Oscar and Emmy-winning make-up artist Steve La Porte and Emmy-winning hair stylist Josée Normand will receive Lifetime Achievement Awards at the 10th Annual Make-up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Awards, which will take place on Saturday, Feb. 11, 2023, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.
The MUAHS Lifetime Achievement Awards honor an artist (or artists) with an extraordinary spectrum of acclaimed work, exceptional contributions to the entertainment industry, and outstanding service to their union or their craft.
With over 100 titles to his credit, La Porte is widely recognized as one of the masters of special make-up effects and prosthetics. He got his start in the entertainment business at the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Clown College, where he studied theatrical make-up and prosthetics, paving the way for his future career. Eventually, he was hired to work on the Universal Studio Tour’s Land of a Thousand Faces and Castle Dracula make-up shows. Soon after, he produced masks and prosthetics for Under the Rainbow, Star Trek 3: The Search for Spock, Buckaroo Bonsai, The Howling, and numerous other films.
In 1984, La Porte began running the make-up lab at NBC Studios, and he also joined Local 706. He worked on The Color Purple creating the aging make-ups for Whoopi Goldberg, Oprah Winfrey, and Danny Glover. As was the practice then, he was often uncredited, but La Porte was busy behind the scenes creating prosthetics and make-up effects for Who Framed Roger Rabbit and dozens of other films.
La Porte joined Ve Neill and Robert Short to win an Oscar in 1989 for Outstanding Make-up on Beetlejuice. He joined Jeff Dawn on Terminator 2 and 3, applying the Oscar-winning, groundbreaking make-up/digital FX artistry on Arnold Schwarzenegger. His talent led him to Hawaii where he worked on Lost for six seasons, using his own lab to sculpt, mold, and fabricate all the make-up effects onsite for the series. He has created the same make-up effects for numerous other TV series, including Intelligence, Bosch, Longmire, and Code Black.
La Porte won an Oscar for Beetlejuice, a Primetime Emmy for The X-Files, the MUAHS Guild Award for Breaking Bad, and the Oklahoma Film Icon Award. La Porte also developed and markets the “Port-a-Case” set bag, and the character cream make-up palettes known as the “Facemaker Series.” In addition to serving as a longtime AMPAS member, La Porte is also a diligent advocate for make-up artists, and over the years, he has conducted classes for Local 706 members in Character and Clown make-up, make-up effects, and the art of facial hair.
Meanwhile, Normand began her career at Universal Studios. After completing the apprenticeship program, she became a hair stylist and, ultimately, a department head, having accumulated an impressive list of credits in film and television, including many box office hits. She has also won three Emmy Awards and garnered a total of 13 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Normand is best known for her hairstyling expertise on the Star Trek TV series Star Trek: Voyager, Deep Space Nine, and The Next Generation. Most of that time, she was the Head of the Hair Department. Her film credits include the blockbuster hit Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, The Mambo Kings, and Dracula, among many others.
She also served as Bruce Willis‘ personal hair stylist, working with him on the hit TV series Moonlighting and many films, including Die Hard, Die Hard 2, The Bonfire of the Vanities, Hudson Hawk, In Country, and Blind Date, among others. Her additional TV credits include The Shield, Deadwood, Fantasy Island, Beverly Hills, 90210, and Deadwood. She has won four MUAHS Guild Awards and was honored at the 60th anniversary of Local 706, as she has long dedicated her time and philanthropy to her fellow guild members.
Not only was Normand an active Executive Board member but she also was the Hair Craft President, a member of the Negotiating Committee, and a teacher for both Local 706 and for many UCLA Extension courses. In addition, she is involved with the Motion Picture Television Fund and the Deb Star Ball, as well as an active member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the Television Academy.
“We are so excited to honor Josée and Steve, two extraordinary artists, for their incredible contributions to film and television. They are responsible for creating a legacy of some of the most entertaining, memorable, and thrilling characters of our time. We look forward to celebrating them at this year’s 10th Anniversary MUAHS Awards,” said Julie Socash, President of the Make-up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild.
Additional awards will honor a Distinguished Artisan as well as Vanguard Award honorees, and nominees for outstanding achievements in motion pictures, television, commercials, and live theater in 23 categories. Voting will be made online, and submissions are now open, with the deadline for entries being Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2022. Nominations for MUAHS Awards will be announced Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. Final online voting will begin on Monday, Jan. 23, 2023, and close on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023. Winners will be announced at the MUAHS Awards gala on Saturday, Feb. 11.
MUAHS has also unveiled “Behind the Slate” conversations (produced by Dan Evans of IngleDodd Media) with the 2023 Lifetime Achievement nominees, which explore their achievements, challenges, and creativity. Interviews with the make-up nominees were moderated by Oscar-winning make-up artists Ve Neill (Edward Scissorhands) and Lois Burwell (Saving Private Ryan). Click here for La Porte’s video and click here for Normand’s video
