Reading HMU needs from a script
Most scenes have no HMU notes beyond "character look," but the ones that do add real time and cost. From a single script:
| Sc. | Script says | HMU note | Chair time impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Maya, end of double shift | tired look, hair falling from bun | small |
| 22 | Polaroid: Joe, 25 years younger | aging down (photo shoot in prep) | prep day |
| 42 | Maya in rain | waterproof makeup, wet hair continuity | resets between takes |
| 64 | Ana sweeps Cole's legs | Cole: fresh graze on cheek after | added mid-scene |
| 66 | EXT. HOSPITAL | Cole: graze, bruise day 1 | continuity with 64 |
| 90 | crash | Maya: head wound, blood; stunt double matched | SFX makeup, long |
The Polaroid in scene 22 shows how HMU notes reach beyond the shoot days. Aging an actor down for a still photo needs a makeup test and a photo session scheduled in prep, well before scene 22 shoots. Note it on the breakdown sheet so it lands on the prep calendar.
Injuries and progression
Wounds heal on a timeline that the story sets and the schedule ignores. Cole's graze in scene 64 (story night N4) has to look fresh in 66 (D5), scabbed in scene 95 (D6), and faded by scene 102 (D12). Those scenes could shoot in any order. The key makeup artist builds a progression chart keyed to story days, with photos, and the script supervisor cross-checks it on the day.
Injuries from stunts also have to match between the actor and the double. The double gets the same wound, wig, and sometimes skin tone makeup, so their HMU time goes on the call sheet too.
HMU and call times
Makeup time drives actor call times. If Maya's head-wound look takes 90 minutes and the shooting call is 7:00, she needs to be in the chair by 5:30, earlier if the set is a drive from base camp. The 2nd AD builds those times backward from the first shot. On days with heavy prosthetics, the 1st AD may schedule that actor's scenes later in the day, or shoot other cast first. See call time.
Background can also need HMU: a crowd of wounded soldiers, a period party, a hospital waiting room. Add the counts and looks to the breakdown so the department can bring extra artists for those days.
Mistakes
Missing hair notes is common, since writers mention "her hair's cut short now" once and the breakdown catches it once. Missing the removal time is another: blood and prosthetics take time to come off, and that affects turnaround. And people forget that wardrobe and HMU work as a pair. A wet costume means wet hair, and a bloody shirt means blood on the skin under it.