Prop Store

Original Propmaster Restoring Original Pieces?

Carrossea

Carrossea

Active Member
Say that if you were to obtain a piece from the original builder of a prop from a movie, and that prop is a production-made copy that was never finished (like a resin casting or something that ended up not being finished in time for the shoot), would you rather have the original propmaster finish the piece for you (complete it so it would look like the one on screen) or leave it the way it is?

Another scenario: If you obtain an original piece that was used on screen, but in the process of making the movie, it has become badly damaged and worn and no longer looks like when it was used, would you rather have the original propmaster restore it to how it looked when it was filmed? Or does the worn piece have its own charm?

I've been in a few of these scenarios before, and have had a very tough decision to make. Sometimes the original piece has its charm when its all beaten up and such :lol and I know that its in the condition the filmmakers left it. On the other hand, it no longer looks like how it was when it was used on screen, so having it restored by the original builder can be nice as well.

An example of the first scenario is what propmaker Ross MacDonald (known for his National Treasure 2 props) offers. Sometimes he'll finish up one of his unused production made props for you (if he has any left) so it would look like the screen-used copies. Sometimes, he'll incorporate screen-used leftover pieces into the prop he is recreating as well.

Which do you guys prefer? If you were in these scenarios, what would your decisions be? Was just seeing what others think. ;)
 
Last edited:
Re: Original Propmaster completing an unfinished piece or leave it unfinished?

I had no idea about this. Certainly he probably shouldnt be making copies.

Bottom line is its not screenused.....its not authentic so really its either a neat replica...or its going to get passed off as original. In my book, if its not been used in making the movie most real prop collectors wouldnt touch it. If its damaged during production thats part of the charm. At least you know its in their on screen somewhere.


Carrossea said:
Say that if you were to obtain a piece from the original builder of a prop from a movie, and that prop is a production-made copy that was never finished (like a resin casting or something that ended up not being finished in time for the shoot), would you rather have the original propmaster finish the piece for you (complete it so it would look like the one on screen) or leave it the way it is?

Another scenario: If you obtain an original piece that was used on screen, but in the process of making the movie, it has become badly damaged and worn and no longer looks like when it was used, would you rather have the original propmaster restore it to how it looked when it was filmed? Or does the worn piece have its own charm?

I've been in a few of these scenarios before, and have had a very tough decision to make. Sometimes the original piece has its charm when its all beaten up and such :lol and I know that its in the condition the filmmakers left it. On the other hand, it no longer looks like how it was when it was used on screen, so having it restored by the original builder can be nice as well.

An example of the first scenario is what propmaker Ross MacDonald (known for his National Treasure 2 props) offers on his website. He'll finish up one of his unused production made props for you (if he has any left) so it would look like the screen-used copies. Sometimes, he'll incorporate screen-used leftover pieces into the prop he is recreating as well.

Which do you guys prefer? If you were in these scenarios, what would your decisions be? Was just seeing what others think. ;)
Click to expand...
 
Re: Original Propmaster completing an unfinished piece or leave it unfinished?

The Prop Stop said:
I had no idea about this. Certainly he probably shouldnt be making copies.

Bottom line is its not screenused.....its not authentic so really its either a neat replica...or its going to get passed off as original. In my book, if its not been used in making the movie most real prop collectors wouldnt touch it. If its damaged during production thats part of the charm. At least you know its in their on screen somewhere.
Click to expand...

Thank you for your response.

If you're referring to Ross, he doesn't state that it's a screen-used copy. He doesn't even state that it's a production made copy on his site. He says that he will remake them from scratch on his website, but in a private conversation with Ross (as well as other members on here; there's also a thread about this), he told us that some of the ones he made incorporated screen used pieces or production made pieces. He specified which ones were and which ones weren't and told how many he had left.

The question on this thread was referring to whether collectors prefer having production made props (made during the time of the movie for the movie) completed if it's left unfinished during production, and if it was a screen-used piece and is badly damaged post production, would they have it restored to its "original" condition by the original propmaster.

I think I also read somewhere where the propmaker of the Stormtrooper helmet originally completed production castings and sold them to collectors. (This was what later sparked the infamous lawsuit with Lucas.) Collectors seemed to like having the castings finished rather than just buying the castings the way it was left during production. So I was curious what others preferred.
 
Last edited:
Re: Original Propmaster completing an unfinished piece or leave it unfinished?

Also, I was in a transaction with a propmaster once where a prop was returned to him for restoration for the movie because it got badly beaten up on set and couldn't be used anymore. However, he ran out of time and it was never restored. In this case, it was tough to choose between having this prop restored (since it was going to be anyway if it had been used again for the shoot) or leaving it the way it was. When I say "leaving it the way it was", I mean that it was missing parts and paint was rubbing off with some air bubbles underneath the paint and such. It didn't really look like how it originally was so it was a tough choice.

-- Update --
The Prop Stop said:
If its damaged during production thats part of the charm. At least you know its in their on screen somewhere.
Click to expand...

That's how I feel at times.

Here's a quote from a member on another thread which gave an alternate viewpoint on this matter. I never thought of it this way before, so it's interesting enough to share.

