‘CSI’ Make-Up Applied With Forensic Precision

CSI make-up artist Matthew Mungle discusses his work and what inspired him to go into this gory profession.

Mungle, a 28 year veteran of the industry, is the man responsible for the special make-up effects that help make CSI the phenomenal success that it is. He is a serial killer of sorts. At least, he is entrusted with the task of making living beings appear dead.

The job requires long hours researching and studying photographs of real life crime scenes in order to create the most realistic effects. Ironically, Mungle cannot stand the sight of blood. “I shudder a lot,” he says. “I can only look at some pictures for about five minutes then I have to close the book.”

Mungle knew at an early age that he wanted to be a make-up artist. He was fascinated by the make-up processes behind some of Hollywood’s most famous monsters. “When I was 10 years old I watched monster movies – Frankenstein, Phantom of the Opera, stuff like that. I was obsessed with it,” he says.

In 1992, Mungle won an Oscar for his make-up work on Francis Ford Coppola’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Additionally, he worked on Shindler’s List and Natural Born Killers.

To read the full story, head over to KhaleeJ Times.

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