Multimedia Makeup Academy would like to introduce their new YouTube series: Your Best Work. In this series, MMA will highlight the best work of its Alumni, Students, and Instructors! With host Matt Klink, Multimedia Makeup Academy would like o provide a first-hand look at where you can find yourself as a future student.
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In episode three, we went a little long, so we’re breaking this episode into multiple parts! And just like episodes one and two, we broke up this selection into multiple stories! So you’re getting almost four weeks of Nicole Diehl!
In this first selection, Nicole and I discussed her MMA origin story AND her work on the 2018 fim, Betrayed. The film stars Richard Tyson (from Kindergarten Cop) and Billy Wirth (from the Lost Boys) and Nicole tells us how the sensitive subject of the film can make your job tough!
Enjoy a transcript of our conversation about Nicole’s work and then check out the rest of the video on our YouTube channel.
Working Beauty and Special Effects for Betrayed
Matt [00:02:46] We are in the media room! We introduced it in the first couple episodes. This is something that you would have access to. I am, of course, filming on my phone right now, but we have cameras all around here. So I wanted to get to know everybody from a more raw perspective. I listed a couple of IMDB credits and there are a couple of movies that we’re actually going to talk about in the show today. But tell us a little bit more about ‘Nicole’, first.
Nicole [00:03:20] I actually I I didn’t know what I wanted to do you have kind of high school. As soon as I graduated I had all of these ideas and then they fell through. And then I started watching the show FACE OFF on SYFY. Then I started researching because I was like: This is what I’m doing. This what I’m gonna do We’re doing this thing. It’s happening. So I started researching and a lot of the places that were coming up were like people’s basement. Just weird things and then all of a sudden I found the Academy. I met Christina and I kind of just stalked Christina for a while.
Nicole [00:04:16] And I’d come to all of the open houses, ask her all of these questions and then she’s like so when are you going to do this. Like, let’s just do it. So then I started going to school and I’ve never left.
Matt [00:04:29] Perfect.
Nicole [00:04:29] So it’s great.
Matt [00:04:31] And that’s what brings us together today. You mentioned…You said face off and I immediately pictured Nick Cage.
Matt [00:04:43] And then you mentioned you were going into somebody’s basement and I was like: we’re jumping into silence of the lambs here…I’ve already got movies on the mind.
Nicole [00:04:51] Yes.
Matt [00:04:52] So that’s…I guess…That’s a good part about that.
Nicole [00:05:05] Yes. So I graduated in 2016 and then they ended up bringing me back as an instructor which I’m super excited about, and I teach some of the four classes: makeup essentials, airbrush, I also take some of the specialty classes for body painting and some of the special effects classes. I’m trying to play everywhere I like to have my hand in all things makeup. So I’m super well-rounded.
Matt [00:05:33] And also, if you guys can’t feel the personality bursting through the camera right now…I think we’ve had an opportunity to speak…put a number on it…say five times, right? But instantly it was like: ‘OK’. That’s why you went from student to instructor. Because nobody would want her to leave here!
Matt [00:05:58] So outside of being an instructor for MMA…What is the best way to describe what’s that end game? Maybe not the end game for everybody, but what was your end game from you MMA education?
Nicole [00:06:29] I feel like a lot of times it’s when people start thinking of like doing makeup for some reason people think that you can’t make money doing makeup. That’s not true at all.
Matt [00:06:45] As I’ve been learning as a newbie…I know it was something I mentioned in episode one: I came here and did the interview and I was learning that this was a career path.
Nicole [00:07:08] I had like a good strong support system at home that said “you can do this!” But definitely like my goal was to just work in film. Film is my world! Film people are my friends!
Nicole [00:07:24] You walk into a room of film people…You think it’s crazy walking in here and seeing the community…If you walk into a group of filmmakers and the community is even crazier because of those instant connections with everyone and you just instantly become friends.
Nicole [00:07:39] But a lot of that is networking. Making sure that you’re going to those networking events, talking to everybody, just being there, and being the person that they recognize. I worked on a short film for NPI and then I started mingling with all of the other crew members. And then from there, my work spoke for itself and I landed jobs by word of mouth.
