Hi all,
As many of you know I started doing web interviews a while ago, but haven’t done any recently. This is largely due to the make-up artists not wanting to be in front of the camera (that’s not what they signed up for). It also causes logistical issues unless they are actually here to be filmed. As such I’ve decided to do some more traditional written interviews. As always we’ve decided to start with an award winner, but just for a bit of a difference, we’re going to Bollywood for one of our ex-students, Namrata Soni who won the International Indian Film Academy Award for the special effects on ‘Om Shanti Om’. Here is her interview
What were you doing before you got into make-up?
I was a student majoring in economics.
Why did you choose Delamar Academy?
When I did my research and found Penny Delamar, I aspired to be like her. Delamar Academy had the best courses and best teachers. It made me want to study there.
What do you think makes Delamar Academy different?
The hands-on practical approach. It has a course out there for every individual, the best teachers from around the world. I couldn’t have asked for a better school.
What is your favourite memory of the course?
I loved every day of my course, but my most memorable day is when Penny taught me how to do a little bit of prosthetic makeup. As she had stopped teaching by then, I valued the time and information the most.
What do you see as the difference between different types of work (e.g. smaller films to theatre to big productions to Fashion)?
Fashion is the most creative work a makeup artist can get the opportunity to do. It’s innovative and it can be anything you want it to be. The crazier the better sometimes.
Small films have tighter schedules (60 days), long hours of work (15 -17 hours a day) and small budgets. There is a lot of prep that goes into each look, as the window of time is short. Every detail is important and you have to be on your toes constantly. The budgets for smaller films are very low so for the amount of work you do, the pay grade is less.
Big productions have long schedules (100 -120 days) but the hours of work are slightly shorter ( 12 hours ) . The schedules are far apart as the movie can take anywhere up to a year or more to complete. Continuity books are a must in these kinds of projects, as every actor needs to look identical to the scene that was shot months ago. A lot of attention to detail is paid in these films. Sometimes actors are in the same outfit for weeks.
What advice would you give anyone wanting to study in the UK?
Assist a little before you go to study. If you ask the right questions you will receive the answers. You don’t get spoon-fed the answers. They want you to know what you are studying.
What advice would you give to anyone wanting to become a make-up artist?
It is a great profession, where you have to put in a lot of hard work and sacrifice a lot of personal time, but the rewards that you reap are worth it.
What is your favourite memory of your career so far?
My favourite memory is of my mom and sister being next to me when I won the IIFA award. It was the happiest moment of my career.
What are you most proud of?
All my achievements.
How do you think working in India differs from the UK or other countries?
Well, India has a lot of potential but the genre of movies being made here are different. It’s changing very quickly and with corporate companies taking over production, it’s becoming more professional very fast. The hours of work here are longer and the pay is less.
What advice would you give to someone wanting to work in India?
It’s a great country with great potential and a growing worldwide market.
There’s a place for everyone.
What are your goals for the future?
To be the best at what I do, coming back to Delamar to study further. Making my mother proud.
