- 1). Find lots of extras. The first key to a zombie movie is to have enough extras to constitute an undead horde. An undead trio just isn't intimidating enough. Drag all your friends in, the more varied the better. Get some grandparent volunteers for that extra bit of old person zombie creepiness.
- 2). Conduct a mass practice of zombie principles. There's much more to a convincing zombie than just gore. Great zombies must moan and move like zombies. Practice lurching gaits, swinging stiff arms and growly faces. Have all your extras practice together to get a better sense of how intimidating they come across in mass.
- 3). Lay down tarps where necessary. Particularly if you'll be shooting indoors, you'll probably want to cover the floor. Zombie movies depend upon the frantic, gory messiness of the moment. Stopping the action to mop up spills or worry about upholstery will ruin the whole vibe.
- 4). Make several kinds of blood. Having buckets of blood is an absolute necessity in a zombie movie. Blood can be made with corn syrup, red food coloring and a bit of milk (to add opaqueness). Develop several different formulas before making blood in bulk. Have a bucket of sticky blood for applying as make-up and a more watery blood for tossing about everywhere.
- 5). Attend to each zombie's make-up individually. The look is very important. You have two main choices when it comes to zombie make-up. The first is the classic George Romero "Dawn of the Dead" look, which basically amounts to blue-skinned, blue-lipped zombies. They look oxygen-starved, but not rotten. Your other option is to apply some white base, then add black bruises around the eyes, cheeks and mouth to simulate blood pooling in a rotting face.
- 6). Rip up shirts and other clothing. Make sure to add plenty of blood, dirt and general nastiness.
- 7). Send the zombies forth against your heroic last-standers. Take plenty of gruesome close-up shots and lots of reaction shots from your heroes. Keep the camera moving, but don't get too shaky.
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