Learn From Celebrity Makeup Artists & Emmy-Nominated Hollywood SFX Instructors
Gabriel
De Cunto
Four-Time Emmy-Nominated SFX Artist
Gabriel De Cunto brings Vizio students decades of experience from the demanding world of Hollywood special makeup effects.
Argenis
Pinal
Glam Masters Winner
Argenis Pinal shows students how strong technique, fearless creativity, and a recognizable artistic identity can open doors across commercial beauty, editorial makeup, body painting, and digital media.
Phoebe
Dawson
Lead Makeup Instructor
Phoebe’s professional experience spans celebrity beauty, film, television, music videos, red carpet appearances, and editorial campaigns.
Liv
Rideg
Elite Instructor
Liv Rideg brings Vizio students more than 20 years of international experience and a versatile approach shaped by work across multiple beauty markets.
The Experience Behind Vizio’s Instructor Team
When you decide to pursue a career in makeup artistry, you aren't just learning how to apply product—you are training your eye to see light, shadow, texture, and character. In an era filled with short social media demonstrations and unstructured beauty content, how do you separate surface-level trends from the professional standards of a Hollywood production?
The difference begins with the people teaching you.
At Vizio Makeup Academy, we believe that an academy is only as strong as the hands guiding its curriculum. That is why Vizio’s instructors are more than educators. They are Emmy-nominated Hollywood artists, award-winning beauty professionals, celebrity makeup experts, and internationally experienced educators whose work has appeared across major films, television productions, red carpets, and professional beauty campaigns.
Meet the artists behind Vizio Makeup Academy and discover how their experience in Hollywood, television, celebrity beauty, and international artistry shapes the way our students learn.
Learn Hollywood Character Makeup From Emmy-Nominated Artist Jonah Levy
Learning from Jonah Levy means gaining insight from an artist whose work has helped bring some of modern entertainment’s most recognizable characters to life. His professional credits include major productions such as WandaVision, Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.
Jonah brings more than 25 years of professional makeup and special effects experience to Vizio. In 2021, he received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Period and/or Character Makeup for his transformative work on Marvel Studios’ WandaVision.
Learning the Standards Behind Professional SFX Makeup
When Jonah teaches SFX, he isn't just showing you how to apply prosthetic wounds or paint fake blood. He teaches students how to build a character that remains completely believable under the scrutiny of ultra-high-definition cameras and intense studio lighting.
What you learn from Jonah at Vizio:
- Seamless Blending: Professional techniques for making prosthetic edges disappear naturally into the skin under close-up cameras and production lighting.
- Anatomical Realism: How to align creature and character designs with the natural muscle structures of the human face for realistic movement on screen.
- Camera-Ready Design: Evaluating your art from multiple camera angles to ensure continuity and impact.
Master Production-Level SFX With Four-Time Emmy Nominee Gabriel De Cunto
Gabriel De Cunto brings Vizio students decades of experience from the demanding world of Hollywood special makeup effects. His professional credits span iconic film franchises like Planet of the Apes (where he worked alongside legendary FX pioneer Rick Baker), Pirates of the Caribbean, Thor, and 300.
Gabriel is a four-time Emmy-nominated special makeup effects artist, with Television Academy recognition for his work on Babylon 5, Fallout, and Spider-Noir. These nominations reflect a career defined by technical precision, versatility, and consistently exceptional work across film and television. His recent nominations recognize his contributions to the prosthetic makeup teams behind Fallout and Spider-Noir.
How Hollywood SFX Artists Deliver Under Pressure
Major Hollywood productions operate under intense schedules, where delays are expensive and every department depends on the makeup team delivering accurate, camera-ready results on time.
Gabriel brings this production-level discipline directly into Vizio’s instruction, teaching students how professionals balance speed, precision, durability, and continuity.
What you learn from Gabriel at Vizio:
- Advanced Prosthetic Application: Learning professional placement, blending, coloration, and material-control techniques used in film and television productions.
- Bald Caps and Facial Transformations: Learn how professional artists create clean, convincing applications that support the character without revealing the technique behind the effect.
- Visual Balance and Continuity: Reproducing a character accurately across different scenes, camera angles, and production days.
Build a Bold, Marketable Style With Glam Masters Winner Argenis Pinal
Argenis Pinal shows students how strong technique, fearless creativity, and a recognizable artistic identity can open doors across commercial beauty, editorial makeup, body painting, and digital media. Argenis captured the national spotlight as the winner of Glam Masters, the intense beauty competition series executive produced by Kim Kardashian.
During the show, his fearless versatility and technical execution helped him stand out throughout the competition and ultimately win the title. Following his victory, Argenis collaborated with KKW Beauty on the KKW Beauty × Argenis Crème Color Stick collection, transforming his competition success into a major professional beauty collaboration.
