Blood FX

[Kel'sinthepropcloset]

Hey all! I could use some help with an effect I’m working on. A character is supposed to get the most epic nosebleed in history, spouting blood everywhere. The actor will be wearing a breathing mask connected to an oxygen tank, so getting the blood to his face shouldn’t be too difficult, but I’m struggling with how to make up look like it’s coming from his nose. The other challenge is to get blood all over part of the set.

 

 

Here’s the play-by-play of what needs to happen: He takes off the mask when the nosebleed starts, and two other actors escort him a short distance to a gurney. a few lines are spoken and one of the actors reaches under the gurney for a first-aid kit. Then we have a seven-second blackout, and lights come back up for intermission, revealing a plastic privacy screen in a metal frame (approx. 8’ high and 10’ wide) blocking the gurney from view. During intermission actors will be onstage miming a few things, and then scene two will begin with the bleeding character offstage and the rest of the cast cleaning up the bloody set.

 

 

My current thought is to hide blood bags in the set so that the actors can surreptitiously pop them during intermission. The nosebleed itself I’m considering creating by giving the actor a cannula to wear under the mask and puncturing the underside of the tube under his nose so that the blood appears to come from his nose, but I don’t know if the audience will think it strange that he doesn’t take out the cannula when his nose starts gushing blood. I can try to put a tube there and hide it with makeup, but I don’t think I or the makeup team have that skill. Any thoughts on these ideas? Or new things to try?

 

P.S. the show opens Jan. 14 so I'd appreciate any swift responses you might have!

 

 

[Jivemaster]

Have you a source (or recipe ) for the "blood"? Never underestimate how far blood can go or how permanently it can stain. You could need to touch up the set painting most shows.

[the kid]

One thing to be aware of if you are actively pumping a liquid to their face / nose is that you don't send too much / wrong position and they end up with fake blood in their throat/lungs.

 

You could do some masking and secretions of bloody cloths so the nose bleed does not exist until the mask is off .

 

7second blackout is long, do you need that long ?

 

I would also avoid making a bloody set, unless its a small section, as above its not going to be easy to clean. Lots of bloody (dry) towels would work better.

 

I have found fake blood is like glitter it gets someone, wont leave, and still sticks to you after a shower.

[Dave m]

Wouldn't it be easier to have a blood supply running up the upstage arm of the victim?As he/she holds their nose, the blood comes out?

[cedd]

Syringes are always my go-to method of delivering a controllable stream of fluid. They're clean (come with rubber bungs) and can be treated as changeable cartridges.

[Kel'sinthepropcloset]

Have you a source (or recipe ) for the "blood"? Never underestimate how far blood can go or how permanently it can stain. You could need to touch up the set painting most shows.

 

I'm working with a costume designer who knows all about the properties of various recipes, so I'm not to worried about that. Right now I'm just focusing on moving the blood, and keeping up with the other designers about what materials they're putting on the stage.

 

Wouldn't it be easier to have a blood supply running up the upstage arm of the victim?As he/she holds their nose, the blood comes out?

 

I've considered that, but unfortunately the actor will be wearing short sleeves and will be moving around so the audience will see him from all sides. Thanks for the idea, though!

 

Syringes are always my go-to method of delivering a controllable stream of fluid. They're clean (come with rubber bungs) and can be treated as changeable cartridges.

 

I'll play with that. Thanks!

 

One thing to be aware of if you are actively pumping a liquid to their face / nose is that you don't send too much / wrong position and they end up with fake blood in their throat/lungs.

 

You could do some masking and secretions of bloody cloths so the nose bleed does not exist until the mask is off .

 

7second blackout is long, do you need that long ?

 

I would also avoid making a bloody set, unless its a small section, as above its not going to be easy to clean. Lots of bloody (dry) towels would work better.

 

I have found fake blood is like glitter it gets someone, wont leave, and still sticks to you after a shower.

 

I'm a stickler for safety so I definitely won't do anything that could endanger the actor or anyone else.

 

The blackout will be 7 seconds to accommodate other activity; I can take as much of that as necessary.

 

The second act (approx. 45 minutes) involves three actors cleaning the set as part of the show, so I'd actually rather have a big mess that will believably keep them busy. I'll be there to clean up anything left after the show every night.

 

I'm intrigued by your idea of masking and secretions of bloody cloths (clothes?), but I can't find anything on Google. Could you explain what you mean?

