How to make a moldMy first legitimate short film was a 50s era monster flick with all the conventions a terribly good B-movie, including a lurching, unrealistic monster (ours was a nuclear Burmese python/Kodiak bear hybrid) -- if only we had the time, money, and know-how to craft a proper mold for a fuzzy serpentine mask. Luckily, SFX gurus, cast members on Sy-Fy's Heroes of Cosplay, and hosts of Try This At Home, Holly Conrad and Jessica Merizan of Crabcat Industries give us a couple of handy tutorials on how to create molds from sculptures, which will (hopefully) later become monster movie works of art. Check out the tutorials after the jump:

Deciding to make a movie with any amount of special effects can be quite a commitment, not only of time and money, but of self-teaching and learning if you don't already know what you're doing.

The great thing about these tutorials, is that Conrad and Merizan fill you in on all the details, including what materials they use and where they can be purchased. It takes all of the guesswork out of making scary monster masks, so that joy may take its place.

Also, if making monster movies isn't your cup o' tea, first of all -- what's wrong with you? Second of all, that's okay. Molds can be made of virtually anything. In the TTAH tutorial, Conrad and Merizan make a mold of a Star Trek emblem.

The first tutorial shows us how to make a sculpture using Monster Clay, which will later be molded with silicone or rigid fiberglass to make a mold to cast masks (say that 10 times fast -- it's a blast.) Check out the tutorials below:

What do you think? Do you have any SFX tips to share? Let us know in the comments.

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[via Filmmaker IQ]

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