PSA: A simple foam board sign saved my student film shoot yesterday

I was shooting a short film in a local park in Austin and needed a realistic "park rules" sign for a scene. I spent hours stressing about it, thinking I had to carve wood or use metal. Then a guy named Dave who was walking his dog came over and said, "Just paint it on foam board, it'll look perfect from 10 feet away." I grabbed a $4 sheet of white foam board from the craft store, painted some fake city logos and rules on it, and mounted it on a wooden stake. The DP couldn't tell the difference on camera, and it took me 30 minutes total. Has anyone else had a random stranger save them time with a prop trick?

2 comments

2 Comments

black.margaret4d ago

Spray some matte clear coat on it first, hides the shine totally.

tarab544d ago

Hard disagree on that one, actually. If you're shooting anything above a phone camera, that foam board will catch the light wrong and look totally fake from two feet away. Did you try a test shot from multiple angles before wrapping?