Hair and Make-up for Film and Performance

Become part of the team behind films and theatre. Your role in hair and make-up will help bring to life the vision of entertainment. Our creative briefs and projects will help you develop a portfolio showing off your talent as an expert storyteller in the form of hair and make-up for film and performance.

Why study Hair and Make-up for Film and Performance at BNU?

BNU’s teaching base at Pinewood Studios
The University has a teaching base for our hair and make-up students at the iconic Pinewood Studios, which means there could be opportunities to engage with the community there. You’ll be able to put your learnt skills and craftmanship to practice, whilst being in the hustle and bustle of the world-renowned studio.

Facilities
Across our High Wycombe and BNU teaching base at Pinewood Studios, you’ll benefit from state-of-the-art facilities that will help you bring your ideas to life. Your classroom base offers bright lighting and dressing tables, where you’ll practice techniques and turn models into looks. We also have a range of photography facilities where you’ll have the opportunity to shoot your designs for your portfolio.

Industry Connections
Led by a dedicated and experienced course team, you’ll benefit from their industry knowledge and the industry links they bring to the course. You’ll get direct access to guest lectures, who are specialists in the sector, and can benefit from live project briefs, master classes, and networking opportunities.

Our High Wycombe Campus is only a short train ride away from London, meaning you are only a stones-throw away from the hustle and bustle, where you’ll also have the chance to visit outside bodies, such as makeup prep rooms, wig stores, museums and galleries. Here you’ll gain inspiration, insight and a feeling for how the industry works.

Career-focused
With a history of delivering expert craft, art and design education for more than 130 years, Buckinghamshire New University is the perfect place to start your creative career in hair and make-up. During your time on the course you’ll lend your hand to a range of styles, techniques and periods. Your modules and briefs allow you to develop the skills that employers are looking for, whilst ensuring you have a varied and desirable portfolio.

What will I study?
The practical elements of our hair and makeup course are designed with industry in mind. On the course you will explore pre-production and film set etiquette, which will help you understand the rules, roles and responsibilities of individuals in a production team, as well as explaining who you will report to and the expectations within a professional context.

It is key to master different makeup and hair techniques, so we’ll help you explore a range of period eras and how they form the basis for fashion designs. Alongside, your modules in prosthetics and special effect makeup will allow you to experiment with a range of materials to understand what it takes to bring characters to life.

It’s not just about crafting something that looks great, it will be your job to create character designs that fit a script. We'll teach you about various period hairstyles and show you how to recreate them. Most importantly you'll understand the history and theory that informs your designs and be able to reflect critically on your practice.

You'll get to grips with professional practice and we will help you to develop essential entrepreneurial skills. As many people in this area work as freelancers, we’ll teach you everything you need to know for success, from how to set up to paying taxes and creating a winning portfolio.

Year one
Core Modules
Editorial Hair and Make-up Design
Historical and Contextual Studies
Independent Project
Introduction to Sculpting and Clay Modelling Techniques
Period Hair and Make-up
Pre-production and Set Etiquette
Advanced Hair and Make-up 1
Body Painting
SFX Prosthetics Application

Year two
Core Modules
Advanced Hair and Make-up 2
Character Design and Making
Haircutting and Barbering Techniques
Contextual Studies for Hair and Make-up 2
Final Major Project Design Proposal
Industry Brief
Professional Skills and Portfolio Development
Final Major Project

During this two-year long hair and makeup degree, you will benefit from a full schedule where you’ll learn everything you need to know to feel ready for the industry by the time you graduate. This intense degree will make sure you challenge yourself to produce the best looks for your portfolio, whilst gaining as much experience as possible.

Learn from experienced lecturers, guest speakers and industry workshops. Your main base will be at our High Wycombe campus, and from there you’ll spend a number of days visiting our BNU teaching base at Pinewood Studios. These will both inspire you and help you to understand what the industry of today is really up to.

Although majority of the course is workshop-based and practical, you’ll also learn through;

• Traditional lectures and seminars, led by professionals
• Masterclasses
• Wider reading and preparation for lectures and workshop-based classes
• Visualisation of proposed material
• Individual and small group tutorials led by industry professionals and business mentors
• Final Major Project

You will also experience visits to outside bodies, such as makeup prep rooms, wig stores, museums, among others, to better prepare yourself for the research activities proposed in the programme.