Mr Mold Maker
Master Member
Hey folks! With the new movie coming out, I’ve been in a bit of a Halloween mood. I decided to try my hand at sculpting a Halloween 2 Myers! This will be a long one, skip to the bottom if you just want to see finished pics! However, I have included some general mask making tips along the way that don’t just apply to Myers, but any latex mask.
The original mask, for those that don’t know, was made by taking a 1975 Captain Kirk mask by Don Post Studios, removing the sideburns and eyebrows, cutting the eyes larger, spraying it “fish belly” white, and misting the hair with Streak-n-Tips. The hero mask was used in Halloween, and then the same mask was used again in Halloween 2. The masks paint had tarnished quite severely, the black had come out of the hair, leaving it more of a dirty brown.
To start my sculpture, I did exactly what Don Post Studios did to make their Captain Kirk. I used a lifecast of William Shatner! Bill Malone is the artist who made the original Kirk mask. Taking the very lifecast this one is cast from and opening the eyes, adding ears and the rest of the head. He also made some strange choices regarding the likeness. Heavily altering the cheeks, and resculpting the lips mainly.
So you think, great, job done! Clay press it, open the eyes, make a Kirk, and call it done..... well, not quite in this case. I didn’t want to replicate a mint 75 Kirk. That has already been done to perfection. I wanted to approach this as more of a portrait sculpture of the hero Myers mask. Adding each and every little surface imperfection and flaw in the pull I could see in reference.
When I look at the reference, I also see a mask that is heavily distorted from use. The nose and chin in particular are sagging under their weight. This is an effect that mint Kirk replicas never capture, as today’s latex just doesn’t stretch and stay there like 70’s “claytex.” If we compare it to a mint Kirk replica I think what I’m saying becomes super clear. I set out to replicate THAT mask. To me? THE mask. I had my goal set, all that was left was to claypress the Shatner lifecast and start sculpting! Countless hours over the next seven days and I ended up with a sculpture I was happy with. I worked on it all the way up until it was under stone so I don’t have “finished” sculpture pics but here are some in progress ones!
I molded the sculpture with a favorite of mine, Ultracal 30. I did the back half free standing by making my clay wall, wrapping the front half of the sculpture with cling film, and then supporting the wall with fast set plaster bandages. The medical type, not the weak stuff from Michael’s. This allows you to really refine your wall and get it nice, smooth, and 90 degrees from the sculpture.
A tip for mask makers.. You can get a much stronger stone mold by adding more heat during the cure. How do you add more heat? You spray the mold down with water and tightly wrap it with a plastic garbage bag. When my stone starts to seam, I soak it down and get a bag on it as quickly as I can. I’ll go back and spray it every 5 minutes or so, about three or four times, to keep the temperature up. You’ll notice the color will have shifted from a light grey to a very dark grey green. Adding Die Keen into your splash coat and finishing with this technique will make an incredibly strong and long lasting mold.
Another tip, don’t crack your molds hot. Especially if you’re molding an oil based sculpture. Myself? I am not a huge fan of scrubbing molds. Let the mold go through it’s cycle, hot, cold, and then back to room temp, that’s when you can crack it open. No sealer. Frekote Lifft for release. The Monster Clay fell right out of the mold. If I had gotten impatient and opened it ten minutes earlier I would have had fourty-five more minutes work. Things to keep in mind.
The original mask, for those that don’t know, was made by taking a 1975 Captain Kirk mask by Don Post Studios, removing the sideburns and eyebrows, cutting the eyes larger, spraying it “fish belly” white, and misting the hair with Streak-n-Tips. The hero mask was used in Halloween, and then the same mask was used again in Halloween 2. The masks paint had tarnished quite severely, the black had come out of the hair, leaving it more of a dirty brown.
To start my sculpture, I did exactly what Don Post Studios did to make their Captain Kirk. I used a lifecast of William Shatner! Bill Malone is the artist who made the original Kirk mask. Taking the very lifecast this one is cast from and opening the eyes, adding ears and the rest of the head. He also made some strange choices regarding the likeness. Heavily altering the cheeks, and resculpting the lips mainly.
So you think, great, job done! Clay press it, open the eyes, make a Kirk, and call it done..... well, not quite in this case. I didn’t want to replicate a mint 75 Kirk. That has already been done to perfection. I wanted to approach this as more of a portrait sculpture of the hero Myers mask. Adding each and every little surface imperfection and flaw in the pull I could see in reference.
When I look at the reference, I also see a mask that is heavily distorted from use. The nose and chin in particular are sagging under their weight. This is an effect that mint Kirk replicas never capture, as today’s latex just doesn’t stretch and stay there like 70’s “claytex.” If we compare it to a mint Kirk replica I think what I’m saying becomes super clear. I set out to replicate THAT mask. To me? THE mask. I had my goal set, all that was left was to claypress the Shatner lifecast and start sculpting! Countless hours over the next seven days and I ended up with a sculpture I was happy with. I worked on it all the way up until it was under stone so I don’t have “finished” sculpture pics but here are some in progress ones!
I molded the sculpture with a favorite of mine, Ultracal 30. I did the back half free standing by making my clay wall, wrapping the front half of the sculpture with cling film, and then supporting the wall with fast set plaster bandages. The medical type, not the weak stuff from Michael’s. This allows you to really refine your wall and get it nice, smooth, and 90 degrees from the sculpture.
A tip for mask makers.. You can get a much stronger stone mold by adding more heat during the cure. How do you add more heat? You spray the mold down with water and tightly wrap it with a plastic garbage bag. When my stone starts to seam, I soak it down and get a bag on it as quickly as I can. I’ll go back and spray it every 5 minutes or so, about three or four times, to keep the temperature up. You’ll notice the color will have shifted from a light grey to a very dark grey green. Adding Die Keen into your splash coat and finishing with this technique will make an incredibly strong and long lasting mold.
Another tip, don’t crack your molds hot. Especially if you’re molding an oil based sculpture. Myself? I am not a huge fan of scrubbing molds. Let the mold go through it’s cycle, hot, cold, and then back to room temp, that’s when you can crack it open. No sealer. Frekote Lifft for release. The Monster Clay fell right out of the mold. If I had gotten impatient and opened it ten minutes earlier I would have had fourty-five more minutes work. Things to keep in mind.
Last edited: