Female SFX Artist behind Jibran's look in Geo’s JinZada

KARACHI: Meet Razan Yasin — a Karachi-based self-taught special effects makeup artist and entrepreneur.

Like many others, Razan's journey as an SFX artist started during the COVID-19 lockdown when she realised she had an innate talent and passion for SFX designs.

Through the course of her journey to refining her skills, Razan's commitment and dedication shine bright.

Problems and solutions

Speaking to Geo Digital, Razan shared that she recognised her talent for SFX during the pandemic and decided to make follow through her passions on her own.

"When I realised my natural ability, I decided to improve my work. I used to practice a lot. Sometimes I would watch a video from YouTube, and sometimes I would learn from a reference picture," she said.

However, like many other self-taught experts, Razan faced a number of challenges, ranging from the availabilty of quality products to their costs.

"I have had problems with the products. I had to improve my work. When I started searching for the products, I found out that they were not available in our country. And ordering from abroad would be very expensive."

To address this obstacle, she spent an entire year learning how to make the products herself.

"I began taking courses in cosmetic formulation so that I could make these products myself. And now I have my own brand," she shared, beaming with pride.

'Incredible experience'

Once she began to master her craft, opportunities began to crop up, allowing her to work with A-listers such as Fahad Mustafa and Young Stunners.

However, recently, she has worked on creating special effects for the djinn in Geo’s 'JinZada'.

Commenting on the project, Razan shared that working with actor Syed Jibran was an "incredible" — albeit challenging — experience.

"Creating the djinn's look was quite a challenging task. We first worked on his character.

Sharing insight into what it takes to create SFX, she said: "Usually, before creating the character, the background story is developed and understood.

Then, we did his face-casting and a lot of demos."

But it was all worth the effort, she said.

"When the final effect was produced, we were amazed to see it as our hard work was paid off finally."

What scares this monster-maker?

While Razan's work certainly sends shivers down one's back, we couldn't help but wonder: what scares this monster-maker?

Opening up about her fears, the talented artist shared: "Well, I also get afraid. I'm afraid of the dark. I can't look at real blood."

Clearly, we weren't the only ones with these questions as Razan shared she had been asked this question several times before.

"Some people ask if, being an SFX artist, real blood and horror movies scare me. Yes! I fear all of these things," she said.

Then she let us in on a secret: "While I am not fearful of my work, because I know they are fake, I have to remove all of them from my room before I go to bed."

What's next for Razan?

In response to her future plans, Razan shared: "SFX is now used worldwide. This art is done not only to create scary faces but also to show scars, fantasy characters, and aging.

"In film and drama, this special makeup is used to make the character more realistic and interesting.".

But while she continues to hone her skills, this talented woman is not content with stopping there. She has plans and she has a plan!

"I want to specialise in VFX as well. Because SFX and VFX make a good combination of work. Like in Hollywood, I want to promote this art in my country."