What does it take to be a successful makeup artist? And how do you make makeup so detailed it looks believable for film? At the Brookhaven Campus, Dallas College students got the opportunity to have these questions and more answered by Oscar-nominated makeup artist Donald Mowat.
Mowat has had a very successful career in the makeup world working on projects “Blade Runner,” “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” “Prisoners,” “Dune,” where he earned his Academy Award nomination and many more. His presentation started with a Q&A with students and then a makeup demonstration with a volunteer from the crowd. This gave students a first-hand perspective on what exactly Mowat does when working on these actors.
During the Q&A, he went into detail about what it feels like to be critically acclaimed and the almost burden that comes with such a label.
“Awards are a curse,” said Mowat. “When you love getting to do what you love, it comes with a lot. Awards mess with people. It is showing business, not show fun for a reason.”
Mowat also stated that he got his start in his high school theater program working on his fellow classmates and fell in love with this form of world-building. It was an eye-opening experience and an amazing opportunity for students to learn from such a master of a detailed craft.