Arrow In The Head is responsible for me fruitlessly using the “Sharpen” filter in Photoshop a whole lot this afternoon. They’ve got an exclusive first look at one of the werewolf designs being used in “The Howling Reborn” via a blurry photo from the set. I’m not sure who sent them the photo, but it came with this description:

The werewolf you see below is one of the henchmen werewolves. Flat snout. The head werewolves have the classic HOWLING sticking out snouts. I know you’re all better people for knowing this.

Conspicuously missing from that description is an explanation of the giant ears, the smaller-than-a-human’s nose and the Henry Rollins neck. Partial credit for originality and using practical effects instead of CG, but c’mon. Whoever approved the maquette for this design obviously look at it from the side.

Update: okay, it’s not as bad as that. I got carried away. There are definitely things I’d change about the design, but overall it’s pretty cool.

Hat-tip: @Karwood_Pub via @_Mjollnir_

Fresh from Shock Till You Drop, here’s a first look at the werewolf from the upcoming horror movie “13 Hrs”. Yikes!

There are two more, both showing some of the body, so go check them out if you’re curious.

13 Hrs premieres Saturday, August 28th at the London FrightFest in Leicester Square, London. I can’t go, being on a totally different continent, but if you’re lucky enough to see it… I hate you. Tell me what it was like.

Finally, someone at San Diego Comic-Con with an interest in horror has some info about MTV’s Teen Wolf show. Nomad at Dread Central got some interesting and somewhat encouraging news from producer Jeff Davis. Of particular interest are these two tidbits:

- KNB FX [sic] is handling the PRACTICAL effects!! The look of the werewolves (yes, I said “werewolves” plural) was very important so they brought in the best.

- There will be three types of werewolves in this show, all with a different look.

KNB EFX has got some pretty serious chops in the realm of practical effects, and they’ve done werewolves before too: for Wes Craven’s “Cursed” (pictured on the right) and “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian”. I am now cautiously optimistic about this!

You might not know who Steve Neill is. I didn’t when I first saw this link in my inbox, but after digging around on his site and looking him up on IMDB, I came to realize that I had seen his special effects work in some of my favourite 80′s movies. He sculpted (and performed one of) the monster arms that burst out of Dana Barrett’s chair in Ghostbusters, for pete’s sake!

Steve is still doing masks and props, and one of his latest creations is this mask of the Werewolf of London as played by Henry Hull. He details its creation on his blog, from the initial sculpture to the finished mask. Yes, “mask”. Despite the fact that the eyes are filled in the photos, Steve is selling mask versions for $225 US (scroll down). You can also get it foam-filled with glass eyes, which I suppose makes it a bust. This isn’t exactly the kind of werewolf I dig, but it’s a classic, well-crafted by a guy who’s been doing it longer than most of us have been alive. Love your work, Steve!

Edit: bumping this up to the top because the auction ends in two hours. Current bid is $204.50 US. Want it? Get it!

Werewolf News reader Bill has notified me of an eBay auction he’s just started on a life-size werewolf bust. I really like the design– it’s evocative of the “horror” style of werewolf I like, so I’m the high bidder as of 1:56PM Pacific today. I’m shooting myself in the foot by posting this, but I’m duty-bound, so here are the details!

Due to a need for cash, I am selling a very rare (possibly one of only two in existence) lifesize werewolf bust. It is cast in resin with foam backing and is unpainted. I purchased this from the UK about 6 years ago. It is an awesome piece! Approximate dimensions are; 19″ from nose to back of head, 20″ tall, and 19″ across the back. Obviously the sculptor was inspired by the American Werewolf in London movie bust because it is similar but not the same and personally I like this one better. I think it is a little meaner looking

There’s no reserve and the auction runs until July 21st, so if you want to help Bill out with some cash in exchange for a wicked-looking werewolf bust, get over there and bid!

Through the magic of Facebook, I came across these great photos of Werewolf News reader / contributor / friend  Macabri. She was kind enough to let me post them here, and she had this to say about the shoot:

What I can tell you is that is was for a horror-themed group shoot that happened last year in San Diego. Each model was asked to dress up as some sort of monster, but since the coordinator already knew me, she asked me to be their werewolf. The makeup artist (Chrissy Lynn) is really good with blending sexy and scary and did the makeup from scratch that day with little to no planning. She always blows me away.

Great makeup, great photos, great concept! This looks like it was a lot of fun– I wonder if stuff like this happens in Vancouver? Thanks for sharing, Macabri!

Makeup & Hair
Chrissy Lynn
Photography
1,2 – Fournier Film
3 – Dale Porter
4,5,6 – Jayde Wofford

I saw @CreatureCompany mention this on Twitter this morning, and it definitely met my criteria for posting here (I clicked and said “whoah, that’s cool!”, which is all it really takes). Hollywood Movie Costumes and Props is a blog dedicated to exactly what you’d expect. This morning, its proprietor Jason posted a bunch of photos he took at a recent display of “Wolfman” props at Universal Studios Hollywood. If you’re into the movie or creature effects, I suggest you go have a look. Here are two photos I cribbed from Jason’s post:

Gadget FX is a special effects company based in Spain, and buried deep within their dreadfully Flash-based web site is a page dedicated to the creation of a whole-head animatronic werewolf mask. There are some photos of the sculpt and build process, and an interesting video that shows the whole effort from start to finish. I like this design a lot, except for those ridiculously large ears. What is it with that? Anyway, nice work, Gadget FX!

Update: Werewolf News reader Foxdie found a direct link to the video on YouTube, so I’ve embedded it here.

Are you tired of hearing about The Wolfman yet? I’m not! Here’s a recent Hero Complex column from the Los Angeles Times somewhat dramatically entitled “Rick Baker’s ‘Wolfman’ regrets: ‘I hoped it would bring back monster movies’“. Geoff Boucher asks Rick Baker five (actually rather interesting) questions about his work on The Wolfman, and Rick brings the answers in his usual candid way.

I don’t read his tone as regret, though… it’s more of a palms-up shrug, like “well, what can you do?” I think he got screwed over by bad management and a directionless production team, and I commend him for being so relaxed about it. Read the interview and tell me if I’m crazy.

Bonus: here’s a short featurette starring Rick. When it’s not busy looking like a trailer there are some neat shots of Rick applying and touching-up his werewolf work. The spritz bottle shot makes me laugh every time.

Hat-tip: ArcLight

Composite Effects makes some of the most amazingly life-like monster masks and gloves I’ve ever seen (check out the videos on the product pages to see what I mean). They’ve just released a mask that’s got me checking the balance in my savings account: Lupus the Wolf is “perfect for howling at the full moon. A wolfman in the most animalistic form, the mask will turn you into a savage beast even on a moonless night.” I like the design, particularly the ears and the creases around the muzzle, although seeing a hairless werewolf is a little strange at first. I can understand not wanting to include hair or fur as a built-in part of a silicone mask, though. A shaggy wig would work well, and maybe it’s just me, but Lupus looks like he needs to be rocking some big muttonchop sideburns.

The mask is available in hand-painted brown or gray, and costs $500 US. If you think that’s steep, you didn’t look at any of the videos yet, did you. Did you. Composite Effects guys: if you make werewolf gloves to go with this mask, I’ll have no recourse. Hat tip: David Peters.

UPDATE: Wes from CFX emailed me with word that while they haven’t made gloves specifically to go with the Lupus mask, they can do an alternate paint job on the Orlock gloves that will match the werewolf mask. Yellow nails? Friends, I am sold.