Dark Forest: A Cinematic Short

Cinema started with the short film and it has been a long tradition of movie makers to take this process and work to create something fresh, a story that is strong enough to stand on its own and convey a message in a short amount of time, Nevis Studios is now stepping into that arena with their new crowdfund project: Dark Forest.

“In the gripping thriller "Dark Forest," Detectives Danny and Fiona pursue a serial killer terrorizing the Scottish highlands. The tension escalates as they close in on the elusive criminal and search for missing victim Anna Frey.”

With a creative vision that will open up doors to creativity as well as jobs, the team behind this crowd funder for Dark Forest, are looking at an expansive and long reaching movement of cinema.

Crowd funding is a common practice now and gives people the opportunity to be a part of the creation of cinema and the team behind Dark Forest are open to the challenges that this creates and see it as an investment in not just a film but in the process.

To learn more about the company or the project see:

Nevis Studios Website.

Nevis Studios Facebook.

Nevis Studios Instagram.

Dark Forest Campaign.

Indie Film Thoughts

There is a lot of concern at the moment with the BBC daytime drama Doctors being cancelled, it was a mainstream way for people to gain a foothold in the industry and seen as a staple of daytime TV for many. People are naturally, wondering what this means for those entering the media market from the cast side to crew.

Changes to the market are always difficult to navigate and people are now looking for alternative avenues within the mainstream but overlooking the potential of commercializing ideas in the indie sector and utilizing avenues that are already in place such as HOD TV and the fantastic New Village Video whose platform is focused on the indies and the classic old school “straight to video” movies or the more familiar “streaming service original.”

Talks are underway for collective motion to pull new and emerging talent into pools and building something fresh. What this means is the indie scene has an opportunity to build a new network, a new platform and create.

With this in mind The Lost Creatives is willing to support and to start we want to share the books and sites we feel will be a major benefit to this:

Distribution and sales avenues.

HOD TV submissions a specialist in horror and thriller, the terms are fair and commercialization is possible, a full breakdown of the requirements is available, just drop us an email and we can share the details.

New Village Video, a friendly, open minded team who accept all genres of film and advocate for the indie scene while supporting and selling projects with success.

Books

Don’t F*ck Up Your No Budget Movie by Ivan Peric, a fantastic and personal insight into creating a feature film with a low budget, Ivan talks about the perils and offers up his own tried and tested path to creating a film and getting it sold by planning strategically. A real must read and a part of the lost library of books.

Opening Doors For Working Class Actors by Patricia Jones, a wonderful and open insight into the world of an actor giving you a clear and honest way to start out as an actor. Patricia Jones is a wonderful lady who talks honestly about her journey and gives pointers to those who would otherwise feel they cannot make the leap into the arts.

Cast and Crew

vShowcards, an alternative to the main networking and actors/crew sites, vshowcards is actor run and supported by various casting agents, production houses across the world, and offers a cohesive platform for you to market yourself to the media landscape.

Over the next few weeks we will be exploring avenues of marketing and other elements of the creative industry with a view to showcasing the potential for the indie scene.

Updates From The Creative Sphere

Over at the Lost Creatives home office, we have been plugging away at our work and will have some project announcements and cast/crew requirements going live very soon. While this is being worked out, we have some announcements that as a team we are really excited about and wanted to share.

As creative director and head of makeup, JamesC, has been instrumental in the development of his new site and working on a consultation basis, for Sons of Adonis makeup (it will be added to his working kit), as part o this a limited edition brush was created featuring his logo and the brand: available from the Sons of Adonis site.

In terms of production and editorial, we have decided to add to our site holdings and will be launching a separate photography site that will feature the work of JamesC both his commercial work and the behind-the-scenes stills on film and TV shoots. The reasoning for this is to allow an expanded sense of his creative work and offer a different perspective on the work of a makeup artist.

Lost Agency is being formed and set around the needs of the main business and will handle the overall marketing, banking, and other elements of our work as an umbrella creating an in-house and full-spectrum setup that is own, controlled, and managed for the needs of the Lost team.

Over the next few weeks, we will be releasing additional details on what is happening and casting/crew opportunities for smaller festival entry projects.

