Crime and ballistics (special effects) (Graphic Content)

Ever wonder in films, when the villain slices though their victims’ neck, how you see that gush  of blood come oozing out?

Or how on the likes of casualty when a surgeon cuts open their patient and you actually see the organ pumping blood?

Well you might assume now days CGI plays a massive part in the special effects we see in the movies and TV shows, to be fair you wouldn't be wrong, but if you would like to see a quick, easy and most importantly cheap alternative, that's still widely used throughout the industry then keep reading!

Blood Bladder

A blood bladder is a plastic/latex balloon hidden underneath the surface of foam latex or similar prosthetics.




                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

So, you will want to start with a square piece of cling film or latex, both work well, lay the cling film over your hand make sure you have enough overlap, as this is what you will need to tie later on.

                               

Poor fake blood in to cling film, you can create different size blood bladders. My suggestion is to start with about a cap full. You can use any liquid blood, Kryolan do an instant blood powder which can be a cheap way to make a lot of blood. An even cheaper alternative is to make your own! You can do this by using a cup of dark syrup (whatever one you have lying around, I have used anything from pancake syrup to coffee syrup!) Then add red Food colouring till you get the colour your after to achieve a dark rich blood try adding a tiny bit of blue, then add a Table spoon of cornflower if you want a thicker consistency add a bit more, voila you have your very own fake blood!

                     

Next you need a piece of cotton to tie the bag of blood. Now this is the important bit, the more air you trap in the bag the bigger the bang and the further the blood will travel, so if you don't want to make a lot of mess I would start off with a little bit of air trapped in, if you want to cover the celling then pack as much in as you can!( Tip: this bit is a lot easier if there are two people one to hold the bag and one to tie of the cotton, but if you are on your own you can use a pants hanger to grip the bag so you can tie of the cotton). 

There you have it, now let's see it in action!

In the video My Teacher holds a pair of child scissors to puncture the bag causing the release of the blood she closed the top of her hand to manipulate the blood to splatter on the ground (rather the all over the celling) I've found the best way to learn how to manipulate the bag into achieve different results is simply practice, practice, practice!  

Another way to use a blood bladder is to use a long thin piece of plastic tube, something like aquarium tubing this can be placed under a prosthetic wound or organ then blood can be pumped though the tube to create a dramatic gushing look!

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