Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance
Arts, Audio/Video Technology and CommunicationsO*NET 39-5091.00United States
Apply makeup to performers to reflect period, setting, and situation of their role.
- Median annual earnings
- $90,191
- Projected change
- +16.5%
- Typical education
- High school diploma or less
- Employment
- 5.46K jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
42.8% of the workforce
Growing to 6.36K by 2035
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ASU learning related to this career
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The work
What makeup artists, theatrical and performance do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- Clean supplies such as makeup brushes.
- Duplicate work precisely to replicate characters' appearances on a daily basis.
- Apply makeup to enhance or alter the appearance of people appearing in productions such as movies.
- Analyze a script, noting events that affect each character's appearance, so that plans can be made for each scene.
- Alter or maintain makeup during productions as necessary to compensate for lighting changes or to achieve continuity of effect.
- Confer with stage or motion picture officials and performers to determine desired effects.
- Requisition or acquire needed materials for special effects, including wigs, beards, and special cosmetics.
- Study production information, such as character descriptions, period settings, and situations, to determine makeup requirements.
- Establish budgets, and work within budgetary limits.
- Select desired makeup shades from stock, or mix oil, grease, and coloring to achieve specific color effects.
- Write makeup sheets and take photos to document specific looks and the products used to achieve the looks.
- Assess performers' skin type to ensure that makeup will not cause break-outs or skin irritations.
- Examine sketches, photographs, and plaster models to obtain desired character image depiction.
- Attach prostheses to performers and apply makeup to create special features or effects, such as scars, aging, or illness.
- Cleanse and tone the skin to prepare it for makeup application.
- Evaluate environmental characteristics, such as venue size and lighting plans, to determine makeup requirements.
- Design rubber or plastic prostheses that can be used to change performers' appearances.
- Provide performers with makeup removal assistance after performances have been completed.
- Create character drawings or models, based upon independent research, to augment period production files.
- Demonstrate products to clients, and provide instruction in makeup application.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $17,428
- 25th percentile
- $35,978
- 50th percentile
- $90,191
- 75th percentile
- $164,773
- 90th percentile
- $294,957
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $90,191 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
+16.5%much faster than average
20255,461 jobs
2035 projected6,360 jobs
899 more positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.
Preparation
Education levels
What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.
- High school diploma or less
- 42.8%
- Certificate
- 28.6%
- Some college
- 9.5%
- Bachelor's degree
- 9.5%
- Associate degree
- 4.8%
- Master's or Professional degree
- 4.8%
Skills
Skills employers ask for
Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.
How the work gets done
Core competencies
Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Service Orientation
- Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Management of Financial Resources
- Determining how money will be spent to get the work done, and accounting for these expenditures.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Management of Material Resources
- Obtaining and seeing to the appropriate use of equipment, facilities, and materials needed to do certain work.
- Learning Strategies
- Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
- Instructing
- Teaching others how to do something.
- Systems Analysis
- Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
- Management of Personnel Resources
- Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
In the market
Job titles and employers
Recent job postings in United StatesCommon job titles
- 01Makeup Artists617 postings
- 02Lash Artists561 postings
- 03Beauty Stylists537 postings
- 04Eyelash Technicians357 postings
- 05Hair and Makeup Artists181 postings
- 06Certified Technicians86 postings
- 07Lash Extension Specialists66 postings
- 08Freelancers63 postings
- 09Health and Beauty Clerks60 postings
- 10Specialty Beauty Advisors58 postings
- 11Makeup Artists/Beauty Advisors38 postings
- 12Lash Stylists28 postings
- 13Row Agents26 postings
- 14Wax Specialists25 postings
- 15Sculptors22 postings
- 16Regional Makeup Artists19 postings
- 17Airbrush Artists18 postings
- 18Regulatory Affairs Managers18 postings
- 19Makeup Sales Associates17 postings
- 20Reading Specialists15 postings
Top employers
- 01Target584 postings
- 02The Estée Lauder Companies62 postings
- 03Yellowhammer Salon Group54 postings
- 04L'Oréal49 postings
- 05Charlotte Tilbury Limited42 postings
- 06Glamsquad30 postings
- 07Westman Atelier24 postings
- 08Cady23 postings
- 09Deka Lash18 postings
- 10Amazing Lash Studio17 postings
- 11Priv17 postings
- 12Clinique Laboratories16 postings
- 13Nordstrom15 postings
- 14Six Flags Entertainment Corporation12 postings
- 15Sugared + Bronzed12 postings
- 16The Photo Studio Group12 postings
- 17Stila Cosmetics11 postings
- 18Raw Beauty Lounge10 postings
- 19YouTube10 postings
- 20Backstage International Ltd9 postings
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