The quick and dirty video

There’s an entire mini-industry around short, crappy films… and when I say industry, I don’t mean that the filmmakers themselves are making any money off it, but groups like the 48hr film fest have been staying in the black for years… with many spin-offs and other short competitions. Why is this? Not as much because […]

New Toys

Coming out of hiding for a quick post – there’s been a fair bit of interest in blank firing gun reviews, state-of-the-market posts, etc. so here’s a video I put together after rehearsal the other day. You can tell from the circles around the eyes and tendency to ramble that I’m tired, but these are […]

Hang it all, man!

As it always is, it’s been a busy beginning of semester. This year’s mainstage directing for me will be Legacy of Light, a charming story that even now still makes me happy and hits me in the feels, something a script can’t always do when you’ve been living with it as just words on a […]

Year One Done

Grades are in, the school year’s over, and the first hopefully-annual UWYO Stage Combat Workshop is in the bag. The last week before the workshop, a university photographer came and snapped some shots of the broadsword class practicing for their Skills Proficiency Test. I’m hoping to work with our graphics person to make some stage-combat […]

Front Fire Fracas

My handful of posts on this blog about front-fire blank guns have been consistently some of the most popular entries, according to my WordPress stats. Those of you who have read them know that the biggest importer, if not sole importer, of front-venting blank props is Maxsell.   It’s a small business based in Florida, […]

Richard III

Richard III is now officially opened at Agecroft Hall. While it brings with it all the challenges of outdoor theatre (rain, insects, the occasional airplane or loud bar mitsva party down the block), it’d be hard to find a more appropriate venue for summer Shakespeare outside of one of the handfuls of period theatre recreations. […]

Chekhov, Love, and Trust

On my way back now from an excellent, rejuvenating week with the National Michael Chekhov Association (NMCA), my second time attending their Teacher Intensive. The last one I went to was in Florida, and this was my first time up in Maine, where it’s hosted by the USM Gorham campus. Lovely area up here, plus […]

Old things put out to stable

I dream of a time when not every job has to be a rush job, while I also suspect such a time may not come for decades… when old age will add its own sense of urgency. In the meantime, that remains the status quo, whether it be a crossbow prop that gets used in […]

Video Projects

First, just as a PSA; Fight Designer, LLC is in the process of packing up for the Summer. The props will be going into storage for a few months while the move is made to Wyoming – the eventual new home will have tons more space, which I’m very much looking forward to, but in […]

Props Projects

Catching up on some more sharing here… first, just a couple examples of what sort of basic customization I sometimes do on existing props. Denix makes the double-barrel wood and cast-metal prop replica “coach gun” shotgun, and it’s a staple of sorts. Not perfect for every project, but nice to have on hand. Sometimes it’s […]