[the kid]

Quite simply the actors have them on them or they are in the bedbut hidden and them being downstage of the victim will cover them picking up the rags and using them on his face.

[Jivemaster]

You will be bothered about the permanence of the blood stain when you have to repaint the set each evening, and if you get a bill for the floor damage.

 

Why can you not have the surplus blood in the "first aid kit"?

 

Blood cloths are simply cloths with blood inside ready to make the mess on demand

 

What sort of mask is being worn for a start? It could conceal a capsule of fake blood ready to crush.

 

Remember that a human contains about 6 - 8 pints of blood but you are likely dead if you lose 2 pints so be careful not to overload the effect to the point of pantomime.

[Kel'sinthepropcloset]

The set painters and I are keeping each other updated. If necessary, I can make sure that the blood doesn't get on the walls. I'm already taking precautions for other items anyway.

 

I am planning to have blood in the first aid kit, but I need additional methods because A) I can make a puddle with that during intermission, but I need a way to make a huge amount of blood flow/spray directly from the actor's nose (or appear so), and B) the blood on the floor needs to look like it came from his nose, so there needs to be blood on the gurney, etc. The show is slightly removed from reality and exaggerated, so I actually want to have him lose way more blood than a real person could, far more than 8 pints. But thanks for thinking of that; in a different stageworld that could have been a big problem.

 

Blood cloths can do some of the work, but I'm limited by the fact that the actors are dressed only in short-sleeved scrubs. I will use them as much as possible, though.

 

I'm pasting the link to the mask below. Unfortunately that is the prop master's domain, so I'm not sure how she intends to use it, and I'm assuming that she'll have to alter it so that the actor's voice is audible and clear.

http://www.amazon.com/Salter-Labs-Adult-Oxygen-tubing/dp/B00ITVP2K0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1418734407&sr=8-1&keywords=oxygen+mask

 

Quite simply the actors have them on them or they are in the bedbut hidden and them being downstage of the victim will cover them picking up the rags and using them on his face.

 

Ah, great, thank you!

[Dave m]

Outside my realm but an ex used to do both set and costume/props.

They are not much of a prop master if they insist on a mask that isn't suitable for the FX. It is supposed to be a collaborative effort.

I thought that most oxygen was delivered via the tubes that secure around the ears these days?Better for diction and blood delivery

[Jivemaster]

That is the cheapest and crapest mask available, most other masks provide some concealment options. go to http://www.spservices.co.uk/ and use the search function for o2 mask Some of the bag masks will conceal a pint or more, some of the plain masks with a colour band will conceal a few ml of fake blood which will go a fair way.

 

Search the same site for "nasal cannula" and find the simple common cannula then modify it to have three outlets.

 

What about the mask you have with an oxygen pipe containing blood mix. Use a variant of a 2 - 3 litre cola bottle as the O2 supply -put the blood in there -battery electric pump like a screen wash pump.

 

OK it's a UK supplier but there will be similar in your part of the USA

[Kel'sinthepropcloset]

That is the cheapest and crapest mask available, most other masks provide some concealment options. go to http://www.spservices.co.uk/ and use the search function for o2 mask Some of the bag masks will conceal a pint or more, some of the plain masks with a colour band will conceal a few ml of fake blood which will go a fair way.

 

Search the same site for "nasal cannula" and find the simple common cannula then modify it to have three outlets.

 

What about the mask you have with an oxygen pipe containing blood mix. Use a variant of a 2 - 3 litre cola bottle as the O2 supply -put the blood in there -battery electric pump like a screen wash pump.

 

OK it's a UK supplier but there will be similar in your part of the USA

 

Agreed. I'm hoping that maybe the props master and prod team will decide to scrap the mask in favor of the cannula. My main issue now is figuring out how to get enough pressure in the cannula tubes to pump the blood out. As usual, I am vexed by gravity...

[Dave m]

There used to be a youtube clip on a bullet hit effect.

They used a pressurised garden sprayer The type that pumps up and has a trigger

[djw1981]

if using IV drip tubing, get a bag of saline and a pressure bag. The pressure bag wraps around the bag of saline and pressurises it up to 300mmHg. If you also get an IV 3 way tap, you can have it closed against this force (realistically 100mmHg may be enough, then when release you get a sudden spurt (cf what the public imagines an artery being hit looks like) and then a gentle reduction in pressure, in keeping with exanguination