Rolf John Keppler (born 17 July 1966; age 58) is a makeup effects artist for film and television who worked on Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, and the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation. He shared an Emmy Award nomination in 1988 for Outstanding Achievement in Makeup for a Series for the episode "Coming of Age", shared with Michael Westmore, his father Werner Keppler, and Gerald Quist.
Career[]
MacGyver and Paramount films[]
Keppler worked under makeup supervisor Michael Westmore on MacGyver during that show's second season (1986-87) before they both moved on to The Next Generation. Westmore and Keppler were nominated for an Emmy Award in 1987 for their work on the MacGyver episode "Friends", which was directed by Cliff Bole and guest-starred John Anderson, Robin Curtis, Teri Hatcher, and Bruce McGill.
In addition to Star Trek V, Keppler worked on Paramount Pictures' Coming to America (1988, featuring Madge Sinclair and makeup effects by Margaret Prentice), Scrooged (1988, featuring John Glover, Carol Kane, Wendie Malick, Michael J. Pollard, and Alfre Woodard, with makeup by Thomas R. Burman and Bari Burman and set decoration by Linda DeScenna), and The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988, starring Ricardo Montalban and featuring Raye Birk, Tiny Ron, and Nicholas Worth, with art direction by Donald B. Woodruff).
1990s television work and ER[]
During the 1989-1990 television season, Keppler was key makeup artist on CBS' Island Son, which starred Timothy Carhart and Clyde Kusatsu. He then became co-makeup department head on The Flash. He later worked on Human Target (1992), CBS' Raven (1992-1993), and NBC's Viper (1994).
From 1994 through 2001, Keppler was the makeup effects co-department head on NBC's ER. In 2001, he became the show's makeup department head and held that position until the series ended in 2008. Among the many performers he worked with on the show were Star Trek alumni Michelle C. Bonilla, Scott Grimes, Lily Mariye, and Cress Williams.
1990s film work[]
In 1990, Keppler worked Dick Tracy (with Doug Drexler, Anthony Fredrickson, Kevin Haney, Gilbert A. Mosko, Ve Neill, Craig Reardon, Mark Shostrom, and Greg Cannom) and Class of 1999 (working with Barney Burman, Rob Burman, Dana Quashnick, and Rick Stratton). The former featured numerous Star Trek alumni in the cast (Ed O'Ross, Seymour Cassel, John Schuck, Paul Sorvino, Robert Costanzo, Tony Epper, Hamilton Camp, Ed McCready, Colm Meaney, Bert Remsen, Michael J. Pollard, Ian Wolfe) and had art direction by Harold Michelson, while Class of 1999 co-starred Malcolm McDowell and Patrick Kilpatrick.
In 1994, Keppler worked on Tank Girl (1995, starring Lori Petty and Malcolm McDowell, with Ann Cusack, Reg E. Cathey, Iggy Pop, Ann Magnuson, Doug Jones, Jeff Kober and Charles Lucia). This film's makeup designer was Mike Smithson, and Keppler again worked with Smithson on the 1996 remake of The Island of Dr. Moreau, with Smithson as makeup supervisor. Barry Koper and Alan Tuskes were also makeup effects artists on this film, which featured Star Trek Nemesis actor Ron Perlman in the cast. Keppler himself was the makeup supervisor on The Peacemaker (1997, featuring Bruce Gray and Matt Winston).
Recent film work[]
During a break in production on ER, Keppler did some prosthetic lab work on Lords of Dogtown (2005, on which Star Trek makeup artists Mark Garbarino and Dave Snyder did makeup effects). Immediately after production on ER ended, Keppler was brought in as a makeup artist on Twilight (2009, with Star Trek: Insurrection actor Michael Welch, and hair stylists Laura Connolly and Elizabeth Rabe).
Keppler was a special makeup effects artist on Terminator Salvation (2009), again working under the supervision of Mike Smithson. This film's cast included Anton Yelchin. Further film credits include Jonah Hex (2010), which is produced by Akiva Goldsman, Water for Elephants (2011), The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 (2011, with Star Trek: Deep Space Nine guest star Billy Burke), The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 (2012, with Billy Burke).