Today we’d like to introduce you to Cynthia Orozco Greenberg.
Cynthia, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always had an artistic flair. When my mom would try to drive me to my weekly Ballet class when I was younger, I would tell her to leave me in my room with my coloring books. Throughout my life, I searched for the perfect outlet for my creativity but it wasn’t until I moved to California that I realized I wanted to pursue a career in Special Effects Makeup. In July 2013, I moved from my homeland of Torreón, Coahuila, Mexico to Santa Monica, CA. For the first two years, I worked as an Au Pair and then continued as a nanny thereafter. I hadn’t initially given any thought about a career in Special Effects Makeup until one of my very dear Au Pair friends told me about a night class for beginners. It was only a month-long course, but I got introduced to the process of creating a character and all the different materials you can use. I joined Elegance International School of Professional Makeup in 2018 to gain more knowledge, and in just one year, I learned how to plan and apply many styles of makeup ranging from fashion/beauty, theater to special effects. Out of all those classes I enjoyed the “lab” class the most. This is where it all begins! The lab is where you can create anything from a new creature/character to changing the human features of the actors. It didn’t take too long to find my passion in the lab and that is sculpting. I sculpted small projects from flesh eating wounds to head and bust of angelic sculptures. EI gave me a lot of opportunities to show my work in multiple conventions working side by side with instructors and other students, those were the best times I worked 8 (or more) hours on my feet. After participating in many conventions doing body painting mostly, I showed more of my work in short films. This was thanks to my husband, who’s an LA based cinematographer.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has not been a smooth road. For most artists, it’s always a struggle to make a “breakthrough” or to be “successful.” It is known for a makeup artist to struggle the first 5 years into the career. It’s difficult because you want to gain practice after you graduate but also you need to pay your bills so most of the projects you accept at first are collaboration or student films. It was the beginning of my makeup artist struggle when the Covid-19 pandemic hit. I’m part of a few projects that got postponed and will remain postponed but I’m hopeful that the film industry will pick up soon and I can continue demonstrating my work.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
I specialize in Sculpting but I also body paint, apply and paint prosthetics, air brush, and create special effects with stage blood for movies and tv. I also take big or small customized projects that don’t necessarily involve movies or tv.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up with 3 younger sisters, personal time was very scarce but when I managed to have some privacy, I would always turn to coloring books or create anything that I found lying around and glue it together. I was very shy as a kid and didn’t have much friends growing up but my most fond memories are of me growing up with my cousins who are around my same age but also of my older cousins who helped raise me and my sisters. They all have been supporting and loving since I was born. “La familia es todo.” -Hector Salamanca
I grew up watching movies thanks to my dad. He was the one that introduced us to music and movies. He would always find the best movies at the time and record them on VHS cassettes, we had so many! I think a lot of these movies shaped my mind growing up, expanding my imagination. One of those movies was, The Dark Crystal. This movie freaked me out at first but I couldn’t look away, I loved all the curious and out of this world creatures.
My parents always taught us to be independent so I learned to earn money from a very young age by selling candy or things that I created but I didn’t have much luck with that. I’ve always been a hard worker and have worked in so many different things that I focused on making money rather than pursuing my dream as an artist but I think I had to do all those things to get to where I’m at right now so it can lead a clear path to where I want to be.
Contact Info:
- Website: Cynfxmakeup.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: cyn_fx
Image Credit:
Pictures by William Greenberg, Mark Slater.
Character designs by Anaid Gutiérrez
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