Talking Casting With Ray Whelan Actor and Talent Agent

In the first of a two-part look at the life of actors and talent agents, garnering some advice for aspiring actors and creative talent looking to be signed we talk to the talented Ray Whelan whose work as an actor has led him down the talent agent route with the T-ypo Agency giving him a unique insight into both sides of the business.

Can you tell us a little about your career and how you can be both a talent agent and actor?  

I grew up in Ireland from a very talented musical family, we were all in plays and musicals before I even went to drama school. After I graduated I moved to London. I have been working hard ever since. After moving into filming and creating my own work I also joined my agent Typo Artist Agency which I love. 

What have you learned in your capacity as a talent agent and actor that could benefit other actors? 

Casting directors are busy people, they have so many projects on the go, so when you send in your self-tape, make sure you label your name, project, and agent, you might lose out on the job if you haven’t done this. I also would say when you actually get a self-tape or audition you have already beaten hundreds of thousands of people to get there, you have to send it in or turn it up. I see too many people skip it or miss their deadline. You will miss your opportunity and even if you don’t land the role, casting directors remember people and usually re-use the acting agents again. It’s not just the actor’s reputation on the line it's also the talent agent’s reputation also.

What recommendations would you make to someone looking to get signed to an agency?

Good headshots are a must first. We look to see if they have a spotlight page and showreel, but we do sign people who are not on spotlight, so don’t be scared to not apply. Our new (T-ypo agency) website should be launched this week, we will have an option to upload your headshots and work and we can simply approve or not. Also, so many agent’s books are open, just keep looking and keep persisting, it’s the name of the game. 

Is there a dream role or project you would like to be involved in? 

As an actor any good role in a film or TV show is great. Later this year we are starting casting calls for a feature film called Ladies Day featuring a host of top actors and celebrities and we will be posting castings on spotlight and our social media.

To learn more about Ray Whelan and his work see:

Ray Whelan Spotlight.

Ray Whelan IMDB.

For further information or to talk to the team at The T-ypo Agency see:

The Typo Agency.

Creating The Lost Dog Detective Agency with Tedium Entertainment

With numerous shorts under their belt, the team at Tedium Entertainment is working on their latest crowdfunded project The Lost Dog Detective Agency, a sweet coming of age film that has caught attention and backers in short order. Founded in 2016 they have already made waves within the film community and this latest project has the hallmarks of a winner with a touch of social commentary.

“The Lost Dog Detective Agency is a coming-of-age tale of two 10 year old boys, Darion and Emmanuel, growing up on an estate in South West London.”

Bringing a film to fruition is hard work and with their body of films is growing constantly with plans in motion for more shorts, a feature film, and a TV series in the background, we look forward to not only seeing the results but interviewing the team about this film and talking about the details of funding, shooting, and creating work in the current market.

To learn more about The Lost Dog Agency project or to help with funding click here.

For further details on Tedium Films and their work see:

Tedium Entertainment Website.

Tedium Entertainment Instagram.

Tedium Entertainment Facebook.

Tedium Entertainment Twitter.

Showcasing Talent: Introducing vShowcards

What started as a dream and project on paper has become a force to be reckoned with in the casting world, vShowcards is fast becoming the place to be seen and has garnered attention from casting agents, directors, actors, and more as the team takes their passion for acting and all things media, and offers up a new portal for talent.  

Building on their own experiences as working actors, the team behind vShowcards has gone one step further than the average casting site and brings back the personal to the process with their social media presence on Twitter being part of the discussion, supporting, and promoting each other, whilst talking about their own frustrations within the business giving the whole thing a more family feeling, taking the isolation out being an actor and putting the emphasis on friendly support that is refreshing for talent and has in short order created a series of questions about their status in the market, a positive move that has taken them from outside the bubble to a companion and contender.  Talent is being seen in a new form and it is to vShowcards credit that they are building on the successes of the initial launch with a host of new elements to be revealed soon. 

