FX Artist Vincent Guastini Heads to the Director’s Chair and More!
Around these parts we have a lot of love for artist Vincent Guastini, and he’s just hit us up with some news as to what he’s working on next, including stepping into the role of producer and director.
In addition, we have a bitchin’ image gallery of some of Guastini’s amazing work to share.
From the Press Release:
Vincent Guastini announces upcoming projects, both doing make-up effects and animatronics, as well as producing and directing.
Vincent Guastini has been long known for doing prosthetic characters, creature effects, and special makeup on such films as: Dogma, Requiem for a Dream, Letters from Iwo Jima, Scary Movie 4, and Saturday Night Live just to name a few. Recently over the last two years Vincent has moved into expanding his company to include producing as well as directing.
In the past I was stuck in a box; now I’m thinking outside of it, and thinking outside of it means change. That change came in producing and directing projects as well as doing effects for them.
It started out thankfully with Steven C. Miller’s Silent Night, a remake to Silent Night Deadly Night, with Darren Lynn Bousman & Richard Saperstein (producer of Se7ven); with their help they got me an executive producer credit on the film. From then on I was asked to produce films as well as do the effects. Those include films with both actor and good friend Michael Biehn and his wife and partner, Jennifer Blanc-Biehn, which later turned into a kind of partnership on some of those movies, one being a film called Hidden in the Woods. Then things just started to happen. I was later offered to direct Hellelevator Man for Mike & Jen Biehn, which is now finishing up post and due for release next year. I am now producing more films as well as doing all the effects. Just in the last 2 years I have produced over 7 films. The most recent project just in these last few months has been one called Behind the Walls for directors Jon & James Kondelik. I created the main entity in the house called the growth man, as well as miniatures from where the growth man is born. For that film the entire house is a set, a two-story set built-in a studio. The style and story are a throwback to movies like Poltergeist and The Thing.
Another project I have partnered up with as a producer on is called The Dark Tapes with writer and director and producer Michael McQuown. I am also directing a segment in the film called To Catch a Demon, starring Courtney Palm, who is my lucky charm and my leading lady. I met [her] on the set of Sushi Girl; [she] was also my star for Hellevator Man, in my segment called The Future Executive.
Recently on the effects side besides producing, I just wrapped a 4-month intensive build called “Cozmos,” a TV pilot that centers on a bar in space. Think Star Wars cantina meets “Cheers.” We did over 20 creatures in the pilot ranging from full suits and masks and prosthetics to full-out animatronic puppets. Nowadays in the so-called world of dying practical effects we just keep doing practical. Like we did for both V/H/S: Viral and Bonestorm. One of the most complex puppets we have done was on that project for Todd Lincoln’s segment “Gorgeous Vortex”, which was a slave puppet, sort of an elaborate bunraku puppet. I think it’s the most complex practical animatronic puppet done for all three V/H/S films combined. Also another elaborate creature suit and animatronic we did was for Spooky Dan Walker’s directing debut in a film called Slay Belles; we created a 9-foot tall Krampus creature from hell.
As far as strictly the effects end of biz, we’ve been doing a ton of practical effects and character make-ups utilizing both state of the art silicone and transfer make-ups. This past year was the sequel to Devil’s Carnival, called The Devils Carnival: Alleluia! directed by Darren Lynn Bousman, starring Paul Sorvino as God, with an all-star cast which will be premiering at the Egyptian Theater August 11th before its world tour and release. My studio and I did a number of fantasy character make-ups which take place both in heaven and hell… sort of Dick Tracy on acid only it’s a musical.
For me moving into producing and directing is just my way of creatively being free. It’s really all about creating and that’s all I want to do. I will never quit practical effects. I love them far too much.
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