INTERVIEW WITH THE BREAKDOWN ARTISTS:

TAMARA RIGBY-FUNKE

BY GINGER MARTINI

Breakdown Artist Tamara Rigby-Funke’s love of her craft is evident in her work. From the hauntingly beautiful Nightmare Alley to the joyful whimsy of Station Eleven, Tamara has used her talents to bring many unique projects to life. Winner of the 2023 CAFTCAD Award for Excellence in Crafts- SPFX Building for her work on Station Eleven, which was also nominated that year for the Excellence in Crafts- Textile Arts category, Tamara and I chatted about how Station Eleven was able to create different aesthetics for their survivor groups, how to make breakdown read on dark materials in a darkly lit set and the working relationship between Breakdown Artists and the On-Set Team. 

Station Eleven is gorgeous. Can you tell us about the process of collaborating with the Costume Designer to create the distinct looks of the different groups?

Station Eleven was very much a passion project. I was brought on early to help with concept; this meant building and rebuilding. Costume Designer, Helen Huang, was determined to find the joy/art/ whimsy in the characters as they rebuild their lives in this newly changed world. We were working under COVID lockdown restrictions and out of the International Design Centre. This location would reveal a treasure trove of recycled materials- a maker’s paradise. As a Breakdown Artist/Builder, my job is to actualize the Designer’s vision. We communicate through images, colour and often assign an emotion as per script. Helen wanted each group of survivors to have their own look; the people in the airport almost untouched as they had a power generator and access. The golf course folks, a little more worn and some fading as they had shelter, but no power and spent time outdoors. The Undersea Kids were the most challenging to land on. They were young, Post Pans (born after the pandemic) almost feral but full of imagination and wanting to believe the story of Dr. Eleven. We see them attempting to manifest their own spacesuits out of found objects. We overdyed the Undersea Kids with a brownish yellow to help with the overall look. The Traveling Symphony was a colourful mishmash of faded self-expression for day, and larger, more fantastical offerings for the stage.   

As an Ager/Dyer on The Fire Inside, can you tell us what the differences are in this position verses being a Breakdown Artist?

The Ager/Dyer must be skilled in dyeing and have an understanding of textiles, how they look when aged, and be able to replicate that. It’s the same for the Breakdown Artist. For a show like The Fire Inside there’s more dyeing and making clothing look worn, but cared for.     

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark is a fantasy horror period piece. What are some of the differences in creating blood work for a project like that verses working on a project like Saving Hope, which is based in realism for the blood?

Scary Stories to tell in the Dark is set in the late 60’s with flashbacks to the early 1900’s. Costume Designer, Ruth Meyers, was challenging Guillermo Del Torro’s standard Victorian nightgown. Ruth insisted this garment be more restrictive as this poor girl was to be locked away and punished routinely. This girl becomes the ghost haunting the children in the 1960’s. My approach to this character was to infuse her gown with emotions and show neglect and passage of time. In the first draft of the script, Del Torro mentions menstrual blood stains. I tried to interpret this in the garment. Ruth was very happy, but camera only revealed the sleeve.  That’s how it goes. In comparison, the bloodiest show I ever worked on was Saving Hope. We had an SPFX team headed by Emily Skoggard. They would build all the organs needed for that episode’s surgeries. We would then have real Surgeons come in and perform the operations. I remember asking a Brain Surgeon how our skull compared to a real skull he said this is much harder!!!  I was the Set Key for 2 seasons on Saving Hope and found the onset blood stressful. I much prefer prep.                                                        

Saving Hope sounds like it was a wild experience. You mention it was the bloodiest show you’ve worked on. After working with real Surgeons and watching all of those surgeries play out, did it influence any of your blood work moving forward in your Breakdown Artistry?

My work on Saving Hope has given me more confidence when working with blood but I am more comfortable using paint than the onset blood.

Often times, the action that happens in a horror project is at night. How do you create a breakdown or blood work that will read on camera in these darkly lit sets?

The Strain had its challenges with gore. The Mongrels wore black and we would shoot at night.  So, what would show on black and on camera?  I needed to prime some surface area so that we would be able to see colour. Then we could begin to play with matte and gloss adding textures. While working in prep, I’m always thinking about my Set Key. My job is to give them a hearty base to start from.  Time is limited on set. There’s pressure and no time for redoing, so the dream is that my Set Key would simply need to add Ultra Wet or a drop of blood as per director.    

I’d love to know more about the work flow between Breakdown Artists and the On Set team. 

I often prepare a kit for my Set Key. It usually includes coloured waxes that they could use in a pinch. When it comes to blood, I use an acrylic paint with a textile medium and maybe a gloss medium. This is so the article remains dry for transport and actor comfort. The Set Key would have Street Fleet Blood or Mindwarp ready-made blood products to apply at finals.  Depending on the comfort level of my Set Key, we sometimes have a tutorial.

Tips and Tricks

Best tips to keep blood and dirt looking fresh on clothing throughout shooting?

For keeping blood looking bloody and fresh on set I like to use Ultra Wet. It’s water based and very wet looking and the camera loves it. You can also just add more blood but you’re changing continuity.

Best tips to keep cast comfortable while wearing bloody clothing?

Cast comfort is difficult. Most actors understand that they will be uncomfortable and just want to get to over with. Try and make them comfortable by giving them something to lay on and keep them warm.

Best laundry tips to freshen up bloodied clothing while shooting over multiple days without damaging the breakdown work?

Laundry should be cold water and hang to dry. Maybe spot clean with some Barbasol shaving cream or Windex.

How do you keep your mental health on track when working on a particularly gruesome project, day in and day out? 

Mental health check for devastating blood work, just try and remember you’re telling a story and check in with your inner child who thinks that you’re the coolest.