Tattoos

[Chris Keth]

I have a few but have preserved the option to cover them up. Nobody has ever seemed to think twice about me for AC or DIT work because of them.

[mo samra]

both will be on my right leg, so with pants i will Easily be able to cover them.

but i would like to wear shorts some days too.

 

i am just wondering if having a tattoo will stop you not from working on sets as a first AC or grip or PA, but will stop me from being a DP on a feature film.

 

both my tattoos are very personal and meaningful, so I never will regret them.

[Brian Dzyak]

Slightly off-topic and non-pertinent to the question, I wonder why someone would bother getting their body defaced and then just cover it up? If no one will see it anyway, then why bother? So if you do air it out sometimes, it'll likely only be in the company of people you already know, so they already know you, so whatever the tattoo is supposed to mean will already be known by them. Right? So again, what's the point? :huh:

 

And what's all this graffiti going to look like in fifty years in old-folk's homes across the world? :blink: Will you have to have Grandma Wheelchair pull your skin tight to see what the tattoo is supposed to be? :P

[mo samra]

that's a good point!

 

im not getting tattoos for other people, im getting them for myself, and they won't be covered up 24/7. there meaningful tattoos that i want a part of me till i die, as a mark for my older sister and my passion for film.

[Chris Keth]

Slightly off-topic and non-pertinent to the question, I wonder why someone would bother getting their body defaced and then just cover it up? If no one will see it anyway, then why bother? So if you do air it out sometimes, it'll likely only be in the company of people you already know, so they already know you, so whatever the tattoo is supposed to mean will already be known by them. Right? So again, what's the point? :huh:

 

And what's all this graffiti going to look like in fifty years in old-folk's homes across the world? :blink: Will you have to have Grandma Wheelchair pull your skin tight to see what the tattoo is supposed to be? :P

 

I can only give you my answers to your questions. Generally, I don't even try to cover any of them up. I have my family arms on my left calf, a siemans star on my left forearm, the beginning of a very old family prayer on the inside of my right wrist, and a 3/4 sleeve of Picasso's Guernica on my right arm. I am able to cover them up in more formal situations, which I do appreciate.

 

In fifty years I'll look like an old guy with tattoos. Hell maybe the Picasso will just turn into a Dali piece. ;)

[Mei Lewis]

I'm surprised how many people here seem to be bothered by the idea of tattoos. Maybe it's a cultural thing, the US being very intolerant of this sort of thing?

[mo samra]

well, were i live, there are MANY conservative traditional older people, and they tend to look down upon body art. I feel that this generation s covered with tattoos, and as this generation progresses, tattoos will not be looked down upon as much.

[Adrian Sierkowski]

I don't think it's so much intolerance as it is association. In the US I feel we always associated tattooing with lower rungs of society (criminals, bikers, sailors) and this has been reinforced for the most part by our media, both photos, film, and most importantly tv news.

Perhaps it comes out a bit from the overall European culture where tattooing was prevalent on people returning from long voyages at sea, I don't know. Though I would also say that this association is changing with younger generations. As I get older, I know many other people my age who have tattoos. In fact, most people I meet around my age and younger are tattooed! And as we age and take our places in society this will gain more acceptance. My 2 cents.

[Brian Dzyak]

The only people I think of when I think about tattoos are A) old school military and B) kids from troubled homes or otherwise proverbial "lower rungs" of society. Oh, and bikers on those obscenely unnecessarily loud Harleys. I suppose the "tramp stamp" chicks are out there too, but even that suggest a certain type of "free" personality too. ;)

 

Everyone I know who has tattoos are wonderful people. But there is no denying that "upper management" reads something into a person's character when they see a tattoo. Fair or not, that's the reality.

[Jonathan Bowerbank]

I'm only speaking in terms of personal preference, and feedback I've heard from "higher up" people who talk about other crew members. Keep it tasteful, keep it elegant, keep it personal. If you have a brand symbol or a cheesy/poorly executed nerd-dom tattoo, respectability can drop a little because people are asking "What's the deal with dude and the (brand name) tattoo?" It's great if you're doing it to represent where you come from, who you are, or out of respect for someone you know. Also it can just be a great art piece.

 

It just depends on the type of jobs you hope to work on and whether you think your body art would reflect poorly on what other might think of your personal tastes in art in general.

[mo samra]

so a calf tattoo that is extremely personal to me wont jeopardize my chances of shooting features?

[Adrian Sierkowski]

Ha never.And if anything you can wear pants to the hiring meeting.

[Kevin Desson]

I have both arms covered in 3/4 sleeves and have never once had an issue from a producer, director, client or anyone for that matter... usually just compliments on the artwork. Keep your tattoos tasteful and I'm sure you'll be fine.

[mo samra]

I have both arms covered in 3/4 sleeves and have never once had an issue from a producer, director, client or anyone for that matter... usually just compliments on the artwork. Keep your tattoos tasteful and I'm sure you'll be fine.

 

 

but what position are you hired as?

I want to shoot feature films one day. not just be a grip or 1AC forever.

 

thanks for the advise!

[Kevin Desson]

I work as a DP/Videographer. I think the point to remember here is, as a Cinematographer you're hired based on the artistic and technical merit of your body of work, not the work on your body!

 

That said - "Good tattoos aren't cheap and cheap tattoos aren't good" :)

[David Kitchner]

Though no one has posted to this thread in a while I wanted to make a few comments. First, I grew up around heavily tattooed bikers... but they also worked as computer programs at IBM and were incredibly smart and wealthy. I have almost 100 hours of tattoo work that only slightly pop out at the neckline (chest and back) and multiple large gauge piercing. My thoughts about having a tattoo "forever" was that I will not live "forever" and since I did not pick this body, I will do what I like to it and what makes me feel comfortable. As a borderline hypochondriac, I was afraid to get pierced or tattooed until I met a registered nurse turned piercer and kept the cleanliness standards at his shop above that of a hospital.

 

I waited to get my first tattoo til I was 21 even though I was desperate to get one at 18. I worked several weeks with an artist getting it right. My full back piece I worked with the artist over several months. It was very expensive and should be if you want something done right.

 

When I was working in the Midwest, no one cared about tattoos. In fact, on several occasions, I had high end clients from several large companies tell me their kids had tattoos/piercings and they were happy to see I was successfully working in my field. My bosses back then even joked that they had hired me because I looked "artsy". Since I moved to LA, I have seen full sleeves and neck tattoos on nearly every set. If you are good at what you do it does not matter.

 

I love my tattoos and have kept most of my piercings but they are from a part of my life where that was more important to me. I am sure I will never get another piercing and the likelihood of more tattoos gets farther away as my ambitions to further my career become greater. I could get full sleeves now or put a down payment on a Alexa.