Valter Casotto was born in Italy and currently lives in London, but his work as a prosthetic make-up artist on big budget TV and film productions has taken him to a host of exotic locations around the world. So far, these have included Croatia for Game of Thrones, New Zealand during filming for The Hobbit trilogy, and a little closer to home for Harry Potter, to name just a few.

Life on set is hardly all glitz and glamour though, according to Casotto. Here, he discusses the sheer dedication working in film requires, having to work in sync with a team of other make-up artists, and the tricks of being a successful freelancer.

The appeal of prosthetics I’ve always been into art since I was very little. I went to art school in Italy, and after that I started asking myself what type of job would help me make money but also still be involved in the art world. I liked everything about the film industry, not just the make-up effects stuff. I also did a filmmaking course so I was into filming, lighting and stuff like that. I’ve never been a special effects movie geek but I was attracted to the idea that by doing prosthetic make-up I would be able to do a combination of all arts, whether that’s painting or sculpture.