Hey Guys,
We’re aiming to shoot a new Ghostbusters short film in Los Angeles later this year. We already have the green light to shoot inside Firehouse 23 in downtown, which is great.
But our script requires us to rebuild Pete Vekman’s office. Not 100% accurate, but pretty close.
Are there any set builders / construction folks here? Any idea how much it would cost to build something like this?
-Steve
That is a tall order. Good luck.
If you have a couple of guys who know 3D, I’d suggest building a digital set extension and shoot against greenscreen. Some of the forums out there have really good people who need resume’ fodder.
If you want/need it to be ‘practical’, then I’d recommend experimenting with foam board (the stuff the use for insulation can work pretty well). Carve it, use a hardener on it, and paint it. Remember, it doesn’t have to work it just has to look like it could.
If you’re going to have camera motion and your 3D guy can’t do motion tracking, you’ll want to go the practical route.
Just how much of a project this will be will depend on how much of the office you’re showing. Can you use camera trickery to imply that you’re in a larger space by using mid-shots and close-ups in place of a lot of wide shots? Then you might be able to get away with just a couple of wall panels and change the decorations when you switch from shooting characters A and B.
Amoungst my many jobs I am a stage hand, and for a while worked for a stage building company called Virginia Scenic.
For a decent one side construction you’re looking at a few hundred dollars with of lumber and materials.