Daily Inspiration: Meet Bianca Musso

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bianca Musso.

Hi Bianca, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I have always been interested in the SFX industry in some way, but I think my passion awoke when I was six years old. My mom had rented ‘The Dark Crystal,’ which is a 1982 puppet movie that had some of the creepiest yet coolest special effects I had seen in my short life. That film made me obsessed with the idea that I could have my own little monster in my room, so I started making weird puppets out of clay and masks out of Play-Doh. I kept exploring this concept up until I discovered that I loved to sculpt and bring my odd little creations to life. I kept this up for a few years and started having a heavy interest in horror movies and special effects. I always tried to recreate creatures I saw on TV and shows like ‘Tales from the Crypt’ or ‘The Twilight Zone’ . When I turned 14, I found out that my so-called hobby could be a paying industry job! So, I decided to make it my life passion.

I started working on small college productions as well as assisting in some amateur films, I kept this up until I graduated high school where I decided to further my studies in plastic arts in college as well as apply for a professional SFX shop in Mexico City called ‘Texture’ , and I miraculously got a chance to start as a runner girl! The best way to learn the art is from the people that make the magic themselves! I was warmly welcomed into the shop where I did various jobs, and I slowly made my way into the position of main shop sculpture artist and the lab supervisor’s assistant.

But after three wonderful years of working there, I had learned everything I could from my country and the shop and decided to migrate to the United States to further my education. I did my master’s degree in Special Effects and Creature Concept design at Cinema Makeup School. Since then, I have graduated and started working in the industry as a lab assistant for several independent shops in between Mexico and the United States. I am an artist at heart and will always keep moving forward to create many more creative projects!

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Sadly, not all is cupcakes and rainbows; there is always a struggle as an artist to find jobs in such a limited industry do to the fact that the few things that get produced are always looking to cut staff or cut corners. It’s a job where you have to be dedicated, hard-working, and the best of the best all the time; if something goes wrong, you can see it on the screen, and that can be very frustrating at times. There is a lot of pressure to always make the best work, but once you understand why the industry works that way, the work stops being heavy and it becomes smooth. Even though Ive had my ups and downs, and there have been times when the jobs stop coming in because of strikes or pandemics, the drive I have as an artist to keep creating, working, and bringing to life ideas is stronger than anything else. And in the end, that’s what art is all about!

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a Special Effects Makeup Artist. Although when you work in a lab, you have to multitask and know a little bit about everything, I specialize in sculpting and painting pieces. In every lab I worked in, I have become and been described several times as a very ‘creative’ assistant; I’m well known for always taking a creative turn in every project that I’ve worked on, as well as bringing a fresh new perspective in pressured deadlines. To be a great lab worker, one must always stay open to changes in projects mistakes will be made, and we all need to stay calm in stressful times. One of the things that I’ve found that set you apart as an individual in hard deadlines is to be practical and always have communication as a team!

What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
The film industry is ever-changing, but what we do as practical Special Effects artists is evolving constantly. Digital effects have started taking over every aspect of the industry, now more than ever, with the use of HD cameras and 4K definition. Because of this and the pressure of having shorter deadlines and less budget, most production decide to use digital effects instead of using practical ones. As effects artists have the need to keep up with this rapid technological evolution and evolve the work to its most perfect form. There can be no mistakes in the sculpting, molding, and application of pieces, so we as an industry have become perfectionists in the art. This is good and bad in its own way; we try to do the best we can, but in the end, CGI can always do better. In the future, I hope there can be a balance between human art and artificial art. But only time will tell how much it will evolve and how much it will affect us as a branch in the industry.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @bianca_musso: https://www.instagram.com/bianca_musso/
• Other: IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm11120759/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_8_q_bianca%2520musso

Image Credits
Cinema Makeup School Public Media Team