Interview : Gary J.Tunnicliffe

Before he goes to work on “The Exorcist” prequel, Make up and effects master Gary J.Tunnicliffe dropped by Moviehole for a chatter about the horror world. In this exclusive natter with Clint Morris, one of the horror genres finest tells all, from how to apply Pinhead’s pins to moulding Drac’s fangs.

You’ve got two new “Hellraiser” movies coming up. How’s the look for Pinhead changed after all all these years, if, at all?
The look hasn’t changed a great deal, most of the work has been to refine the process of the pins…originally they were a light hollow pin that slid onto a fitting…over the years we have found that styrene pins glued into the foam latex appliances directly hold up very well with little or no wobble…interesting side note here…the pins are actually gold in color. Also the amount of pieces and the configuration has changed we now have it down to a 3 piece application forehead/cowl piece, face piece and lower lip…on the last day of filming Doug (Bradley) on Hellraiser:Hellworld I attempted my world record application…the last time I did this was on Bloodline with a one hour and twenty seven minute application…this time I did it in sixty nine minutes…that’s from start to finish, ready for camera!

You did some good work on "Dracula Legacy" – what did you create for those films?
On Dracula Legacy (and Drac: Ascension – both shot at the same time) I was make up effects supervisor, key prop/weapon design and build, 2nd unit director and In Legacy I have a pretty big part playing ‘Tommy’ a complete coward of a news cameraman.We did severed heads, blood, wounds, fangs, lenses….if you saw it, we did it. Great fun – Patrick Lussier is a great director and I am happy to say a great friend…but it was a challenging experience (our first in Romania) and made for some tough days…I only had 3 crew (me included) and it was pretty work intensive.

Can you tell me about an upcoming film on your CV called "Megalodon"?
Not much to tell…I was asked if I wanted to direct a Hi Def movie with lots of computer graphics…and I said sure – (I would have directed a wedding video at that point in my career) I trusted the people making the film, they said lots of things that I naively believed. Whether they belive it or not they got in ‘way over their heads’ due to in experience and the belief that being older means you know everything…so what happened then…well I was compromised in many ways. Compromised by poor cast (not chosen by me) poor crew (who I was assured could do the job) by time, money,food, locations, computer graphics, music…everything. As it stands right now…I am assured every time I call them (not that I really give a shit) that ‘my money and a release are just around the corner’…I am owed $60,000 in writing, directing and fx fees that I am pretty sure I will never, ever see…most of the crew never got paid and there are several suits in action against the producer….I saw a cut which I personally disliked and since this really is not the film I was involved with or intended to make I have removed my name from it. Also, since we started this film there have been a ton of megalodon movies so I don’t think any distributor will rush out to buy this very ‘average’ movie…hindsight being 20/20 I wish I had never even considered doing it…but you live and learn and a small slice of my trusting nature got ripped away.

How have fx and make-up changed since when you first started out?
You know most of the process’s that we use sculpting, mould making etc are virtually identical to when I started out (you learn little techniques to refine along the way) and I still love foam latex appliances…the biggest change for me in the last 5 or so years has been the use of silicon for skins on fake heads and bodies…and obviously there are people in the industry who use silicon for facial appliances as well…It is just something I haven’t spent to much time researching…that isn’t to say that with the right project I wouldn’t use it…but if it aint broke? The only other thing is the use of CGI in creating effects sequences using CG to handle a stage or enhance something…10 years ago I wouldn’t have imagined sticking tracking points or targets to make-ups for CG enhancement.

Tony Todd says he’d like to get another "Candyman" going. Heard anything? interested?
Haven’t heard anything…but given the chance to slide that big old rusty hook onto my good friend Mr Todd’s bear like hand, gut a few innocent victims along the way and dodge a couple of thousand bee’s…I’d be there in a heartbeat!

Have you a favourite project?
That I worked on?…I really enjoyed Drac: Ascension and Legacy…it was hard but we did it and from adversity comes the best of times…if its all easy…it has no resonance. Patrick is very supportive director who helps and understands that you are doing the best you can…and he never has a problem saying thank you…and that means everything to me. I have said it many times…I don’t really care about big dollars..to do a good job and be told ‘thank you’ is all I ask for…and Patrick and Joel and Keith, Mike and Ron at Neo Art and Logic are always so supportive and so generous in their gratitude that I personally would be the first go ‘over the top and running toward the machine gun nest’ if they asked. Stephen Norrington (Director of Blade and LXG) said something cool to me the other day…he said ‘ You know for the last few years we have both worked on these different films you at one end of budget and me at the other…and it seems that while I have probably made more money and worked with bigger stars….you seem to have done the job and along the way had a lot more fun…and isn’t what it should be about?’ – kinda says it all really doesn’t it?

You also did some second unit directing on "Prophecy 4". How’s that differ from your normal work?
I love shooting 2nd unit…I love getting behind a camera…I love getting in front of a camera…being on a film set period. The thing I find most fun about 2nd unit is that once you have shot the things you have to shoot (your list of shots i.e.: The glass hitting the floor, the feet at the doorstep, the car driving by, the pov shot of the window) and if you find that you and your crew have nothing else to do for a few hours….you can generally (if the producer and director will let you) shoot additional shots that may help or enhance…and having directed a couple of films and feeling that I have a pretty good grasp of ‘the edit’ and what things can help I have been lucky enough to do just that. It’s a great place to test frame rates, unusual angles and techniques and most of the time I have been fortunate that the ‘stuff’ that I did shoot like that ended up in the film….so bonus huh?

How’d you get interested in all this?
I was a weird kid…I just loved movies…just loved spending two hours in the dark and through perseverance I managed get out of the small mining town in a pretty grungy part of the West Midlands…and make my dream a reality.

What’s next for you?
I am doing some effects and possibly some 2nd unit on a ‘Rosemary’s baby’ish’ film called ‘Blessed’ starring Heather Graham…and I am working with Renny Harlin and Morgan Creek Production on their planned additional photography for ‘Exorcist:the Beginning’