MILWAUKEE — To bring the surreal to life, theater productions, filmmakers, and videographers turn to one person to get the job done - Annaliese Thaney.
She is a special effects makeup artist from Milwaukee. She can do the makeup for creepy creatures to mystical woodland spirits to general beauty makeup.
“Just being able to bring to life something you don’t see in the world every day with crazy colors or textures or what have you," Thaney, the owner of Shade of Face FX, said.
She has been doing stage makeup since she was a child. Her professional career started in 2013. While working in retail, she did makeup for the popular haunted house The Hill Has Eyes in Franklin while also working for Wauwatosa West High School in the theater department among other productions across the area.
"It's really nice to be able to work with (high school actors), and be able to teach students, and, you know, just kind of give knowledge, work with students who also are creative," she said.
Then in 2021, she decided to make the plunge and became a full-time artist. She still works with the Tosa West theater program, but her schedule has opened to take on even more projects and clients. She can do costume and wig design, special effects makeup, anatomically accurate cuts and bruises, beauty makeup for photoshoots, and so much more. Thaney estimates she worked on 35 to 40 productions since the 2010s.
See more of Annaliese Thaney's incredible designs...
“My goal every time no matter what type of makeup it is to give you something you’ve never seen before," Thaney said.
She has also worked with a variety of directors, recording artists, filmmakers, and photographers from across the area like Found Format, Xavier Schaetzke, and Gabriel Drabkin to name a few. There likely isn't anyone she has worked alongside more than with director and owner of Pixel Visionaries, Shun Powell.
“So working with somebody like Anna gives you a leg up in the community not only in the Midwest but also competing with New York and L.A. So, I mean if you're looking for somebody to do it, that's the best person to call," he said.
Thaney's tagline is 'for all things strange and beautiful' which captures the range of makeup and design she can do.
Her next big goal is to direct her own film.
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