Oh the internet…..what a lovely awful informative place you are. It’s the one place you can educate yourself on literally ANYTHING and also apparently, the place you can claim to be something you’re not.
(Disclaimer- these are my opinions and only mine. I mean no offense to anyone and really enjoy the makeup brands listed below, but nonetheless I WILL speak my peace.)
Hey internet “beauty vloggers” …..this is dedicated to you.
Back in the good ol’ days being a makeup artist meant actually applying makeup to OTHER people’s faces, not just your own. Just because you make videos of yourself putting on makeup does not mean you (necessarily) can show up on a set and do the same thing professionals do. Applying makeup to other people is different than putting it on yourself. Doing makeup for the camera is different than doing it for a webcam and yet somehow you feel you have earned the same title as someone who has spent years doing it on sets, for runways shows, for photo shoots? Let me ask you this: if someone “produces” a film on Windows Live Movie Maker, does that earn them the same title as Jerry Bruckheimer?
You following me?
Well apparently in this day and age it does, or at least it does for certain makeup brands. It has recently come to my attention that a number of brands offer “affiliate” programs. Programs that used to be for actual professional makeup artists so they could use the products on their clients and hopefully by doing so spread the word and promote the product. Well folks, apparently it doesn’t matter if you are the personal makeup artist to Kim Kardashian, Johnny Depp or any other mega famous person because if you don’t have a large online following such as a YouTube channel with tons and tons of subscribers full of videos of your “beauty hauls” and “looks of the days” you are not good enough to be an affiliate.
Hmm….. sounds a little off kilter huh? I mean…most working makeup artists don’t have time to make videos every day because we are too busy actually BEING MAKEUP ARTISTS.
Now I’m not dogging makeup videos. In general, I have no problem with them. I know a few successful MUAs who have YouTube Channels and do put up makeup videos; I think they are an awesome resource and a great way to publicize yourself. And hey! Even some of them are affiliates because they had enough views! Yay them! What I DO have a problem with is these makeup brands giving away free products to some person probably in a basement in po-dunk Montana that will sure, make a video using the eye shadow palette on themselves and yea, maybe one or two of their followers will end up buying it. But in my opinion there is no substitute to actually applying a product on someone because THAT is when people want to buy something. It’s the same reason people try on clothes before buying them, if you put it on and it looks great, YOU BUY IT! Most of my clients almost always buy at least one of the products I used on them for themselves because they got to see how to use it and how great it looked on THEM, not a face on the screen.
It’s not just makeup artists that the internet is making things harder for. While at a screening and Q&A for “Trophy Wife” at SAG-AFTRA, the cast was talking about how some casting directors are now looking to see how many Twitter followers an actor has before bringing them in for auditions for day player and guest spots on shows. Basically the bigger the following the better chance at an audition. REALLY? Thankfully there are still people like Marcia Gay Harden who was very outspoken about how that is “ bullsh*t” and that at the end of the day she would hope people would continue to put talent and true professionals first instead of people that just have big online followings.
I am truly not trying to say everyone on the internet is a fake or not talented or not professional because I know there is a TON of talent out there. My point is that life is already a series of popularity contests full of people that will do anything they can to get things for free. Why hire an actor who has no online presence at all when we can get one that has a large online following that will promote the show for free even if they aren’t quite as good? We need to be conscious of this so it doesn’t end up completely taking over everything. Let’s not let the politics or the number of followers one has overshadow the people that work their asses off; that are crazy talented, that are true professionals. THOSE are the people that deserve to be cast, that would make great affiliates and deserve the titles.
So now as I come down from my adrenaline high and this rant comes to a close; I would like to apologize to any beauty “gurus” or whatever cheeky title you’ve been given if I have hurt your feelings. I applaud you for practicing an art and love that we share a common interest but please respect the fact that I will never consider you a makeup artist if most of your videos consist of you telling me what makeup you’ve bought. HELLO! THAT’S WHAT INSTAGRAM IS FOR! I am standing up for myself and for all my colleagues that have hit the pavement hard and worked our asses off to deserve the title of “makeup artist.”