Congratulations to make-up grad Jessica Martin on her latest superstar success: she's just taken FIRST PLACE in the Character / Prosthetics student competition at IMATS in Vancouver!
IMATS Vancouver, part of the prestigious IMATS [International Make-Up Artist Trade Show] event family, brought together some of the top make-up artists in Canada, with hundreds of hopeful applicants and only a handful of selected competitors. The competition ran July 21-22 downtown at the Vancouver Convention Centre, with winners in several categories including prosthetics, beauty and fantasy.
The competition saw Jessica working with model Momona Komagata under the watchful eye of IMATS founder Michael Key. The intense competition required Jessica to assemble a complete original character, in three hours, from a handful of randomly-distributed prosthetic pieces. The final work was judged on both originality and technique.
Jessica pulled ahead of the pack to claim first place, which included a $1,000 prize from the IMATS organization. New Image was happy to be there to document her emotionally-charged victory. Not a dry eye in the audience!
Jessica has always been artistically-minded. Raised in Maillardville (Coquitlam) here in British Columbia, she grew up painting and drawing, and began sculpting during studio arts courses at Trinity Western University.
Always a film fan, Jessica says of her inspirations, "I would watch my favourite films and wish that I could be a part of the process of bringing those characters to life."
This began her interest in make-up and effects, which grew until it became her main passion. She craved the training to reach the high-level work she saw onscreen. "I began to research different schools in the area, but had no clue as to where to even begin."
What brought New Image above the other school options in Vancouver? Regarding her choice of New Image's make-up for film & fashion diploma, Jessica says, "I really liked that:
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The classes were small, for a more interpersonal environment
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The instructors were very knowledgeable
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The program covered many facets of makeup and fx
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When you sign up for the program, the school has a kit assembled for each student
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The College was affordable!
In the end, I liked what I saw and signed up!"
We're glad she did, and so is she; Jessica's training more than met her expectations. "New Image's make-up program enhanced my abilities, knowledge, and gave me confidence to help achieve my goal of becoming a makeup and fx artist," she says. "I learned so much from Ryan [Nicholson, department head] and Michelle [Grady, head teacher] that it's difficult to narrow down."
Jessica thanks Ryan and Michelle for their support in the weeks leading up to the contest, as well as her family, and grads and friends Bev Hoy, Meg Nicholson and Toby Lee. "I relied much on the advice and knowledge of my teachers, peers, friends, and fellow make-up artists!" she says, humble in victory.
She also thanks New Image for the school's contribution, a $100 honorarium (which she spent on supplies in preparation) and moral support from staff and faculty in the weeks leading up to the event. Read about that here!
Though their entries didn't place in the competitions, these grads' efforts were stellar examples of high-level skills learned at New Image, and well worthy of a prestigious event like IMATS. We're very proud of these students and their work!
New Image make-up teacher Michelle Grady also showed her skills in the non-competitive demo portion of IMATS Vancouver, while leading our demo booth in the foyer at the convention centre.
Congrats to all participants and winners at IMATS 2012; we'll see you next year, and we'll bring more amazing works of imagination with us!
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