Looking to reach out to creatives across the spectrum, vShowcards is the epitome of a new wave that has been steadily building across the film and TV realm as digital platforms become more common, the need for artists and creatives has increased with the traditional sources losing ground to newcomers like vShowcards whose dedication to their clients, focus, drive, and passion, has shown them to be open to new ideas and avenues with an eye for detail, the sites entire ethos is built on showcasing and supporting people versus collecting names.

There is a raft of digital production houses that are looking at the site and seeing the potential for productions built entirely with vShowcard people, an accomplishment that is new for many and shows the scope and talents of the people already in place.  

Leading the way and taking on the market with a fresh perspective vShowcards is more than just a casting and crew site, it is the future of the industry’s new wave and a force to be reckoned with.  

To learn more about vShowcards or to join see:

vShowcards Website.

vShowcards Twitter.

vShowcards Facebook.

vShowcards Instagram.

Motivational Changes

With so many changes happening in the world of cinema, our predictions are starting to look more and more like a reality as people move toward digital platforms and the rise of the Indie film scene as smaller companies step to the plate and create films and TV projects that are specific to the likes of Prime and Amazon in general and of course our own personal favorite HOD TV.

Part of this for us has been about rethinking the websites and the content, we have made some small steps in this and will be taking our creative director’s portfolio site fully offline for a few days to reorganize and rebrand to fit upcoming projects.

While this is happening we did pull out some images that for us are a marker of what we are aiming to showcase and have a very commercial leaning that suits our style and future plans. What we have also been doing is talking to other small companies via Twitter, where we have been making a push toward support for Indie film of all stripes and will be publishing interviews with some fantastic small companies who have been talking about their pre-production work for their projects and how they are working within the guidelines. taking time to talk to distributors about what is out there for us as a team.

Naturally, for us, we are going to be looking at web TV first and foremost and have looked into various festivals and options to promote with our ultimate plan being commercially driven.

Film Festival Tie-ins

In the run-up to the festive season, we were talking to various small film festivals gathering information, and planning for the future. Naturally, this meant opening accounts with sites like Film Freeway and doing some in-depth checks and planning around our goals for the company. What this has led to will be announced soon with full details of how and where we will work. One of the festivals (in Eastern Europe) reached out to us and we are now talking in terms of being a media partner which we do love as a concept. Film and TV, particularly web TV, is something we as a team are keen to push forward with now more than ever.

This does not mean we will be abandoning our editorial work, far from it, we will work with magazines on a continuous basis as part of our marketing strategies but will not be the sole aspect of what we do. In fact, we have found a very interesting film crew based magazine that looks really promising in marketing terms so we will be writing inhouse articles to publish and take ad space later in the year.

Our plans are coming together well and there is some diversification in motion. More announcements and news will be released on the completion of the contracts. We are excited about the prospects of 2021 and look forward to showcasing the hard work that has already been done in the background.

A New Year A New Plan

In many respects, 2020 has been a lost year for a lot of people with the world changing dramatically. For us, it has opened up doors to a whole host of new potential avenues and given us a chance to reevaluate what we have been doing and look at how we can fit ourselves into the market long-term. To do this we have broken our work into key areas that will be public and those which will be kept private to the inhouse team.

In the public sense, we have two key areas we will be focusing on in the first quarter of the year:

Editorial and print: we have been putting this on the backburner in some respect taking time to look at locations, edit work already shot, slowly build up a series of images and work that will be released over the early part of 2021 with additional planned small shoots that will be a combination of artistic and commercial. *This will include product placement in behind the scenes imaging and video with brands such as Lord and Berry, Mykitco, and Brushwork Cosmetics to start. We are open to new potential brand partners for projects contact the team to discuss.

Film and TV: something that we have been doing since the start of Lost Creatives is supporting a range of festivals including Micromania and The Nepal Cultural and Film Centers' own festival. We do have plans to partner with a European festival and will reveal details on that soon.

Our initial goal is to work on 3 projects that will be shorts, designed specifically to go to festivals and as an opening gambit for our planned digital TV shoots in the horror/thriller market (for Which we have already spoken to several distributors and have options in place including the HOD TV route which is our number 1 choice).

In the coming months, our projects will be smaller in nature to help push forward and test the waters of the market and expand out. Our ties to South Asia (Including Nepal Film Production and our key actor contacts in India), will play a heavy part in our work as we are questioning how we will be able to work in Scotland and the UK in general.

