An air bladder effect, or simply a bladder effect, is a special effect created for motion pictures. The effect employs plastic or latex balloons—known as "bladders"—which are concealed beneath the surface of

foam latex Foam latex or latex foam rubber is a lightweight form of latex containing bubbles known as cells, created from liquid latex. The foam is generally created though the Dunlop or Talalay process in which a liquid latex is foamed and then cured in a m ...

or similar

prosthetics In medicine, a prosthesis (plural: prostheses; from grc, πρόσθεσις, prósthesis, addition, application, attachment), or a prosthetic implant, is an artificial device that replaces a missing body part, which may be lost through trau ...

. Attached to the bladders is a system of tubing that allows them to be inflated. When the bladders are inflated underneath the prosthetics (often skin prosthetics), it results in the prosthetics appearing to shift, bubble, swell, or pulsate.

History

During the production of the 1973 film ''

The Exorcist ''The Exorcist'' is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin and written for the screen by William Peter Blatty, based on his 1971 novel of the same name. It stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb, Kitty ...

'', make-up artist Dick Smith used

trichloroethane Trichloroethane (CHCl) may refer to either of two isomeric chemical compounds: * 1,1,1-Trichloroethane (methyl chloroform, CClCH) * 1,1,2-Trichloroethane 1,1,2-Trichloroethane, or 1,1,2-TCA, is an organochloride solvent with the molecular formula ...

, a liquid, to achieve the effect of welt-like letters being raised on a foam latex stomach. He went on to develop and refine air bladder effects for the 1980 film ''

Altered States ''Altered States'' is a 1980 American science fiction body horror film directed by Ken Russell and based on the novel of the same name by playwright and screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky. The film was adapted from Chayefsky's 1978 novel and is his fi ...

'', which depicts lumps rippling beneath a character's skin. Smith continued to implement air bladder effects in other films, including ''

Scanners ''Scanners'' is a 1981 Canadian science fiction horror film written and directed by David Cronenberg and starring Stephen Lack, Jennifer O'Neill, Michael Ironside, and Patrick McGoohan. In the film, "scanners" are psychics with unusual telepathi ...

'' (1981) and '' Spasms'' (1983).

Rick Baker Richard A. Baker (born December 8, 1950), known professionally as Rick Baker, is an American retired special make-up effects creator and actor. He is mostly known for his creature designs and effects. Baker won the Academy Award for Best Make ...

, who worked as Smith's assistant on ''The Exorcist'', made use of air bladder effects in combination with other mechanisms when creating a

werewolf In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely ...

transformation sequence used in '' An American Werewolf in London'' (1981). Baker and his protégé,

Rob Bottin Robin R. Bottin (born April 1, 1959) is an American special make-up effects creator. Known for his collaborations with directors John Carpenter, Paul Verhoeven and David Fincher, Bottin worked with Carpenter on both '' The Fog'' and '' The Th ...

, also incorporated air bladder effects for a werewolf transformation in ''

The Howling ''The Howling'' is a 1977 horror novel by Gary Brandner. It was the inspiration for the movie ''The Howling'' (1981), although the plot of the movie was only vaguely similar to that of the book. Brandner published two sequels to the novel, '' T ...

'', also released in 1981. Bottin again made use of air bladder effects for his work on '' The Thing'' (1982). Other films which employ bladder effects include ''

The Beast Within ''The Beast Within'' is a 1982 American horror film directed by Philippe Mora and starring Ronny Cox, Bibi Besch, Paul Clemens, L. Q. Jones, Don Gordon, R. G. Armstrong, Logan Ramsey, Katherine Moffat, and Meshach Taylor. ''The Beast With ...

'' (1982) and '' Uninvited'' (1987).

References

Special effects Prosthetics {{filmmaking-stub