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Bethany Swan | Hair and Makeup up Designer

Bethany Swan | Hair and Makeup up Designer

The chance to explore historical, iconic looks is what drew makeup designer Bethany Swan to the film and TV industry. Having explored other areas such as fashion, commercial and even the wedding industry, it is the storytelling element of her work which excites Bethany, the chance to follow and enhance one character’s journey. Musicals such as Westside Story, the filmmaker John Waters and old Hollywood films made her fall in love with cinema.

Her work on Michaela Coel’s groundbreaking series, I May Destroy You allowed her work on multiple looks and ideas as the lead character of Arabella changed and developed so much through the episodes. For Bethany, a huge part of it was being able to show how hair and makeup could represent different emotions and how it could either be used to empower, expose or mask the characters. She had a similar experience designing the looks for Billie Piper’s Rare Beasts, a film which embraced women at their most vulnerable and real life selves.

Bethany is still reeling from the news of becoming a BAFTA Breakthrough, quite surprised to find herself included in an awe inspiring group of people who she looks up to. She’s very keen to talk to people who have made great strides in the world of makeup design, to find out their processes and to watch them break down the way they work.