YouTube: Ross MacDonald makes his paper by making paper. For the last 25 years, he’s created tens of thousands of paper props for movies and television shows like “Baby’s Day Out,” “Silver Linings Playbook,” “Boardwalk Empire” and “Parks and Recreation.” From handwritten letters to driver’s licenses, each piece is custom made and thoughtfully imbued with backstory.
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I had never really thought about how much work goes into paper props until a show I worked on this past summer asked for 3000 documents resembling travel visas, government notices, and other bureaucratic documents. There were also telegrams where even the fold of the paper was thought about based on the size of the pocket it might have been carried in. But even from that experience I did not fully grasp all of the intricacies of both creating and fabricating these paper props. The little details can become so important and you don’t even realize, which honestly is when the props master has done their best work in my opinion, when they influence your perception of the story and give you the information you didn’t know you needed without you even noticing. I wonder how much more in depth you must go for film and movies where everything is so close, as opposed to theatre. Or rather I wonder the differences in what details are important to get the same effect between stage and screen.
The making of paper products as props in entertainment is of great interest to me. Ever since I was little I have been obsessed with holding onto paper items. Whether it be bus tickets, old passports, or movie ticket stubs, I never wanted to throw them out. I felt as if they preserved a memory for me in the most authentic way. I moved on to piece these items together in scrapbooks for my family vacations, which my parents and siblings thought was simply ridiculous. Yet when we look back on our trips, someone always pulls out those scrapbooks. The authenticity of a letter or a document plays a big role in films because it plays a huge role in our lives. The video of this prop master spending days, weeks, or even months to painstakingly create paper products shows how detailed oriented films should be. When each member of the creative team puts this much care into their work, it can ensure success.
I find it amazing that Ross is so passionate about his work because it makes everything that everyone does in the theater than much more credible. I’ve never really understood what goes on behind creating a prop, and I assumed that pieces of paper would be re-printed or found, not handcrafted by one person in a extensive sitting. I find the fact that a prop could be shown in a movie for just a moment's and no one knows the months of tedious work on one prop, as small as a piece of paper. I really admire the excitement and drive that Ross has for every piece he creates. The fulfillment he receives from finishing a project and being able to see it premiered, makes it all worth it. Normally, no one in the audience would think twice and question a prop that seems so simplistic and available, to be something that one person spends months creating. I think this article really speaks on the beauty of pulling a production, or any kind of result for that matter, together because it displays the beauty of teamwork in the industry. I have gained an immense amount of respect for the creators of props and anything in the theater that doesn’t necessarily get awarded or shown quite as often.
I find it so intriguing that a single person can make so many props in a lifetime. Also, the fact that it’s all paper products is amazing because each individual piece has to be aged to a specific time period. It speaks a lot to his expertise and dedication that he is able to create in large amounts with the standard of quality that is indistinguishable from the real thing on the screen. In general, props made for movies and television shows need to be nearly perfect, as the camera is known for catching any and every small imperfection. I’d love to learn from him on his techniques and how he finds the material he needs to make a 1920’s ledger. He is a true craftsman and pays so much attention to detail, which is a dying trade. I’m curious how he learned these skills. Did he have an apprenticeship? I know that he came from a background of art, but it seems like a very particular niche kind of trade that requires inside connections.
It is interesting to see how specific of a particular a person can specialize in a certain kind of prop, but what I find even more incredible is that this person is at least in charge of as well as he himself makes such a wide variety of different kind of paper props. Creating something from an old storybook to a specific kind of legal document seems like such a different skillset. Props can be underutilized so often, especially in low budget productions. In high-production, it is true that sometimes the paper prop can be representative of such an important symbol in the show. When it is not done well, it can be so obvious and take the audience out of the reality that the entertainment is trying to achieve. Trying to hold a realistic standard like this person is just one component of what can help to be a part of creating a small world.
This is super cool because I never really thought about all the work that goes into making the paper props for movies. It is insane to see the sheer number of pieces that he has created for different movies and television because his work is so extensive and he has been a part of so many major productions but no one knows. Also a thought I had while watching this is that he must be a master at recreating handwriting. Like if you ever wanted to forge someones signature, he's your guy. He must spend hours studying different handwriting to come up with the one that he wants to use for a letter or something. Also I cannot believe how long projects take. For a whole book it must take forever. I cannot imagine creating every single page of something and then only having it on screen for a couple seconds.
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