Turning Originality Into a Marketable Artistic Identity
Argenis has also built a longstanding professional relationship with Mehron, contributing educational demonstrations, trade-show appearances, creative artistry, and memorable body-painting transformations. His career includes professional beauty education, brand collaborations, trade-show artistry, editorial work, body painting, and fast-paced commercial makeup environments.
What you learn from Argenis at Vizio:
- Artistic Identity: How to find your unique signature style to stand out in a crowded market.
- Vibrant Color Theory: Leveraging contrast and bold, graphic textures (like his famous comic-book transformations) safely and effectively.
- Polished Commercial Beauty: Balancing raw, avant-garde creativity with pristine, client-pleasing clean beauty.
Create Camera-Ready Celebrity Beauty With Phoebe Dawson
Aspiring beauty artists must understand that makeup looks different under high-intensity photography and film cameras than it does in a mirror. That is where Lead Makeup Instructor Phoebe Dawson steps in. Phoebe’s professional experience spans celebrity beauty, film, television, music videos, red carpet appearances, and editorial campaigns.
At Vizio, Phoebe brings that real-world experience into her teaching, helping students understand the preparation, precision, and professionalism required for camera-ready beauty. She focuses on teaching students how to analyze facial structures, prepare skin meticulously for diverse lighting setups, and select products that maintain a pristine finish throughout long shoot days.
What you learn from Phoebe at Vizio
- Professional Skin Prep: Techniques for creating a flawless base tailored to different skin types and environmental demands.
- Camera-Ready Precision: Understanding how professional cameras and lighting can reveal changes in color, texture, complexion, and contour.
- Professional Client Communication: Learn how to understand a client’s needs, remain composed under pressure, and deliver polished work in demanding beauty and production environments.
Gain an International Beauty Perspective With Liv Rideg
Beauty is interpreted differently across cultures, clients, and creative markets. To succeed internationally, you need a diverse skillset, which is precisely what Elite Instructor Liv Rideg brings to Vizio Makeup Academy. Liv Rideg brings Vizio students more than 20 years of international experience and a versatile approach shaped by work across multiple beauty markets.
Liv’s diverse background covers everything from bridal beauty and editorial fashion to runway shows and high-concept fantasy artistry. At Vizio, she teaches students how to adapt their styles to different cultural expectations, client backgrounds, and commercial settings, helping them develop the versatility needed to serve clients across different markets and creative environments.
What you learn from Liv at Vizio
- Adapting to Global Standards: Understanding how bridal, editorial, and fashion preferences differ across international markets.
- Complete Artistic Versatility: Gaining the skills to switch seamlessly between classic bridal looks and high-fashion editorial imagery.
- Consultation and Client Relationships: Develop the communication skills needed to build trust, understand expectations, and create a professional experience for every client.
Why Learning From Experienced Instructors Matters
Makeup inspiration is everywhere, but inspiration alone is not an education. Developing professional skills requires structure, practice, evaluation, and guidance from instructors who understand what strong work looks like and how to help students reach that standard.
At Vizio Makeup Academy, students move through organized lessons, complete knowledge tests, submit practical assignments, and receive assessments and personalized instructor feedback. It is a guided learning experience designed to help students understand their mistakes, strengthen their technique, and continue improving.
Students gain exposure to their professional techniques, creative decision-making, attention to detail, problem-solving methods, and the standards expected within demanding makeup environments.
By learning from artists like Jonah, Gabriel, Argenis, Phoebe Dawson, and Liv Rideg, you gain access to decades of collective experience, helping you avoid common beginner mistakes, strengthen your professional judgment, and approach clients, salons, productions, and creative opportunities with greater preparation and confidence.
Your creative journey starts here. Learn professional techniques shaped by real film, television, and beauty-industry experience, and learn from accomplished professionals and begin building the skills, confidence, and artistic judgment needed for a career you can be proud of.
A Complete Online Makeup Education
Vizio Makeup Academy combines professional instruction with a structured learning and assessment process. Students progress through organized lessons, complete knowledge tests, submit practical makeup assignments, and receive personalized feedback designed to help them identify mistakes and improve their technique.
This active learning process gives students something that isolated beauty content cannot provide: direction, accountability, professional evaluation, and a clear path toward completing their makeup artist certification.
Ready to Learn From Proven Industry Professionals?
Take your artistry beyond disconnected beauty content. Explore Vizio Makeup Academy’s online programs and learn through a structured education shaped by Emmy-nominated Hollywood artists, award-winning beauty professionals, and experienced instructors who are committed to helping students improve.