Each of the current websites: JamesC mua. Lost Project and of course Lost Creatives will be receiving overhauls and updated images across the galleries, and the welcome pages, additional sites are being planned for our film/TV work to keep the Creatives solely about marketing and the background elements we have built.

Further updates will be released over the course of the month. We are really excited about our plans for 2021 and look forward to pushing the boundaries of our work.

Festive Thoughts From The Lost Creatives

Featured brand Lord and Berry (UK)

A slight departure from our normal scheduling but we wanted to get this post out before Christmas day and say a big thank you to all our supporters, the brands, and of course our readers as we share our final thoughts for 2020. From here we will be focusing heavily on the future and what will be happening for the team in the new year. We have been busy over the last few weeks setting in motion concepts, finalizing and in some cases reediting images for the various websites we run, there will also be a run of work that is designed specifically for editorial (we have some really fantastic magazines we have shot work for). We do want to look at the festival circuit, there will be an announcement of a new film festival media partnership in the new year, the goal of this will be to boost our video content and bring a little attention to talent. Naturally, these projects will be small crews/cast to keep the costs down and very much in the kitchen sink drama territory which will develop into other areas and our ultimate goal of tackling the horror/thriller market for TV, scripts are already earmarked for this.

One of our biggest supporters and our favorite writer, has offered us a development contract that will expand our portfolio to include video games for a variety of platforms which is an exciting prospect.

Our creative Director; JamesC, is working around different ideas and is editing, shooting, and managing our background work such as the brand placement and of course stock levels.

We will of course keep you all in the loop of changes and updates through the website and till then we want to, again, thank you for the support and wish you a Merry Christmas.

Nepal Film Festival News Featuring Allied FX

With the 2nd Annual Nepal Cultural International Film Festival streaming from December 1st to the 29th, it is really gratifying to know that the work is paying off and that the Allied FX team is on board to support this: Allied FX are amongst the most respected brands in the FX market and understand the difference that makeup can be in a film, especially for character work and stand tall with their portfolio of clients and body of work hitting the highest marks in International cinema and TV.

Combining these two elements of the Nepal film festival showcasing international talent in cinema with Allied FX is a huge coup and shows the creatives that are behind the films are respected, redefining boundaries and bringing a whole new level of artistry to Nepal is something that the festival organizers are passionate about with their training and Q and A Sessions designed to bring about a creative dialogue.

Taking a commercial and intellectual stance on the film sector this media partnership is going to change the game of many artists in the FX realm both pros and trainees allowing a greater dynamic of creativity.

To learn more about the Festival click here. For more information and details on the Allied FX range see the Allied FX Facebook page.

The collective Push of The Lost Team

In the last few months, we have been able to build some interesting relationships with brands and companies, taking steps toward our ultimate goals and aspirations slowly in light of the market changes that are underway to the film and TV market in particular which have opened our eyes to other potential avenues that The Lost can explore and has given us a collective push to work around boundaries. There are some interesting updates that even we are waiting for updates on as contracts (with non-disclosures) are being drawn up to affirm a new and exciting partnership.

Over time we intend to build a host of new creative images incorporating some of our favorite makeup and brushes that will be used on our creative director JamesC’s website as well as our own, with our magazine work coming to a close on the written side to focus on the massive backlog of shoots to be edited and curated across our multiple sites and blogs. Editing processes have been slowed down but are still happening and by mid-December, we will have new additions to the galleries and a new fashion/editorial specific gallery for the JamesC Website.

Nepal as many will be aware plays a large part in our work and we are very proud of that with the NCIFF (Nepal Culture and Film Festival) alongside our partners Nepal Film Production, it is interesting to see the work coming together so cleanly.

The Lost Creatives shoots are going well and while not yet public (magazine deadlines and release scheduling outwith our control) we will be working on the much more comprehensive Lost Boys/Girls concept which we are going to shoot exclusively in North Ayrshire and have already picked out some significant spots that fit our brief. As much an intellectual exercise as it is a photo project it will be the focus of our energies and a chance to clear some cobwebs.

