We obviously love hearing about the exciting projects our alumni are working on, but we can’t disregard the amazing stories of our faculty! So this week, we are highlighting Kevin St James, who is a Beauty/Makeup instructor at AMUA.
Kevin began his makeup journey in Theatre at Ball State University. From there, he worked professionally in multiple theatre and film positions – both on stage and behind the scenes. He has toured with multiple theatre productions all over the world.
When he moved to Nashville in 2001 he worked in the music video production community for many years, not only doing makeup, but managing different production areas. He has worked with Taylor Swift, Kesha, Dolly Parton and Kacey Musgraves, to name a few!
His recent work includes makeup for the promotional material for the 2019 Season at the Nashville Ballet, and makeup for PBS American Masters featuring country music legend Marty Stuart.
Kevin was also key makeup artist for both Spring and Fall Trends Cover Girl fashion shows at Proctor & Gamble in Cincinnati. Other clients include Maria Salas CNN Latino Entertainment, Patrick Stinson Made In Hollywood and Reese Witherspoon “The Good Lie” Red Carpet Event and Film Premiere.
Kevin continues his own education in all aspects of film production, most recently studying and learning how to operate 16mm film cameras. He shares: “In a world where the majority of production is now high definition and digital, I’ve taken an interest in old school film. There is an “analog renaissance” as some are calling it, and a serious effort to keep the classic film production alive.” Kevin took a 16mm film workshop with Kodak in Atlanta: “It was a course with the guys who are developing the Walking Dead and many other shows that are being filmed in Atlanta. Often people don’t realize some of these TV shows are shot on actual film. For example, the producers chose 16mm film for the Walking Dead, purely based on how the Zombie makeup was reading on film vs. digital cameras. I think it’s important to keep a keen eye on how realistic makeup is reading in a particular format.” “Right now I’m shooting a lot on a Black Magic Cinema Camera which shoots in 4k. That combined with the newer TVs, the detail is amazing. I’m trying to get my hands on an old Arriflex or Aaton 16mm to start experimenting with film more, and excited to play with how the makeup reads there!”