“This interview has been translated from its original language to English for your convenience“.

Hello, my name is Juan Manuel Méndez, and together with my partner Carmen Cervantes, we are the founders and directors of JMMN, FX & Creature Studio. Our studio creates characters and creatures through FX makeup and practical effects such as animatronics, puppets, dummies, etc., for the film industry.

Getting Involved with “Mateo”

Director Fernando Perezgil contacted us and told us about the project, particularly focusing on the setting and story of the short film. This attracted us because it is a very different story in terms of the zombie theme.

Designing Mateo as a Zombie

The design proposal for the character (zombie) was entirely based on the script and various discussions with the director, especially concerning the storyline.

Inspiration and References

Creating Mateo’s appearance was quite challenging because there are many FX makeup designs for this type of character in cinema. Our main goal was to stay away from those designs, so we tried various designs to achieve something unique. Our primary reference for the FX makeup design of Mateo was forensic photographs of decomposing bodies.

Technical Challenges

One of the main challenges was ensuring our zombie did not resemble any previously seen in movies. Regarding the design, we wanted the character’s look to align with the short film’s story.

Techniques and Processes

The pieces used for the character were made of medical-grade silicone gel. However, for the arms and neck, we used a plastic adhesive film to create the effect of dry, loose skin. This worked very well on camera.

Makeup Application Time

It took us around 5-6 hours to apply the complete makeup.

Collaboration with the Team

From the beginning, we had a lot of communication with director Fernando Perezgil to create and finalize the design, always aiming for it to look as realistic as possible. The same attention to detail was present during filming with the production team. We meticulously reviewed the character before each shot to ensure the realistic concept was maintained.

Proud of Their Creation

We feel extremely proud of our zombie creation. It fits perfectly with the production, story, and vision of director Fernando Perezgil, which brings us great satisfaction.

Social Media and Contact

You can find us on Facebook as Juan Manuel Méndez N and JMMN, FX & Creature Studio. On Instagram, we are jmmnfx.