After the Zombies were created, zombie master Tom Savini would give the makeup a blow dry so it would set properly. Between scenes the make up crew would roam the group of zombies and check their makeup and retouch it if necessary, You can buy a print of this image at my commercial gallery by clicking here.
Toma Savini give a Zombie blow dry
You can’t make a movie without gaffers. They set the lights, set up the equipment, load film and do just about anything. This is especially true on a small budget movie like the original Dawn of the Dead (1978). Here is the crew setting up the equipment at the beginning of the shoot at Monroeville Mall. You can buy a print of this image at my commercial site by clicking here.
Gaffers setting up the Camera
By 2 A.M the nervous energy that the zombie extras had at the beginning of the shoot had vanished and was replaced by some exhaustion. Most of these people had day jobs and had been up for at least 18 hours at that point. You can buy a print of this image on my commercial site by clicking here.
2 A.M in the Mall
In 1978, Zombies were created almost exclusively through makeup. Today on shows like, “The Walking Dead” they use masks and other methods to create the effects. On Dawn of the Dead (1978), there were no harder working people than the makeup crew. Here is one of the makeup artists creating a zombie before shooting began. You can buy this images and others at my commercial gallery by clicking here.
Time to Make the Zombies
One of the nights I was on location, the crew spent a lot of time filming a scene at the fountain. There must have been some sort of reflection problem and it required reblocking the scene and changing the camera positions. This is George Romero working on resolving the issue. You can buy a print of this image at my commercial gallery by clicking here.
George Romero Solving a Problem
Michael Gornick was the Director of Photography of some early Zombie Classics like Dawn of the Dead (1978). He was a really nice soft spoken man working with a very limited budget and inexperienced crew. He somehow managed to film one of the greatest cult films of all time. You can buy a print of this image on my commercial site by clicking here.
Michael Gornick Director of Photography
I was amazed at how long it took to make up a single Zombie. Not only did they need to have their faces made up but all so their arms, neck and any other exposed skin. They also had to be dressed so they looked undead.I don’t think the process has changed much. When I watch “The Walking Dead” I study the zombies in the background for the makeup effects and appreciate how long it takes to makeup an extra. This is a young lady sitting patiently while being made up for the 1978 “Dawn of the Dead. You can buy a print of this image on my Commercial Gallery by clicking here.
Zombie Getting Makeup
You don’t often get the opportunity to watch an artist work. Tom Savini was the creator of the Zombies for Dawn of the Dead in 1978. He worked with a small staff and created all the makeup effects. The man could make ligaments from a bucket of goo. Here he is backstage creating another Zombie for the Zombie Classic. You can buy a print of this image on my commercial site by clicking here.
There is a lot of waiting around while filming a movie. On the original Dawn of The Dead, the extras would arrive early for makeup and then hang around until they were needed in a specific shot. Sometimes they would wait so long, they had to have their make up retouched. During coffee breaks they had to make sure they didn’t mess up their make up. You can buy a print of this image at my commercial gallery by clicking here.
Zombie Coffee Break
One of my early Videographs set in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maui to the music of Soul Coughing’s “Rolling”.