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Welcome to the Sick Individual ProductionsBlood Effects page”.

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This page and discussed techniques therein are dedicated to the greatest character actor and make-up artist that film has ever seen, Lon Chaney Snr. We owe him, his techniques, his dedication and movies so much, and never has such a man influenced so many filmmakers and effects people.

Now to the actual blood effects themselves. Sick Individual Productions has aimed to produce effects for as little money as possible, this is because we have "as little money as possible!" This is the Sick Individual Productions way. To solve this I have developed as much as I can from as little as I could. The recipes below contain mostly what you may find in your common kitchen cupboard or pantry. They can also be easily purchased from most convenience stores or supermarkets.

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Blood Recipes & Tips
 
SIP Preferred Blood Recipe Bulk Blood Recipes Chocolate Blood Basic Blood Capsules
Flour Based Blood Dried Blood Effects Black and White Blood Scab Effects
Fake Blood Vessels Blood Bags General Fake Blood Tips  

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SIP Preferred Blood Recipe:

This is the blood recipe that the technical effects department and I prefer to use in our productions, and is cheap and very easy to make.

Instructions:
 

Golden Syrup, Maple Syrup or Honey
Red Food Dye
Warm Water

  1. Pour syrup into your container (I prefer a larger empty plastic soft drink bottle).

  2. Add the warm water, put the cap and the bottle and shake to mix the quantities well.

  3. Now simply add the red food dye. Adjust the consistencies of syrup, water and colouring to suit your needs and taste. Sometimes a tiny bit of green or blue food dye is also added to manipulate the solid red colour that is produced.


This is the most common blood recipe that I employ. The texture is very sticky and this helps it cling to the actor really well and it can show a very good congealed effect if applied thickly and let to dry for a short time. The good points about it are that it is edible and some actors actually love the taste, and secondly I have found it fairly easy to wash out of clothes and costumes. You can add blue or green food dye into the mixture to alter the tone of the fake blood if you are after a more arterial colour effect. I have known people to use the same recipe as above but to substitute the water with smooth peanut butter.


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Bulk Blood Recipes:

Other than expanding the quantity of ingredients of the above recipe, below are 2 ways of making inexpensive and easy bulk blood.

This is a good recipe for a large quantity of blood. It is very easy and fast to make. It effectively makes a very slimy blood with a slight foamy consistency to it if shaken.

Instructions:

1 Bucket
Red Food Dye
Bottle of Cheapest Dishwashing Detergent
(and I mean cheap!)

  1. Pour the detergent into the bucket.

  2. Add the red food dye to the colouring that you desire.

Produces a nice smelling and mildly clothed staining blood, but is easily washed out if attended to quickly. I would only recommend it for external use though, as it tastes rather ordinary and probably would not digest very well. Also may sting the eyes. But for a cheap alternative it works a charm. Good for big splatters and pools of gore.

Another method of making blood in bulk is to use a jelly crystal recipe.

Instructions:

Packet of Red Jelly Crystals
Red Food Dye
Green Food Dye
(optional)
Water
(amount dependant on desired consistency)

  1. Add the jelly crystals to the bucket.

  2. Add the at least a couple of litres of water.

  3. Add the food dyes according to the look you are after.


This creates a very thin, runny and inexpensive bucket of bulk blood.

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Another method I have seen used out on set is too simply buy a 4 litre bottle of tomato sauce and mix up with water in a bucket to get the desired effect. An example of this is shown to the left.

Lastly you could simply make the “SIP Preferred Blood Recipe” as stated above and add more water to the mixture to thin it out.

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Chocolate Blood:

This is a very nice and thick fake blood that tastes rather scrumptious even if I do say myself!

Instructions:

˝ Cup of Water
1 Tablespoon of Cocoa Powder
3 or 4 Teaspoons of Golden Syrup, Maple Syrup or Honey
Red Food Dye
Blue, Green, Yellow Food Dye
(optional - depends on personal colour preference)

  1. Mix the cocoa powder thoroughly into the water making sure there are no lumps. I prefer using warm water during this process.
  2. Now simply add the thickener and food dye into the concoction mix well and wait for it to settle.
  3. Once settled, skim the scum and bubbly material from the top of the mixture either by gently pouring it into another bowl or by using the edge of a tissue.
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This blood can be easily consumed by an actor and will nicely trickle from their mouth if employed to. Chocolate blood will also set upon the skin and thicken to a congealed manner. It is also very effective upon clothing and props.

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Flour Based Blood:

This is also a very easy way to make an edible style of fake blood.

Instructions:
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1 to 1 ˝ Tablespoons of Plain Flour
Water
Red Food Dye
Green Food Dye
(optional)
  1. Add the plain flour into a bowl
  2. Mix in the desired amount of water to get the texture you require. Mix well and try to get all the lumps out.
  3. Bring the mixture to boil and then simmer for roughly ˝ hour, then letting it cool.
  4. Then simply add the red food colouring and some green if you wish.

This is a very organic style of fake blood.

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Basic Blood Capsules:

This is an extremely easy way to construct blood capsules that a lot of people like to use in action films.

Instructions:

Fake Blood (any type that is edible)
Eyedropper
(extremely handy)
Empty Gelatine or Vitamin Capsules
(in the case of a vitamin capsule, simply pull apart and empty the contents)

  1. Open the empty capsule and have it ready for action.
  2. Fill your eyedropper or such like with fake blood.
  3. Gently squeeze the fake blood into the bottom half portion of the capsule.
  4. Now simply and gently twist on the top half of the capsule, and there you go, one easy to make and use blood capsule.

