makeup by lauren kayes.

los angeles-based freelance mua. available for film, photography, and events. inquiries to lrkayes[at]gmail.

[laurenkayes]

Assisted key artist Nora Stahl on this injury makeup for a horror film last fall.

[nerdistindustries]

Looks like Anthrax’s Scott Ian made a deal with the devil.

Watch Scott visit VVD Effects on the PREMIERE of Bloodworks

[laurenkayes]

It was awesome to be a part of the VVDFX team for this episode. Check it out!

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Injury piece by Vincent Van Dyke Effects, applied and painted by me.

[laurenkayes]

Grooming for Chris O'Brien by me. 

Photography: Diana Toshiko (Toshikophoto)

[laurenkayes]

Aging makeup with cream products.

[laurenkayes]

Prosaid transfer wound.

[laurenkayes]

Tattoo cover with Skin Illustrator.

[laurenkayes]

Some airbrush tattooing today.

[marauders-fanfilm]

The Lovely Ladies of Hogwarts!

[laurenkayes]

Did makeup and hair on these gorgeous girls with my assistant Amanda!

[laurenkayes]

Did key hair and makeup for Sabreena on Spices for Grandma. Wish I could be there to see it!

[laurenkayes]

So in love with the photos Bella Darling took on the set of Russian Red's John Michael.

Hair/makeup: Lauren Kayes

Wardrobe: Laura Ortiz

[laurenkayes]

Here it is! The video I worked HMU on with the beautiful and talented Russian Red. 

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Sadly the Polaroid film we used was no good for our production tomorrow but these photos are still pretty interesting. Injury work on an actress today.

[laurenkayes]

Was inspired by ghzel patterns last night but ended up just going with the flow. 

Used NARS + UD pencils and the MUFE flash palette.

[laurenkayes]

A couple more shots from the set of Russian Red's John Michael. Loved working with this girl and the rest of the crew.

Hair and makeup by me, top photo by Alex Bergman and bottom by Sayer Kanakriyeh.

[laurenkayes]

I assisted my good friend Nora Stahl on a horror feature back in the fall, and the first trailer is finally out! Check it out here. 

[laurenkayes]

Hello! I was wondering if you had any advice for (hopefully) aspiring makeup artists? I'm only 16, but I'm really interested in doing makeup for TV and movies in the future. May I ask where you got your start and where you went/are going to school? Is there anything that would be a good idea for me to get started on becoming a makeup artist (just to get a head start...) thank you so much and have a wonderful day!

I'm still technically new to the industry, and I've found that it's really important to keep up an equal balance of research, networking, and practice to get anywhere. I went to MUD in Burbank and I felt like that was a pretty good launching pad for connections/skill, but you have to push yourself once you get out of school to keep your skills sharp and to get work. It's a really competitive field.

At your age, I would definitely focus on doing some research and practicing whatever you can on whoever's willing to be a model for you! And even if you don't have a ton of people who want to model, practice on yourself. Whenever you watch TV/movies, pay attention to the makeup, and if you really like something you see, IMDB the crew and see who worked on it, check out their other work, etcetc. I keep a huge folder of reference images when I need to get some quick inspiration, and once you get to makeup school or start off in the industry it definitely makes a difference if you know who the big players in the field are. You never know who you might meet or talk to. If you're near a major entertainment hub like LA/NYC/Toronto/Vancouver/etcetc, take advantage of makeup conventions like IMATS that are open to the public, because there are always amazing demos/networking/learning opportunities there. 

For film/TV, you're probably going to need both beauty and SFX skills if you're looking to work on set rather than in a shop. Hair is also helpful for getting jobs initially. It's awesome that you already know what you want to do! I wish I had figured it out earlier so I could have gotten a head start. 

I hope that helps! Good luck!