Nocturnal Designz's Midsummer Scream Prosthetic MUA Demo

Have you ever longed for the circus? Thought of going to the freakshow to see the marvels such as the human cannonball or the sword swallowers? What about the elephant man or the four-legged woman? My favorites were always the oddities like the snake girl. This year, at Midsummer Scream, I got that chance to see a real-life snake woman in the flesh!

Model/actress: V Nixie @vnixie www.vnixie.com

One of my favorite things about going to horror conventions is seeing the artistry of the special effects make-up artists. This weekend at the Midsummer Scream convention in Long Beach, I had the opportunity to work with the professionals at Nocturnal Designz. This SFX shop specializes in makeup design, props, and fabrication for film and fashion events as well as fantasy creatures, horns, and prosthetic molding and casting.

At the helm of the shop is KC Mussman, CEO of Nocturnal Designz and lead FX artist for the time I was working with the crew. I was introduced by the model/ actress for the day’s feature, V Nixie, who was already in the chair and was having prosthetics applied. The theme was carnival snake woman and wow, did they impress.

MUA/creator: KC Mussman
Model/actress: V Nixie

The entire process took about four hours from sitting down to the finished product. It started with the application of foam latex prosthetic to V’s face and head. From there, the bodypainting began. This process took several hours due to the complexity of design, shading, and layers required to give the desired effect. Painting an entire body from head to toe is a feat in and of itself but doing it with a constantly rotating audience and interruptions from fans and members of the press only adds to the pressure. KC is a consummate professional, always continuing to work while answering questions and allowing admirers their chance to peruse her work. All the painting was completed with an airbrush with a mesh bodynet giving the desired scaling effect of a snake.

Once the painting was completed, it was the model actress’s time to shine and that she did. With the application of snake eye contacts, snakeskin boots, and an appropriately colored bikini, she started moving to and fro, swaying like a snake, making her way through the crowd. The overall effect was mesmerizing! A blend of beauty, grace, horror, and macabre slithered around the Long Beach Convention Center entertaining the audience, stopping for photos, and gyrating for the cameras.

If you are ever lucky enough to enjoy an SFX prosthetics and body paint exhibition, I highly recommend you attend. The artistry and talents of the crew are something to behold and truly the stuff of nightmares.