Everything I Learned Behind the Scenes at Halloween Horror Nights
- 7 years ago
Halloween is my Super Bowl. I pull out all of the stops with my costumes, attend all of the attractions, and wear all of the cheesy horror-themed shirts I can find. So when Universal Studios Hollywood actually agreed to let me come behind the scenes and perform as a scare actor - what it calls its cast of haunted house actors - at Halloween Horror Nights, I was beside myself - and pumped.
Halloween Horror Nights has been a beloved attraction since 1991, when it started at the Florida park as a three-night attraction under the name "Fright Night." The name quickly changed to Halloween Horror Nights in 1992 and was brought to Hollywood in 1997 but only ran until 2000 before undergoing a five-year hiatus. In 2006, Horror Nights returned to Hollywood, and it has been a mainstay ever since. The event is now a month and a half long, opening in mid-September and closing out the first week of November, and both Singapore and Japan locations of Universal Studios now participate.
Learning about the scare-acting process was eye-opening. Each actor is handpicked to portray a certain character: the women who play the Insidious Ghost I transformed into have similar builds; the Freddy Kruegers and Jasons of the event are picked similarly. Actors arrive to the event as early as 2 p.m. to get into wardrobe, hair, and makeup. Wardrobe comes first, then actors are taken to stations where professional makeup artists are armed to create whatever creature is on the agenda. Some actors end up wearing masks that cover the face, but for my character, a prosthetic piece was applied over my eyebrows to create a stronger brow bone. Each of these pieces is custom made for the event and applied by a special-effects makeup artist.
The process for the Insidious Ghost took around an hour and 15 minutes to complete: First the prosthetic was applied, then it was blended with a base. From there, airbrush makeup was applied on my neck, on my face, and around my eyes to create a harsher, grittier texture and sunken-in look. Products labeled "old blood," "dirt," and "rotten wash" were spritzed and sprayed onto my body as my face was getting made up. At one point I had three people working on me: the special-effects artist for my face, another makeup artist for my body, and a hairstylist to apply my wig properly.
Because the scare actors are constantly moving inside the mazes and Scare Zones, they work up a sweat, meaning the makeup applied has to be alcohol-based to keep it from running. While one crop of actors opens up the event, another group arrives once the park opens to get transformed for their parts and will swap in for the first round of scare actors.
After getting ready, actors are shuttled to their respective territories. Seeing a haunted house with the lights up is kind of like seeing a dog walk on two feet: it's weird and not something you're used to, but after a few minutes of seeing it, it's totally normal. John Murdy, creative director of Universal Studios, walked me through what it takes to be a good scare actor. First, you have to have some athleticism, because each scare takes about 10 seconds before you have to start over and do it again. People walk through at a rapid pace, meaning you have to hurry and hide again before the next lot of people get to your scene.
When it comes to actually scaring someone, it's all about the angles. "If I'm trying to scare you and I'm coming straight toward you, you can see me coming from a mile away," Murdy said. "If I come from your peripheral vision, you can't see me until I'm right there."
Diversions also play a huge part in scaring people. Throughout the Insidious maze, there are little duck boy figures inspired by the movie. "For our guests, they're going to focus their attention on him, and that sets you up perfectly for the scare," Murdy said.
After getting the opportunity to scare several groups of guests, it was time to head back to base camp and get cleaned up. No, they don't send the actors home to fend for themselves. Each person turns in their wardrobe and takes a seat at one of the makeup stations to start the removal process. Lots of oil is involved to help the makeup off gently. Prosthetics are removed by an expert, but one artist I worked with said that after scaring people and sweating for hours on end, the prosthetics are
Halloween Horror Nights has been a beloved attraction since 1991, when it started at the Florida park as a three-night attraction under the name "Fright Night." The name quickly changed to Halloween Horror Nights in 1992 and was brought to Hollywood in 1997 but only ran until 2000 before undergoing a five-year hiatus. In 2006, Horror Nights returned to Hollywood, and it has been a mainstay ever since. The event is now a month and a half long, opening in mid-September and closing out the first week of November, and both Singapore and Japan locations of Universal Studios now participate.
Learning about the scare-acting process was eye-opening. Each actor is handpicked to portray a certain character: the women who play the Insidious Ghost I transformed into have similar builds; the Freddy Kruegers and Jasons of the event are picked similarly. Actors arrive to the event as early as 2 p.m. to get into wardrobe, hair, and makeup. Wardrobe comes first, then actors are taken to stations where professional makeup artists are armed to create whatever creature is on the agenda. Some actors end up wearing masks that cover the face, but for my character, a prosthetic piece was applied over my eyebrows to create a stronger brow bone. Each of these pieces is custom made for the event and applied by a special-effects makeup artist.
The process for the Insidious Ghost took around an hour and 15 minutes to complete: First the prosthetic was applied, then it was blended with a base. From there, airbrush makeup was applied on my neck, on my face, and around my eyes to create a harsher, grittier texture and sunken-in look. Products labeled "old blood," "dirt," and "rotten wash" were spritzed and sprayed onto my body as my face was getting made up. At one point I had three people working on me: the special-effects artist for my face, another makeup artist for my body, and a hairstylist to apply my wig properly.
Because the scare actors are constantly moving inside the mazes and Scare Zones, they work up a sweat, meaning the makeup applied has to be alcohol-based to keep it from running. While one crop of actors opens up the event, another group arrives once the park opens to get transformed for their parts and will swap in for the first round of scare actors.
After getting ready, actors are shuttled to their respective territories. Seeing a haunted house with the lights up is kind of like seeing a dog walk on two feet: it's weird and not something you're used to, but after a few minutes of seeing it, it's totally normal. John Murdy, creative director of Universal Studios, walked me through what it takes to be a good scare actor. First, you have to have some athleticism, because each scare takes about 10 seconds before you have to start over and do it again. People walk through at a rapid pace, meaning you have to hurry and hide again before the next lot of people get to your scene.
When it comes to actually scaring someone, it's all about the angles. "If I'm trying to scare you and I'm coming straight toward you, you can see me coming from a mile away," Murdy said. "If I come from your peripheral vision, you can't see me until I'm right there."
Diversions also play a huge part in scaring people. Throughout the Insidious maze, there are little duck boy figures inspired by the movie. "For our guests, they're going to focus their attention on him, and that sets you up perfectly for the scare," Murdy said.
After getting the opportunity to scare several groups of guests, it was time to head back to base camp and get cleaned up. No, they don't send the actors home to fend for themselves. Each person turns in their wardrobe and takes a seat at one of the makeup stations to start the removal process. Lots of oil is involved to help the makeup off gently. Prosthetics are removed by an expert, but one artist I worked with said that after scaring people and sweating for hours on end, the prosthetics are