The artists who transform actors into characters: designing and sewing costumes, styling hair and wigs, and sculpting monsters and wounds out of silicone.
Top pay: highest pay, longest training
Key Makeup Artist / Department Head: Leads the makeup team on a film or show, designing looks and doing the main actors' makeup. Typical pay $115k.
Special Makeup Effects Designer: Creates realistic prosthetics, creatures, wounds, and aging effects using sculpting and silicone. Typical pay $110k.
Mid pay: solid pay, degree or apprenticeship
Costume Designer: Designs every outfit characters wear, using clothing to tell you who they are. Typical pay $100k.
Costume Supervisor: Runs the costume department's budget, staff, and logistics so the designer's vision gets made. Typical pay $85k.
Set Costumer: Dresses actors on set and keeps their costumes consistent from shot to shot. Typical pay $58k.
Cutter / Draper: Turns a costume designer's sketch into a real garment by drafting patterns and draping fabric on a dress form. Typical pay $62k.
Costume Ager / Dyer: Makes new costumes look old, dirty, battle-worn, or faded, and dyes fabric to exact colors. Typical pay $62k.
Film & TV Hairstylist: Styles actors' hair and wigs for film and TV, matching period, character, and continuity. Typical pay $80k.
Wig Maker / Wig Master: Builds custom wigs by hand-tying thousands of individual hairs, and maintains wigs for shows. Typical pay $62k.
Costume Crafts Artisan: Makes the non-sewn parts of costumes: armor, masks, jewelry, shoes, and superhero suits. Typical pay $62k.
Costume Illustrator: Paints detailed drawings of costumes for designers of films, theater, and games. Typical pay $75k.
Costume Rental House Manager: Manages a warehouse of thousands of costumes rented to film, TV, and theater. Typical pay $58k.
Special Effects Dental Technician: Makes custom fake teeth, fangs, and rotten smiles that actors wear in movies, TV, theater, and haunted attractions. Typical pay $62k.
Starter: fastest way in
Costume Stitcher / Tailor: Sews, alters, and repairs costumes for theater, film, and theme parks. Typical pay $42k.
Theater Dresser: Helps performers make lightning-fast costume changes backstage during a live show. Typical pay $48k.
Costume Shopper: Buys clothing, shoes, and accessories for productions, often on tight deadlines. Typical pay $45k.
Makeup Effects Lab Technician: Works in a makeup effects shop running silicone, foam latex, molds, and hair punching. Typical pay $50k.
Milliner (Hat Maker): Hand-builds hats and headpieces for theater, film, opera, and fashion. Typical pay $42k.
Mascot Costume Fabricator: Builds foam mascot and character costumes for teams, schools, and theme parks. Typical pay $45k.
Professional Cosplayer: Makes and wears costumes of characters for conventions, brands, and content. Typical pay $25k.
Body Paint Artist: Paints designs on people for events, photo shoots, and festivals. Typical pay $40k.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.