An Audience with Sian Grigg

Siân Grigg is a make up designer known for her work on The Revenant, Ex Machina and The Aviator. She received the BAFTA Cymru Sian Phillips Award in 2016.

Siân Grigg attended Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf comprehensive school in Cardiff before enrolling at Cardiff Art College (now Cardiff Metropolitan University(, followed by The London College of Fashion studying make up and hair for film and television.

She had already been introduced to the world of film and television make up as her mother was Head of the Make Up Department at the BBC in Cardiff and a huge influence on her decision to pursue a career as a make up artist and designer.

Siân’s plan had been to join the BBC Make Up Department in London, unfortunately the school shut the year before she graduated from College, at the time she thought this was a disaster of massive proportions. However, with hindsight this turned out to be an amazing opportunity as her first unpaid job, straight out of college, was as trainee make up artist on Howard's End staring Anthony Hopkins, Emma Thompson and Helena Bonham Carter.

Howard’s End became the first step in what has proven to be a very fortunate career. She has been incredibly lucky working with some amazing make up designers, all of whom have helped teach and enhance her craft, on films such as Orlando, Saving Private Ryan and Titanic.

In recent years Siân has worked as personal make up artist for the likes of Kate Winslet, Tobey Maguire, Kate Hudson and Leonardo Di Caprio and has also designed make up for films such as Ex Machina, Suffragette, Far From The Madding Crowd, Goodbye Christopher Robin and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

During her career Siân has won a BAFTA for her work on The Aviator, was nominated for two Guilds Awards for work on Ex Machina, as well as receiving nominations for an Oscar and BAFTA for The Revenant.

Sian will be in conversation with Olwen Moseley, Dean of Cardiff School of Art and Design.

Hosted in Partnership with Wales Screen, Cardiff Metropolitan University and Ffotogallery for Diffusion Festival.