I'd say that movie props differ from museum style historical artifacts. Movie props primary purpose is to look a certain way and are often used as display pieces and if it looks like crap then it's function no longer exists.

Historical artifacts are less about appearance and about the story of the item itself which is often told in the damage it's received. The damage from a poorly stored movie prop only tells a story of neglect instead of the cool fantasy it's supposed to represent.
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
Re: Original Propmaster completing an unfinished piece or leave it unfinished?

For me, it's original.

I have (like you) ine of the last copy of tge Book of Secrets that Mr. MacDonald made fir tge production of the movie. It is original, made in 2007. Yes, it isn't a screen used (only one of these 6 was used in the movie) but it is production copy.
Everything made in production is original, just check yourprops.com and you'll see many golden idol from raiders of the lost ark. It is productio copy but original! The same thing for the headpiece to the staff of ra.

For me, everything made for the movie, screen used or production copy, are original. No doubt on this!
 
Re: Original Propmaster completing an unfinished piece or leave it unfinished?

Sarednab said:
For me, it's original.

I have (like you) ine of the last copy of tge Book of Secrets that Mr. MacDonald made fir tge production of the movie. It is original, made in 2007. Yes, it isn't a screen used (only one of these 6 was used in the movie) but it is production copy.
Everything made in production is original, just check yourprops.com and you'll see many golden idol from raiders of the lost ark. It is productio copy but original! The same thing for the headpiece to the staff of ra.

For me, everything made for the movie, screen used or production copy, are original. No doubt on this!
Click to expand...

If you have a screen-used original piece that is badly damaged or if the paint is rubbing off and such, would you have it restored by the original propmaker or leave it the way it is?
 
Re: Original Propmaster completing an unfinished piece or leave it unfinished?

Absolutly not restored! For me is important to keep the piece damaged for the age. :)
 
Re: Original Propmaster completing an unfinished piece or leave it unfinished?

Carrossea said:
I think I also read somewhere where the propmaker of the Stormtrooper helmet originally completed production castings and sold them to collectors. (This was what later sparked the infamous lawsuit with Lucas.) Collectors seemed to like having the castings finished rather than just buying the castings the way it was left during production. So I was curious what others preferred.
Click to expand...

That's not quite right. The guy who originally vacformed the troopers back in the day (and did not do any sculpting, although I think he still claims otherwise, even after that lawsuit!) started selling replicas that are clearly not from the original moulds (not even a 1st gen cast of a real ANH helmet) and covered it up in a tower of lies to make it look like it was something it is not.
 
Re: Original Propmaster completing an unfinished piece or leave it unfinished?

R2Dan said:
That's not quite right. The guy who originally vacformed the troopers back in the day (and did not do any sculpting, although I think he still claims otherwise, even after that lawsuit!) started selling replicas that are clearly not from the original moulds (not even a 1st gen cast of a real ANH helmet) and covered it up in a tower of lies to make it look like it was something it is not.
Click to expand...

Ah, I see. Thanks for the clarification.
 
Finishing a production-made raw casting that was not seen on screen is fine with me. I think the original creator finishing it adds more value to it. It's still an unused but production-made casting...and it looks like it would have in the movie, to boot. There isn't any history being altered. If an item was onscreen, though, leave it alone, unless it needs steps to prevent it from degrading or has already fallen into pieces...and even then only minimum intervention.
 
When restoration is done, one drawback to having the original creator do it is he will typically go about it the same way as if he were making it for the show--that is, close-enough replacement parts, a new "better" paint job, etc. He will not have the "screen accurate" mindset to restoring the piece, he will instead try to make it as good as he would've have liked to begin with if the schedule had permitted. This makes for a nice piece but should be applied to replica items and not screenused originals.
 
Not sure why you would ever want to restore it to look perfect. You're esentially taking away its originality. Plus, any future chance of screen matching it goes out the window.

Prop makers finishing off unfinished unused pieces is worrying, but happens more than we probably all know. Some collectors don't give a damn about provenance and have more money than sense. One of these 'original' props falling into their hands can suddenly promote this unoriginal piece to a screen used piece.

Leave as is, thats what I say!

Simon
 
This thread is more than 10 years old.

Your message may be considered spam for the following reasons:

  1. This thread hasn't been active in some time. A new post in this thread might not contribute constructively to this discussion after so long.
If you wish to reply despite these issues, check the box below before replying.
Be aware that malicious compliance may result in more severe penalties.

Similar threads

RBJ
Original Pee Wee's Big Adventure Bike
Replies
2
Views
645
RBJ
RBJ
K
Whatever happened to original Lethal Weapon wardrobe
Replies
0
Views
380
Kypropguy
K
jkno
Original Screen Matched Complete Hero Imperial Stormtrooper Costume | Heritage Auctions
Replies
16
Views
1,951
JediMichael
JediMichael
PropsToHistory
Original Beetlejuice Business Card Cut
Replies
15
Views
2,806
Moviefreak
Moviefreak
PropsToHistory
Blade Runner ID Card Original Print Blocks
3 4 5
Replies
82
Views
7,953
drusselmeyer
drusselmeyer
Prop Store
Back
Top