2nd Nepal Cultural International Film Festival-2020

With the festival team working hard and the brand support being announced next week, The Nepal Culture and Film Centers International Film Festival is shaping up to be a huge online affair with over 40 films, 24 countries, and an array of speakers in place it is set to be a landmark in the cultural and cinematic calendar.

• The 1st of December will be the grand opening ceremony through virtual media which Ncfc team members, Chief guest, selected filmmakers, jury members, actors, film industrialists, and the VIP guest will be invited to attend the virtual festival.

• From the 3rd to 18th December selected films will be screened. Each day 5 films from different categories and countries will be screened virtually and will incorporate Q&A Session with the filmmakers after the screening of the film.

• The final award distribution ceremony will be held on 29th December.

Filmmakers can register their attendance for the festival free of charge, forms can also be filled out worldwide through the website of the organization: www.2ndnciff.ncfc.org.np.

Nepal Culture and Film Center Media Partnership

We are immensely proud of our connections to the South Asian market, having lived and worked in India our creative director JamesC has kept close ties to filmmakers and his friends there. In the last few years, there has been an increase in work with Nepal in particular the team at Nepal Film Production and now we are happy to announce our collaboration with the Nepal Culture and Film Center.

One of the most beautiful countries in the world, truly the jewel in the crown of South Asia, Nepal has become a go-to destination for tourism, film, and documentary makers for decades.

The Nepal Culture and Film Center is a major part of this and alongside companies like Nepal Film Production, they have become a destination that holds a mystique and beauty with leading professionals across genres traveling there to learn, film, and be a part of a vibrant film and TV scene.

Designed to facilitate talent development the Nepal Culture and Film Center hosts film festivals and seminars, supporting the creative talent of the country and keeping them in the public eye.

To be associated with such a prestigious group is an honor worthy of note and we will be working closely with them and of course, our longstanding friends at Nepal film production, the future of The Lost is looking bright and we cannot be happier.

To learn more about The Nepal Culture and Film Center see:

Nepal Culture and Film Center Website.

Nepal Culture and Film Center Facebook.

Nepal Culture and Film Center Youtube.

Location Scouting a Lost Boy Shoot Part 1

Finding a little free time our creative director (JamesC) decided to break away from his usual duties of admin and management to do some location scouting for a 3 part story built around The Lost Boys concept, with his trusted point and shoot camera he walked along the promenade and into town to find some specific locations that would fit the brief and in doing so has settled on 3 distinct locations that will add a touch of drama to the shots (with a video being planned to add to the drama of the scene).

“The images themselves will be built around derelict buildings, waste ground, and a fractured symbolism of nature. Each model will have his own story that will hint at both the inspiration of Pans Lost Boys to the more dystopic visuals of the backdrop to fit with the ‘council estate boys’ look of the models.”

A full and detailed explanation of The Lost Boys shoots can be found by clicking here. We are really excited by the concept and the fact we have the support of fellow Creative Director Shakti Sood founder and brand manager of The Sons of Adonis and the amazing Lord and Berry makeup line, both seeing the potential of what we are working on.

Advancing Our Cinema Plans

While we appreciate that the world is changing it is interesting that in the last few weeks we have had people reaching out for collaborations and partnerships that will open the door to cinema as well as a wide array of other digital and satellite platforms on a global scale.

From a purely creative stance, this opens up additional doors that along with our partners in Nepal (the Nepal film production team), we now have avenues and opportunities for the future of our company and in line with our expansion plans that are currently in motion. This partnership process will also allow us to work around different genres and push new boundaries in our cinematic plans and keep to our commercial routes.

In the next week, we will be sitting down to do the varied Google meetings, Whatsapp and a few Facebook calls that need to be done to clarify and solidify the options we have which is an exciting prospect and will offer an even wider array of possibilities that we can work with.

Advancing The Lost Creatives and the Lost Concept overall has been something that we have built from the ground up and we are really proud of what we have achieved with the support of various brands, actors, artists, and companies across Europe, the USA, most importantly with our partners in Nepal.