Matt [00:08:13] If you aren’t paying attention…We’ve said this three straight shows! Don’t forget! There’s passion involved…Yes… A thousand percent. There are a lot of people that are passionate. You’ve got to go that extra step.
Matt [00:08:29] And what does that extra step get you? I am extremely excited to show you! What Nicole and I had been discussing this morning, about what her best work is, is some of the people that she’s been able to meet and some of the actors she’s been able to work with. You’re in for a treat with some of the things we’re going to show you today. Let’s talk about the cool actors that you’re able to work with. And of course the movie titled…Betrayed. So the first thing that we’re gonna go over here is the Billy Wirth work. What were some of the techniques that you went through working on Billy there.
Nicole [00:10:28] So a lot of the stuff that I did in Betrayed (so I did a little bit of the effects work) but for the most part, I was in charge of all of the beauty makeup on set and everyone needs makeup If you’re on screen, you need makeup! Even if it’s just having someone on standby with some powder. It’ll help the cameras, help the lighting, all of that. It just instantly makes the project look better when everyone else looks better and not like shiny.
Nicole [00:11:26] So yes. The photo is me doing makeup. So he’s from like the lost boys and it was really great. So he had a really big role in that film and it was actually crazy, because he was put into the film like…Pretty last minute… Having to do like a switcheroo with talent. But he was there and like just seeing him memorizing his lines while he was in my chair…It was really cool because it was like literally he got the script and that was on the plane to come here to do the film.
Matt [00:12:08] How about Richard Tyson?
Nicole [00:12:30] He’s great. He is a character. I’ve actually worked with him and Billy a couple of times along with the other a bunch of other people. But Richard is probably the funniest person I’ve ever met. He wants to entertain the entire room at all times. He’s just an entertainer. I’ve worked with him on a bunch of stuff and I couldn’t give you any photos on set, because he was going to give away plot points and we don’t want any spoiler alert here!
Matt [00:13:31] I mean we are on the precipice of probably the biggest spoiler thing since we’ve all exist. The Avengers coming out and Game of Thrones while we’re recording now.
Nicole [00:13:50] I don’t want to spoil the movie for you.
Matt [00:13:56] At the Makeup Academy, we care about each and every one of you. What could MMA’s students expect to see from anything you did. Are they going to be able to learn those techniques here at the school?
Nicole [00:14:17] Absolutely. So a little backstory about the movie betrayed. It’s about human trafficking which is a huge problem and it’s scary. So this was kind of our way of bringing light to those situations and kind of showing people what happened in those situations. So it’s very emotional. It’s very hard to pack but we had a lot of disturbing things that we had to recreate. There was days that I was in the corner crying listening to them, because it was really intense, but just knowing how to do makeup for film, going through special effects, definitely helps for just knowing also how to act on set.
Matt [00:15:20] Etiquette.
Nicole [00:15:21] And I feel like that’s a big thing that like other artists that I have been around or worked with that aren’t from the academy don’t really understand. There’s a certain way to talk to a talent. There’s a certain way to act on set. It’s like a huge thing that you learn from here. That follows you on the set. And then of course like sanitation.
Nicole [00:16:08] We are going to clean everything. We’re going to do what we need to do, so that they’re protected and not like passing cooties from one right.
Matt [00:16:18] We’ve got to take care of Billy and Richard.
Nicole [00:16:19] Yes.Their faces are in your hands, literally.
Matt [00:16:34] I love that you mentioned that because that’s how important it is for us to make sure that you are professional once you’re on the job site. And that’s something, from the get go. Once I started working here…That was something that before I started picking up any of the verbiage or anything like that. I mean they’re showing me the facilities where they start teaching you how to properly clean everything. It’s something that I think, ultimately, sets this academy apart from anything else that we that I’ve had to look into.
Nicole [00:17:36] Yeah I love that. That’s the thought. No we’ve still got to focus on that work in the bars and clubs and it’s crazy because once I’m in the chair a lot of times they’re asking me ‘What are you doing?’ and I’m like ‘This is how this is done.’
Does a Makeup Film Career Sound Fun?
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Find Nicole Diehl on Instagram: @nicolediehl94
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