MUD Talks:
An Hour with Howard Berger Actress, Juliette Landau, best known as Drusilla in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, recently sat down for a MUD Talk with Academy Award winning make-up artist, Howard Berger. Berger has over 800 films to his credit - Lone Survivor, Patriots Day, Kill Bill: Vol 1, and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. The pair were joined by a group of MUD students eager to learn from one of the industry’s best.
TELL US ABOUT GROWING UP IN BURBANK.
people like James Kagel, Mike McCracken Sr. and Jr., and Jeff Kennmore. When I graduated high school, Stan hired me. He
WHAT’S IT LIKE WORKING WITH QUENTIN TARANTINO?
My mom was a teacher and an artist. My
was very influential in my career. Early on
dad was a post-production sound editor
I also met my hero, Rick Baker, of King
I met Quentin at a barbeque. He’s brilliant.
in the film business, so he introduced
Kong fame. Everything Rick ever said to
Before he was well-known, my company
me to films early on. I fell in love with
me sticks in my brain.
was the first to ever pay him to write a
monster films especially, like Two-Headed
script. We told him if he ever got a film
Transplant and Creature from the Black
going that we would do the effects. Shortly
Lagoon. By the time I was about eight
“Keep reinventing. School plants
after, he started working on Reservoir
years old, I realized that there were people
a seed and you have to let it grow.
Dogs. We made all the blood and the
behind the scenes who made all these
That’s what’s going to make you
rest of the effects. For Kill Bill, we went to
characters, and I knew that was what I
special and stand out.”
China thinking we would be there for three
wanted to do when I grew up.
weeks. We stayed five months. I always knew when our effects were successful
WHO WERE YOUR EARLY INFLUENCES?
WHY FORM YOUR OWN COMPANY?
When I was ten years old, I got the book
because Quentin would laugh. One time we chopped somebody’s arm off and blood hit the roof thirty feet above us, and Quentin laughed and laughed.
“The Art of Theatrical Make-up for Stage
Originally, there were three of us that
and Screen” by Mike Westmore. I made
formed KNB Studios—Robert Kurtzman,
everything in the book from start to finish
Greg Nicotero, and me. We had been
to learn what worked for me and what
supervising for other people and putting in
didn’t. When I was twelve I got to meet
a lot of hard work, but we weren’t getting
Mila is lovely and patient, but her wicked
Stan Winston—known today for films like
any of the credit. So we said, “Let’s stop
witch make-up was the hardest of all the
Terminator and Jurassic Park. He stressed
working for other people, and let’s start our
characters in Oz. She has porcelain skin and
the importance of education, so as long as
own company.” We had a tiny 800-square-
we turned her totally green. We initially used
I got As and Bs on my report card I could
foot facility that was like a garage, and we
a silicone piece for the nose, but it didn’t
continue to visit his shop. There I met
grew from there.
hold up well during fourteen-hour shoots.
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TELL US ABOUT MILA KUNIS AND OZ.