Interviewing Andreas Samuelson Director of Housewife Alien Vs Gay Zombie

In what is a tour d force of fun and a prime example of low budget done right for the horror/comedy market, we wanted to talk to the creative mind behind the film Andreas Samuelson whos tongue in cheek Housewife Alien Vs Gay Zombie is a heady mix of thrills, chills and cheap laughs that is worthy of praise.

What was the motivation behind making Housewife Alien Vs Gay Zombie? 

I wanted to make a movie but didn’t have a budget so figured the best film to make without money was a bad one. So the concept of spoofing bad movies, specifically B-horror, was born. I also wanted to offer a horror-comedy for the LGBTQ audience, and a kind of gender-swapped exploitation film where the women kick ass and the men are sex objects.

Did you face any major challenges in making this and how did you overcome them? 

Working with a low or no budget is always a challenge. You have to do 15 people’s jobs at the same time and really pull magic tricks when it comes to assembling cast, crew, makeup, special effects, costume, etc. I was very lucky to meet and gather amazing people who contributed not only with time and talent but their own gear and resources.

Are you planning more films in the future and if so will you be using the same team? 

I would love to. Me and my editor/cinematographer, Rickard, have been talking about maybe making a sequel. I’m also writing on other stuff. It’s all about opportunities. Producers and financiers are hard to find… But I have too many ideas to not make something more before I eventually kick the bucket.

What does the future hold for you as a director/producer? 

Networking and finding new people to collaborate with. Aim for more serious projects outside the horror parody genre.

Do you have any advice for people looking to make their first film or TV project? 

Aim small. I went a little overboard with a lot of different locations, actors, and special effects. Even the simplest film takes a long time to make and a lot of things don’t turn out as you plan them. So a lot of time and patience. And good, loyal people you rely on.

Who is the source of your filmmaking inspiration? 

For this particular film, I was very inspired by John Waters, both his earlier work and cult movies like “Serial Mom”. Low-budget horror studio Troma was also an inspiration as well as the humor from “Airplane” and “Naked Gun”.

To watch the trailer or purchase the film see:

Housewife Alien Vs Gay Zombie Youtube.

Housewife Alien Vs Gay Zombie Amazon.

Housewife Alien Vs Gay Zombie Vimeo.

Housewife Alien Vs Gay Zombie Facebook.

Restructuring The Lost

With our two blogs (Lost Creatives on the professional side and Lost Project on the consumer), our creative director JamesC, and a new site in the wings, the overall concept of The Lost as we started it has grown in the last 2 years into a much bigger and much more refined business that while it was our plan, is still surprising how things have changed for the better. In the next few weeks, we will be adding heavily to the various galleries we have of our work and making amendments to the overall layout and general themes of our work to better fit what we feel in the direction we are heading in. What this means is we will be changing a few of the frequently asked questions, designated accounts, and announcing the longer-term plans and goals of how we will progress in business terms including that of our base location.

*We did consider an office but in the current climate that seems like a redundant step that would be overly complicated and serve no purpose for what is coming into play.

Admittedly many of the changes will be small and have a minimal effect on the business there is something larger that will be taking public soon that focuses heavily on the vision of founder, creative director, and head of makeup JamesC, who has led the charge on the basis of “be the change you want to see.” Creating The Lost and carefully selecting who we work with, researching and planning, taking additional training as and when required, he has taken the lead on the business and we do want to offer a nod to the Nepal Film Production team who have offered up several opportunities and been a huge supporter of the work we are doing.

In an industry that is evolving and changing we fully intend to make the most of the digital landscape in whatever format we can and we are taking steps to ensure that our work is seen in the best possible light with more updates on this coming soon we are really excited about the future of The Lost.

As Summer Ends We Are Starting New Public Projects

As we close out the summer and move into autumn, the change in weather is also a good time for the team to really push through with some new editorials and change up the digital portfolios, look at online training, and add to our marketing strategies with carefully chosen platforms and later this month release the new websites we have been planning in the background.

We are truly honored to have been working with Lord and Berry, who have agreed to support our upcoming work and we will be sharing images and other stories with the team soon. What really pushed this for us was the fact they are a sustainable brand and cruelty-free which for us was an important aspect especially in the current climate, the wood pencils (an absolute must in our view both eye and lip) are worth checking out if you are in the market for high quality, fashion-led cosmetics, **we really do recommend you look at the pressed powders in transparent, peach and banana.

