I have tattoos. A lot of tattoos. They are everywhere; my arms, legs, feet, my whole torso and the back of my hands. Most of the time, they are not an issue with acting, mostly because they are easily covered up by makeup. They also help with my brand and get me auditions for a specific type of role. Even with the benefits, I feel the negatives justify my getting my hand tattoos removed. It’s a painful process that I started in March and will take about a year to complete.
Tattoos are Copyright by the Tattoo Artist
Most of my short career has been acting in independent feature films and short films. Most of these filmmakers don’t care about the tattoos and many really like them. As I move up to SAG films, I’m expected to have a signed release from the tattoo artists in order to get permission to use them in a film
Some Commercial Auditions Focus on the Hands
I have had about half a dozen auditions where they specifically ask for a shot of my hands in the slate; both front and back. I could put makeup on, but when it’s that close up, it’s noticeable.
Makeup is a Huge Pain
Since the back of my hands are such a large area, it takes a while to apply the makeup. Once applied, I have to be extremely careful what I do with my hands. It doesn’t matter how much fixer I apply, the makeup will come off.
I had an outdoor shoot in the summer and the makeup was running off me with the heat and humidity. Applying it back on was difficult with the moist environment.
Tattoo Removal
Since I plan to make acting a long term career, I opted to get the hand tattoos removed. But that in itself is a long process. I’ve seen those Tik Tok videos of tattoo removal where the tattoo practically disappears after a laser session. What I didn’t know was that it’s called frosting and it’s the outer skin burning and changing color to cover up the tattoo. Once it heals, the tattoo is still there and only slightly faded.
How it really works is that the laser hits the ink and breaks then up into smaller pieces. The ones that are small enough, get absorbed by the body and flushed out your system. Each time you go in to do a session, the laser power is increased a little to penetrate more of your skin and break up ink laying deeper. The healing process is swollen hands and feeling like you have a bad sunburn for about a week. Sessions are spaced out 8 weeks, so the whole process will take about a year.
Conclusion
Tattoos in society are a pretty normal thing nowadays. Just understand what you are getting yourself into when it comes to an acting career.
I am so glad I didn’t get the neck tattoo I had planned.
Simon Shih 