pubic areas, she says. Through it all, Herbert learned about tape tucking, which is used by drag queens and trans people. She found it useful and included it in her application process.
Comfort was of paramount importance to all involved. “A big part of the application was making sure the actors were comfortable and going through the steps,” she says. “It’s so hard to have to wear them anywhere from 10 to 14 hours a day.”
As for what he talked about the audition scene, Herbert says it wasn’t actually prosthetics: “That was a penis for everyone.”
Aside from prosthetics, Herbert indulged in her love for 70’s makeup. And while the old makeup lines from Max Factor, Revlon, and Yardley were essential to women’s looks, I had a lot of fun doing men’s makeup.
“We’d shave them and paint their faces differently,” says Herbert, who used to do simple makeup on the guys.
For Minx, facial hair was important. The world of Bottom Dollar Publishing was a lot more fun. This meant giving men in that environment bare beards and longer sideburns to reflect the times. In contrast, the scientist of Glenn (Michael Angarano) is a conservative scientist. “It’s clean-shaven and has sideburns hidden in the middle of the ear,” Herbert says.
[ad_2]
