18
Aug
Back to the Future Prop Car Display
Great Scott! A custom themed display for a screen used Back to the Future prop car
One of our clients reached out to us after winning this one of a kind Back to the Future prop car model at a recent Prop Store movie prop and costume auction. They were looking for a unique way to display it and had a fantastic idea to recreate the town model where Doc Brown uses this car to demonstrate how to send Marty back to 1985. Immediately we said “Great scott!” That’s a fantastic idea! Tom did a quick napkin sketch (and apologized for its “crudity” to keep with the scene’s dialogue) and that ensured we were all on the same page.
When we work with our clients to create displays like this sometimes they come to us without a firm idea on design, some folks have a specific design, and others have an inspiration and give us the chance to run with it. No matter what category they fall into we are able to work collaboratively to get them a final result they will love!
Doc Brown may have been disappointed that he did not have the time to paint his display, but that actually made his model the perfect backdrop for the display and really made the cherry red convertible pop!
Lead artist for this project Patrick Louie started by creating a streamlined wooden base, he gave it a glossy green paint and added the white line to mimic the look of the ping pong table the film town model was built on. He then created a building facade inspired by the Hill Valley Clock Tower from Doc Brown’s model. Using stills from the film as reference, he found the fine balance between a direct replica, and something that was very clear as to the inspiration. While not duplicating the town model from the film directly, we captured the spirit of it for this great movie prop display.
To finish the display Pat added a watch face similar to the one from the film, but the cherry on top has to be that he made sure it was stopped (as if struck by lightning!) at 10:04 just like the clocktower in the film! The end result is a wonderful display that provides plenty of context but ultimately won’t distract from an incredible screen used piece of Back to the Future prop history!
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Our friends Rob and Jennifer have written an amazing BTTF book!
