Following the release of the zombie flick, 28 Years Later, I spoke with Molly Bowen-Schofield about her work on the film. Molly and I have been friends for years, even working together as zombie actors back in university (see main image – Molly is on the left), so to see her come full circle and work on this project has been a real joy.
If you would like to hear more of my personal thoughts on the film, you can watch a video here.
Can you explain your job to our readers? What was your role in 28 Years Later?
My role was Prosthetic Technician, specifically acting as Lead Technician for the silicone department at workshop. In summary, we cast out and make the prosthetics for the actors to wear, including various silicone props.
My role also included keeping track of the shoot schedule and the numbers of various prosthetics that were needed each day and week.
What was your average day like when working on 28 Years Later?
For most workshop technicians, you get in early, start around 8am and check that nothing in the schedule has changed! Prosthetic departments always need to be ready to make what the director needs; if they suddenly want to add an extra day of a certain scene, it could mean a whole new set of makeup needs to be pulled together ASAP. But once you settle into the day, and get your prosthetic moulds prepped for casting, there is sometimes time for a quick breakfast or coffee around 10am – but usually we settle into a rhythm as a team and get cracking on with casting out prosthetic pieces.
The mould makers will give us new moulds at the beginning of the day ideally, and the paint room are the next department after us. So sometimes painters will come up to the silicone department to make a note of what makeup to expect next to be painted.
Do you have any funny stories from working on the film?
I mean it has to be the volume of prosthetic penis’ we had to cast out. There were so many serious conversations about the practicality of casting them – making sure the weight of them didn’t tear the prosthetic where it attached to the actor, to even having a team member hand knot pubic wigs for them. There were lots of funny moments, but it always got a bit silly when we were tired and working with a zombie willy!
What’s Danny Boyle like? And how was it working with the rest of your team?
I have met Danny Boyle before, but not on this job, it was on work experience when he was producing a TV drama called Trust. He’s such a down to earth, genuinely lovely man. He’s incredibly passionate and is full of energy when expressing what he needs out of a scene.
The team I worked with were such a big family – it was really nice! I think because of how intense the job was, we all kept checking in with each other between departments to try and keep morale up. It makes a huge difference having a committed but also super friendly team because it just shows that whatever the job throws at us, we’re all in it together. As often as we could, we would sneak across the road to an old Irish pub to have lunch and a catch up, which was really lovely.
Do you have a favourite creation made by yourself and the team? Or perhaps a least favourite?
It’s hard to pick one stand out thing! We made loads of “gags” including an infected woman slicing her throat on barbed wire (which, unfortunately, you only see for a brief moment in the end!). It was a real team effort to pull together the Alpha prosthetics as they weren’t small actors, so everything was on a larger scale…
I think my personal favourite was the pregnant infected makeup. It was probably the largest prosthetic belly I’ve ever cast out, and we had to think through two variations of it; the prosthetic that the actress wore in the water, and the prosthetic birthing rig which was scaled up to give the right perspective of the newborn coming from within her, and not “on top” of her natural body.
As for least favourite, to be honest it might just be that it was a very intense build schedule in a very hot workshop in a very hot London summer! Everything cures so much quicker in the heat, so the whole team was working double time which was a bit of a challenge.
Can you tell us a little bit about any other projects you’ve worked on in the past? Or can you tell us anything about your future plans or future projects?
I’ve previously worked on a couple of Star Wars TV shows, Sonic 3, and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, doing bits for prosthetics and creature suits.
Despite how chaotic making Beetlejuice Beetlejuice felt, it’s probably one of my favourites as it combined a lot of classic practical elements, with new characters and some really fun makeup to help cast out.
I also felt very lucky to have been a part of the team for Poor Things by Yorgos Lanthimos, as the makeup design that Mark Coulier (whom I was working for at the time) had created resulted in an Oscar win! That was probably one of my most exciting moments to see so far.
As for my current work, obviously I can’t say anything, but I am dipping my toes in the prop making departments to try and expand my knowledge of materials and different moulding and casting techniques. It’s been a little bit of adjusting needed in my brain but it feels good to keep learning – this industry is always evolving so you can’t assume you know everything ever.
How did you get where you are today? What does the film mean to you as part of your journey?
Persistence is key I think… I started in a university degree that didn’t really give me everything I felt I wanted to explore, so I looked into extra curricular groups and work to try and “learn on the job”. I ended up starting as a zombie scare actor, which triggered my brain to know I wanted to make creatures for real!
After university, I looked into specialist courses to learn the skills of sculpting, moulding, casting and painting creatures and prosthetics. After, I just tried to network the best I could, and keep chasing people for work opportunities. And not just emailing them, I would call, text, write letters, anything. During the pandemic, I even hand wrote out my CV and skills and sent it to a production office in Arbourfield. Little did I know that they would call me over a year later claiming to still have my CV and see if I wanted work! I even got my trainee position with Coulier Creatures by sending a Christmas card with a small photo in it of an alien bust I had made and my mobile number. And so, I had my break with them and my trainee position began!
Film and fantasy and creatures and anything that comes out of this industry I’ve fallen into is so exciting. It’s escapism and it and take your brain to some where new and weird. I remember being inspired by The Fifth Element by Luc Besson when I was younger, and also watching Lord of the Rings at the dinner table under candle light (my step dad dragged the big box TV into the dining room so we could eat like hobbits). I was fascinated at these creatures like orcs from Rings and the mangalores of Fifth Element.
Sometimes I wonder if the projects I work on are going to inspire another kid at some point down the line to enjoy the same escapism I had and needed when I was younger.
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