The Beauty of DIY

Do It Yourself

Besides just the camera equipment, props are another asset that tends to suck out a lot of the available budget. When you are making a simple modern drama film, props are not that big of a deal since anything at home will work. Once the films goes into either sci-fi or horror however, that is when things get complicated. Futuristic props or monsters and gore can be incredibly tricky and things simply bought from a costume store just do not cut it. Thus we get into DIY territory. Whether you are actually skilled in craftsmanship or are simply dedicated to the project, filmmakers end up just making their props. Even cardboard can be turned into something awesome.

Cardboard Man

Why Do It?

The choices available to you at the time are to buy the props, hire someone else to make the props, or make them yourself. Depending on what you need, the first two options can get pretty pricey. Also there is no guarantee that what you try to buy will live up to what you want.

A principle of making films is to think of it as a magic trick. With science fiction movie props particularly, a lot of props that look futuristic are everyday objects. Don't believe me? Take a look at Nerf guns. When I was a kid Nerf guns looked more like this:



Nowadays they look like this:

 Look at that and tell me that does not look like a sci-fi gun. With enough ingenuity and some paint, you can end up with some pretty cool looking science fiction guns. Hollywood has been doing this sort of thing for years. Only now do everyday people have the resources to pull something off similar to that.

So maybe you just plain stink at making it. That's okay too. There's bound to be someone you know who can help make something you need. Part of the reason why making a prop is preferable is that it will be personal to you. Instead of a generic prop, it will have your own flair.

Grab the duct tape and raid the recyclables. Go and get making.