Substitute for blood in a theatrical or cinematic performance
"Fake blood" redirects here. For the musician also known as "Fake Blood", see
Theo Keating
.
Theatrical blood
,
stage blood
or
fake blood
is anything used as a substitute for
blood
in a theatrical or cinematic performance. For example, in the
special effects
industry, when a director needs to simulate an actor being
shot
or
cut
, a wide variety of chemicals and natural products can be used. The most common is red
food coloring
, often inside small
balloons
coupled with explosive devices called
squibs
.
Reasons for use
[
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]
There are many reasons for substituting for real blood in the film industry, such as ethical and sanitary concerns, and concerns for the emotional well being of the actors. Also, actual blood's tendency to coagulate and solidify quickly make it unsuitable for repeated takes without freshening; the longer-lasting viscosity of stage blood makes it far easier to work with on the set.
Typical recipe
[
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]
Fake blood generally consists of the following in various ratios:
[1]
Tomato ketchup
,
chocolate syrup
and cherry/strawberry topping sauce (to darken, add solid 'chunks' to the texture and increase viscosity) are also common ingredients. Most recipes can cause staining, so the wardrobe should be washed as soon as possible.
In the 1960 film
Psycho
,
Bosco Chocolate Syrup
was used as fake blood.
[2]
Since the film was in black and white, the color was less important than the consistency.
Kensington Gore
[
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]
"Kensington Gore" (a pun on the
London place and street
) was a trademark for fake blood used in films and in theatre. It was manufactured by a retired British pharmacist, John Tinegate or Tynegate, during the 1960s and 1970s, in the village of
Abbotsbury
,
Dorset
. Many varieties of blood, having various degrees of
viscosity
, shades and textures, were available. Since Tinegate's death, the name "Kensington Gore" has become a generic term for stage blood.
[3]
[4]
Kensington Gore was used in the film
The Shining
.
[5]
[6]
Other uses
[
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]
Theatrical blood has other applications apart from its use in the film industry.
The
crime scene investigation
science of
bloodstain pattern analysis
uses stage blood or sometimes cow's blood in mock-up crime scenes when training new investigators.
[7]
The art of
moulage
uses theatrical blood in applying mock injuries for the purpose of training emergency response teams and other medical and military personnel.
Theatrical blood is also popularly used in
Halloween costumes
to portray injury, shot/stab wounds or
special effects
looks for the purpose of cosmetic entertainment. It is also used in certain horror-themed
live action role-playing games
.
See also
[
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]
References
[
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]
- ^
How Fake Blood Is Made For Movies | Movies Insider
, retrieved
2022-01-02
- ^
Seckel, Al
.
Masters of Deception: Escher, Dali & the Artists of Optical Illusion
. Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. p. 200.
ISBN
1-4027-0577-8
. Retrieved May 23, 2006.
- ^
Smith, Gary A. (2015-09-03).
Uneasy Dreams: The Golden Age of British Horror Films, 1956-1976
. McFarland.
ISBN
978-1-4766-0530-2
.
- ^
Jackson, Kevin (1998).
The Language of Cinema
. Carcanet.
ISBN
978-1-85754-232-5
.
- ^
Denham, Jess (November 2, 2015).
"The Shining: 7 things you never knew about the classic horror film according to the Grady twins"
.
The Independent
. Independent Digital News & Media.
Archived
from the original on October 14, 2020.
- ^
Finn, Natalie (May 23, 2020).
"Blood in the Gutters, 127 Takes and the Twins Then and Now: 40 Haunting Secrets About The Shining"
.
E!
. NBCUniversal.
Archived
from the original on June 10, 2020.
- ^
Forensics Biology course description, see footnote at bottom (PDF)
External links
[
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]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Fake blood
.