Add in some of the amazing brushes from Mykitco our creative director JamesC, has recently purchased with a view to restyling his working kit to suit the upcoming very public projects we have planned we wanted to share two of the brushes we think people need to consider as an “artist must-have” in your kit:

My Ultra Multi

My Cream Shadow

Something we will be adding very soon for both hygiene reasons and the practicality of it is the My Clear Palette, which is designed to allow you to custom blend color, foundation check, and is a convenient size to add to a working kit (with a spatula for decanting).

We have been watching the magazine world really closely and thankfully the ones we are looking to shoot content for have open submissions at the moment and we will be able to gain some covers and tears in a relatively short amount of time that we will be using for marketing, supported by our media partner Nepal Film Production, who have come up with a fantastic offer for filmmakers that have projects that are ready to be sold (contact us for further details).

The last few months have felt really strange as we have been unable to release some of the work due to client terms and contracts, so now that we have more support and a little flexibility to what we do and how we release it, we are going to spend time focusing heavily on what will be the beginning of a much more focused and driven period in terms of video and still output.

***We are looking at online courses for production and expanding on the creative direction side for our team to ensure that they are up to date on technique, we have already started this with added health and safety training.

For The Lost Creatives, the days have been busy and we are excited about what the future holds as a team we have and will continue to work with a commercial eye to the creative world.

Sideshow IPA Palettes by The AFX Company

The Allied FX company is widely known for their professional-grade IPA (Isopropyl alcohol activated) palettes under the name Bluebird FX and their latest addition to the family: Sideshow, an affordable, quirky, high-grade palette that since its launch in February has in short order become a go-to for makeup artists across the spectrum of the creative fields.

“With a clever mix of old favorites and brand new colors, the sideshow palettes are stealing the show for their cost-effective quirkiness. “

Currently, a range consisting of 7 palettes (with other elements being added soon) each with its own unique color set and vintage style cover image, the palettes are designed carefully to suit a particular requirement and has the savvy of a team who are working artists themselves looking to make not just their jobs a little simpler but also a little more fun, beyond the quirks you can see what is a genius move for the Allied FX Company, opening the door to a whole host of new clients from students to professionals the Festival range is perfect for those working in the low to mid-range budgets of film and TV (with the increasing use of internet services such as HOD TV, Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Streamlette, this will be a welcome addition to a makeup kit) and carries over the larger, high scale budget productions, a professional palette that transcends its price range of $59.10 in Australia (in the UK £36) and puts a whole new slant on character work and development.

• Body art: designed for body art and tattoo creation.

• Bruiser: a unique and carefully structured palette suited to its name, bruising.

• Dark Ride: a series of day glow shades that come to life under blue light.

• Dead-Alive: Perfect for zombies and illness, the death pallor look of haunted houses and Halloween.

• Gore: for the creation of scratches, cuts, and wound filling a box of tricks that is worthy of note.

• Gothic: aethereal and suited to those deeper, more cool tones looks (think vampire).

• Rouge: designed for breaking down and creating crusty characters and drunks.

For us at the lost creatives, yes we can see a use for the whole set but standing tall in this are 2 in particular that we are adding to our working kit via creative director and head of makeup JamesC, to match the work and styles of shoots we have planned for TV and print: Bruiser and Gore, which will be perfect additions to our work and will see multiple uses with the possibilities of this range being endless and others coming into play with projects in development (early stages of scripting).

In what is a market-led move, the Allied FX Lab are tackling and offering up quality products at a lower price point without compromise, the AFX company are amongst an elite of the profession and are pushing the boundaries of the makeup world giving us what we need to create the most realistic (and surreal when required) and putting the prosumer at the heart of their thinking.

The Festival range fits perfectly with a wide array of requirements and situations including:

• Students.

• Film and TV production professionals.

• Haunted House.

• Halloween artists.

• Cosplay.

To learn more about the range or to purchase see:

The Allied FX company website.

The Allied FX company Instagram.

The Allied FX company Facebook.