his days papering Manhattan production companies with his résumé.
"Anyone who would let me through the door!" When the phone didn't
ring with an offer, he made cold calls, following any lead he could find.
He discovered an ad in a horror magazine that had been placed by a
woman in Canada who was seeking a makeup effects artist. Magliochetti
called: "I learned some makeup effects while studying animation and
visual effects." Although the telephone call did not immediately lead to
work, the two traded makeup techniques and eventually met. He agreed
to pass out some of the woman's business cards at a horror film conven-
tion, where he managed to network his way into his first couple of jobs.
Another break came through reading an article in the same horror
magazine, about a low budget independent filmmaker who had released
a film that was heavily censored. "I was curious about what was cut out
of the film, so I located his phone number and called the guy." A few
months later, the director's producer called Magliochetti and asked him
to come to New York for a meeting. He was hired and put in charge of
effects for the director's next movie, Brain Damage, which went on to
become a cult horror favorite.
Through his earlier connec-
tion with the woman in
Canada, Magliochetti was
asked to speak at a horror con-
vention in Toronto, where he
made contacts that led to his
first television job, working on
the Friday the 13th series. Work
continued to come sporadi-
cally. He moved to North
Carolina for a year and worked
in makeup and miniatures at
De Laurentiis Studios. In 1991,
he decided to give Los Angeles
a try.
"I heard Terminator 2 was
employing every effects person
they could find--even those
with minimal experience. At
that point, I had a pretty good résumé, so I thought it might be worth a
shot. I didn't know that Los Angeles effects companies are very geo-
graphically prejudiced. Meaning, if you're not in Los Angeles, they won't
import you for work. They don't want to tell you to come from out of
state, because they don't want that responsibility if the work dries up. To
get a feel for what work was available, I got a Los Angeles voice mail
What do you like
least about your job?
"My least favorite thing
is trying to clean up
someone else's mess."
--Al Magliochetti
What do you love most
about your job?
"My very favorite thing is sitting very quiet
and unassuming in a movie theater with a
paying audience, watching the final result
of my work, and hearing the reactions
around me; the satisfaction of knowing that
my work is being seen and appreciated."
--Al Magliochetti
VOICES OF
EXPERIENCE
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