Steps at Shooting Time:

  1. Place the capsule into your mouth not long before use, this is because the capsule will melt in your saliva after a relatively short time.
  2. Bite down on the capsule when you wish the effect to take place.
  3. Let the blood trickle from the mouth or spit out when hit.


This is an extremely popular and easy to achieve Hollywood movie effect. The capsule effect is very handy as it usually lets the actor talk and interact per normal throughout the shot or scene without giving the effect away.

One other way to produce a mouthful of blood is to simply fill you mouth with fake blood, but make sure that the cheeks are not puffed out as if bloated. The actor then lets the blood trickle and escape under his own control. You could also soak a small sponge with fake blood and place it under your tongue, then when you wish for the blood to release simply squeeze down on the sponge and the blood will flow. Produces a very nice dribble or spray effect depending on what you are doing at the time.

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Dried Blood Effects:

The SIP Preferred Blood Recipe as mentioned above can be easily adapted to look like a dried blood effect by simply adding more thickener to it, such as honey, golden syrup or maple syrup. This mixture can then be poured or painted on very easily. You may also add some blue food dye in order to darken the colour. I have found this technique to be very effective indeed. The thicker mixture gives an excellent congealed effect on the body, costume or set.

For smaller but more evident stains on props, sets or actors, simple red nail polish can be accurately applied. Just make sure you have some remover handy if necessary as this method is vastly more prone to staining than others. Another quick method is too simply add a little red food dye to some red gel toothpaste. This produces a deep red and thick look which is easy to manipulate and wash off.
You can also use a handy little method of simply using a toothpick or match to finely spread or paint a thin red line using deep red food dye to simulate smaller thinner cuts. This looks very effective and is so easy to produce.
Another easy way to produce a dried blood effect is to simply get a portion of red stage makeup and a portion of black stage makeup. Mix the 2 quantities roughly 1/3 red and 2/3 black, then with a small paintbrush draw or dab on associated trickles or old wounds.

To also achieve this gelled blood effect you can simply add some pre made red jelly to the inside or outside of the wound and apply some fake blood or make up over and around it. Gives a nice congealed look. Blood does congeal very fast out in the open and forms a jelly like consistency. Looks nice in small quantities for a clotting feel, especially with thick, dark blood or make-up.

Set jelly covered in a thick fake blood recipe also gives a very good mass congealed blood effect.

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Black and White Blood:

An easy way to make a blood effect for a black and white film is to simply use any form of chocolate syrup that you can get your hands on. You can alter its consistencies to get the desired tone and thickness that you require. No need to colour it as no colour is seen! Hitchcock used this effect in several movies. Simply paste, pour, paint, spray or smear it on the areas you want effected.

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Scab Effects:

A very simply way of constructing a scab is to use a 50/50 mixture of water and powdered gelatine.

Instructions:
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Powdered Gelatine (unflavoured is better)
Water
Red & Black Makeup/Fake Blood
  1. Mix ingredients thoroughly together over a very low heat, being careful to not let it boil.
  2. Let it cool a fraction to a temperature that is safe and smear it over the area that you want affected. Swift work is needed here because generally the mix will harden really quickly and will loose its stickiness.
  3. Once on you can easily work some red and black makeup and some fake blood into it. This produces a nice, thick and crumbly scabby effect.


 

The set gelatine will melt if exposed to hot temperatures or out in the sun, but sometimes this adds to the overall effect.

You can also add some breakfast cereal (oatmeal, cornflakes etc) onto the scab while it is still sticky. This adds a nice and disgusting flaky appearance to the effect, which can then be coloured over. Cereal added in also gives the effect a terrific textural feel.

  • Don't let the gelatine boil because then you'll have bubbles in the final product.

  • You can speed up the drying of scabs using a hair dryer, and moulds by sticking them in the fridge.

  • Gelatine will melt in the hot sun.

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Fake Blood Vessels:

Some gore fans love to make and use effective techniques to make there special effects look more realistic and complete. To help with these fake blood vessels can be easily made. For the gore experts out there the recipe can be easily adapted to make Veins (blue), Arteries (red) or Capillaries (purple).

Instructions:

Boiled String Type Spaghetti
Red Food Dye
Blue Food Dye
Purple Food Dye
Liquid Laundry Detergent

  1. Pour the desired colour of food colouring for the blood vessel that you wish to make into an easily washed bowl.
  2. Add the required amount of boiled spaghetti to the bowl and allow them to soak for a good 10 minutes.
  3. Add a few drops of detergent to the mixture to help seal in the colour and add a slimy feel to it.

Because of the detergent, oral use is not recommended but simply removing the detergent will enable this to be a safe option. These vessels can be easily incorporated into other gore effects

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Blood Bags:
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Blood bags can be made in a variety of ways. A simple way is to simply use a zip lock lunch bag to hold the blood in and then squeeze it firmly to release the gore. You can do this by holding it in your hand and squeezing over the wound in a fast manner or by concealing it in the costume and striking it hard to make it break its seal. Making these actions very rapid is quite a convincing effect and has been used extensively in the Kung Fu movie genre.
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For under costumes some people also like to use condoms that can be pierced or torn during the action releasing fake blood very effectively.

One other tried and tested way is to fill a finger cut from a latex glove, fill it about ˝ full with fake blood. Now simply twist or fold the open end and tie it off with wire, cotton or a paperclip. This method can be easy concealed in the palm or a pocket, and swiftly executed when needed.

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General Fake Blood Tips:
  • Make blood as close to the point of the shoot as possible, especially if it may be internally consumed.
  • Always try to avoid any contact with the eyes with any effect.
  • If you are worried about staining then try not to let the blood effect dry on what is being worn. Soak and wash ASAP.
  • Do not consume any recipe that is toxic!