Ross MacDonald has built period props and vintage books for dozens of films and television shows over the years. Check out his web page for a portfolio of his work. I recently talked with him about making props and working in the industry.
Ross MacDonald. Photograph by Greg Preston
How did you get started doing props?
Weirdly enough, I had been doing some television-related work, even back when I was starting out as an illustrator. I was doing this thing, this was up in Toronto, called the Artisan’s Schools Program. It was a grant program. It was me and a couple other guys, we would go into the schools, and we’d start off performing poetry, I would do big drawings, and the third guy, if he was there, would do music. Continue reading Interview with Ross MacDonald→
The following is one of several interviews conducted by students of Ron DeMarco’s properties class at Emerson College.
Patrick Drone
by Dorcas Thete
Patrick Drone
How long have you been at the University of Michigan?
I have been here for nine years. I’ve had three different job titles. I have been the properties manager for two and a half years, which entails more of the administrative side of props, where I deal more with students and professors. Before that I was the associate properties manager for four years. I worked hand in hand with the props master; we would rotate on shows to cut down on burnout. I was hired at UMich as the properties artisans manager, I worked more on individual projects. Continue reading Interview with Patrick Drone→
“One of the key jobs on any film set is that of the property master, and his range of activity is perhaps the largest of all. If it ‘moves, it’s mine,’ the prop man can say, on most occasions.” People who Make Movies, by Theodore Taylor, 1967.
Being a prop master is a job where a person is in charge of getting and handling all props for a show. Properties, or “props” for short, are all the items used on a stage or set from hand held items to furniture. The job is very important because props really help tell the story and tell the audience more about what is happening in the play. There could be any number of props a prop master would have to be in charge of, from one to hundreds. These prop masters are some of the most important people on set and without them, propping would be chaotic. These people are invaluable when working in the theater. I had the opportunity to interview Chris Haig, an experienced prop master in Pennsylvania, about his work in the prop field. Continue reading Interview with Christopher Haig→
The following is one of several interviews conducted by students of Ron DeMarco’s properties class at Emerson College.
J. Kenneth Barnett III
By Rachel Hunsinger, Theater Education class of ’18 Emerson College
J. Kenneth Barnett III
J Kenneth Barnett III is currently the Resident Scenic designer, Scenic Artist, and Properties Master for Charleston Stage. He resides in Charleston, South Carolina with his wife Ann and son Sammy. But before he made his way into the city he hopes to live out the rest of his days in, he grew up in Rockford, IL. Even at a young age he was bit by the art bug. Ever since he could remember he enjoyed painting or drawing. His artistic interests flourished as he aged, and he eventually took his first steps into theater. In the sixth grade he was in his first play about the great George Washington. He played the villain, King George, and continued on to go to a performing arts school from seventh to twelfth grade. Out of all the arts offered there though, “art and theater were [his] favorites.” Continue reading Interview with J. Kenneth Barnett III→
Making and finding props for theatre, film, and hobbies
