The Beauty of Life Exclusive! Interview with TRON: Legacy Makeup Artist Rosalina Da Silva

Have you seen the new TRON: Legacy movie yet? I went on opening weekend, and let me tell you -- while I thought the story was just okay, I fell head over heels for the makeup. The gorgeous smoky eyes seen on everyone from Olivia Wilde to Michael Sheen really got this beauty chick's pulse racing! Imagine my shock and delight when I stayed to watch the credits and discovered that Rosalina Da Silva, whom I had interviewed for First Look Fridays back in 2008, was the key makeup artist! I immediately emailed her and begged for an exclusive on her looks for the movie, and she happily obliged. Check out my exclusive interview with Rosalina about her looks for TRON: Legacy after the jump!

How did you come up with the concept for each of the characters? Was this a group effort among hair, costumes and makeup?
The final look is always a group effort ... but in the meanwhile we all went to our own "corners" and tried to create a look that somehow explained the world of TRON. I worked very closely with the hairdresser, Anji Benben.

In my mind the makeup was going to be monochromatic and dramatic. I wanted the characters to be believable on those sets, to look like they were created in there.

Let's talk about the amazing smoky eye you created for Olivia Wilde and Beau Garrett. How did you create each of these looks?
Both women are gorgeous and have beautiful eyes. The absence of any other color gave me great freedom to work with the eyes and enhance them as much as possible.

With Olivia, the key for the look was: blend, blend, blend! I used M.A.C Smolder Eye Kohl, blended around the base of the lashes, up and out. [I created] a contour line with Naturalism and M.A.C Paint Pots. (The reason for the Paint Pots was their durability -- long hours on set under sometimes very warm conditions for the actors.) Bare Canvas and Bare Study as highlighters.

Beau's character was better described as "sexy, rocker chick on the grid." I used M.A.C Blacktrack Fluidline and Blackground Paint Pot. I always like to powder a cream or fluid liner with a shadow of the same shade. I pressed in the color with a short fluffy brush to intensify the hues, again both of these products stood the test of time. [I followed with] three sets of lashes -- I wanted the eyes to really stand out, make them appear bigger ... doll-like eyes with the amazing contact lenses. And very luminous skin.

I loved Michael Sheen's smoky eye. What products did you use to create it?
Michael Sheen's look was Ziggy Stardust inspired. His character was the only one with color (blue) incorporated in the makeup, it was on purpose. Castor is out of this world, funny, theatrical and very flamboyant -- I wanted the makeup to showcase that. We bleached the brows and gave him a smokey eye to enhance his own eyes, following the makeup trend by the sexy people of the grid.

To create the look, I used the following products:
M.A.C Freshwater and Tilt Eyeshadows
M.A.C Knight Divine and Black Fluidliner in the eye contours
Bobbi Brown Snow Shimmer Wash Eye Shadow, Tarte Grace Bay Eyeshadow Duo and M.A.C Blackground Paint Pot in the crease under the eye
M.A.C Tin Tin Eye Kohl in the inner corners
Kevyn Aucoin Golden Sunrise Lip Pencil and M.A.C Frost Frame on the lips

What are your tips for creating the perfect smoky eye?
I love M.A.C Smolder Eye Kohl for the smoky eye, that's what I used on Olivia. I prep the eye lids well with a good primer, powder and start with a neutral eyeshadow. Good application tools are essential -- if you have the right brush for your eye shape, you'll achieve the look you want with the right amount of color and depth. Keep it clean and sexy. Applying a black pencil in and among your top and bottom lashes top and bottom adds a very sultry look to the eyes.

How could the everyday woman translate these heavy smoky eyes to her life?
A softer version of these looks can be worn by any young woman that's hitting the nightclub, or even some may be able to wear it full strength. The looks look more exaggerated because of the skin tone being so pale.

Any other go-to products on set that you just couldn't live without?
1) Most of all I would say that good skin, well hydrated, a natural glow is your best "makeup."

2) M.A.C tinted moisturizer with SPF is a must.
3) Primers for the eyes and face make sure that the makeup stays on all day looking flawless.

4) M.A.C Opulash mascara

5) Eyelash curler -- don't go anywhere without it.

6) LiftFusion lip moisturizer -- keeps them full and me fooled into thinking I have fuller lips!

Thanks so much to Rosalina Da Silva for granting this exclusive interview to The Beauty of Life. And if you want to get even more amazing tips from Rosalina, be sure to check out her blog A More Beautiful Makeup. You can also follow her on Twitter here.