THE BLUE GIRL
Lexi Gilbert - Makeup FX/Costume Artist
ABOUT ME
My name is Lexi, I'm an aspiring makeup FX and costume artist situated in the South West of the UK. I have a passion for special effects makeup and art finishing and I'm always teaching myself and learning new things every which way I can.
I have always been addicted to the creative media industry, there's something awe-inspiring about how they not only think of great ideas, but breathe tangible, gooey, shiny life into them. As a kid, you believe its real and that magic and fantasy really exist, and when I got older and realise I could create that magic, I have been learning and creating feverishly ever since.
I started off with costume projects, using cheap household materials; my Neytiri makeup is entirely done with just face paint and eyeshadow powder and my Mystique is just liquid latex with eyeshadow pigment. I believe if you're truly passionate about something, budget shouldn't limit you. I learned valuable costuming skills through my hobbies and I pride myself on resourcefulness when it comes to creating. My most recent costume creation 'Davy Jones' (not including production hours) cost only about £250 to create!
After finishing my degree, I got a place on Neill Gorton's 7 week Makeup & Prosthetics course, which was exactly the investment I needed. I have always operated on a micro-budget, and being able to spread my wings as it were in a creative workshop with professional training from Millenium FX, was one of the best experiences of my life.
I finished the course with an even greater appetite for learning and getting involved with the industry, and my first job was working for Neill Gorton himself at his workshop in Cornwall, and I was given the honour of having my final piece on his course featured on the front cover of Prosthetics magazine which was released at the London 2014 IMATS.
Shortly after, I got my first job on a film working in Cape Town, South Africa for two months working on a film directed by Sean Penn. Then within a week of returning from Africa I got a job working on Game Of Thrones, where I first worked in the workshop painting 100 faces for the set of 'Hall Of Faces', then I was asked to stay on with the team and travel to Belfast to work on the set as a trainee and assistant to the Prosthetics team on the episode of 'Hardhome'. The episode was then to be nominated for an Emmy!
Most recently, with the aim of bettering myself as an artist, I have entered Hollywood's Cinema Makeup School's scholarship competition 'The Next Level Of Cosplay' three years in a row with homemade self-aplied renditions of the characters 'Abe Sapien', 'Groot', and 'Davy Jones'. I garnered a huge following on social media and was published in 4 newsapers, 2 radio stations and featured on the local televised news. I went on to make it into the final five every time in the competition after having my work judged by idols such as Ve Neill, Howard Berger, Mike Spatola and Matt Winston.
I also entered Cinema Makeup School's 'Rick Baker's Legends of Creature Design' scholarship with my 'Teuthida' design for which I was also one of the final five. As a result of a private sponsor being so impressed by my work, I've attended Cinema Makeup School in central Hollywood in early 2018 where I have completed Character Makeup and Advanced Lab Techniques classes.
Currently I am a costume and makeup FX freelancer working for private clients.
I regularly volunteer at conventions such as London IMATS where I worked & modelled for Steve Johnson and Tate Steinsiek of 'Face Off' fame, The Prosthetics Event, and Comic Cons where I give industry advice to huge audiences on-stage and as well as judge the costume competitions.
I can't believe what a wild ride it has been already, and its only been 4 years so far. I can't wait to see where the future takes me!