Article Summary: An opinion piece and analysis of the “Made for Production” trends and classifications (Made for Production, Not Used in Production; Unfinished; Finished Post Production, etc.) in the hobby.
“Made for Production” Props
One trend in the hobby that I’ve found challenging, from a standpoint of authenticity, is the plethora of pieces offered for sale described as “Made for Production, Not Used in Production” and sometimes further clarified as “Unfinished” and/or “Finished Post Production”.
Certain subsets of these “Made for Production” props are problematic for the hobby for a variety of reasons.
“Made for Production” vs. “Original”
What is a “Made for Production” piece? From the Original Prop Lexicon:
Something produced with the intention of it being used in the production. A distinction for many reasons, including a proliferation of offerings in the marketplace with claims of being “made for but not used in production” which at times appear spurious. Since “original” encompasses what is defined as “made for production”, the latter often includes the qualifier “not used in”. See Original
What is an “Original” piece? Again, from the Original Prop Lexicon:
An artifact from a production that was 1) made for production, 2) during the production, and 3) used or intended to be used during the production. All three of these criteria must be met in order for a piece to be considered “original”. See Provenance, Authenticity, Replica; See article What is “Original”?
So a “Made for Production” piece is, by definition, “Original”.
In short, a “Made for Production” piece is an unused “Original” piece – it is merely a term used to more accurately describe and categorize an “Original” piece, in terms of usage (or lack thereof).
Sometimes, under ideal circumstances, a “Made for Production” piece can be the same as a “used” piece, in terms of workmanship, appearance, etc. Or, if a piece cannot be matched on-screen, it may be assumed to be “unused” by some hobbyists, by default. An unused piece may be further qualified as being a prototype, in that it differs from pieces that are seen on-screen (i.e. it may be an earlier design that was abandoned).
So why is that a problem? In many cases, it is not at all. There are many legitimate and desirable “unused” original pieces.
Also, a piece determined to be “unused” may be found to have been used/filmed once more research is conducted.
What I find troubling are the multitude of pieces that are “unfinished”, and, more so, “finished post production”.
“Unfinished” Made for Production Props
If a legitimate, original piece is “unfinished” in any way, it is obviously in the “Made for Production” category (essentially another subset: “Unfinished Made for Production”).
Because there is a propensity to “trump up” status and usage of pieces in general, by both dealers and collectors, most of the props openly categorized as “Made for Production” are designated as such because it is inherently obvious that they were not used/filmed, either because it is unfinished or because it differs remarkably from what is seen on screen.
Because of this, it is also that much easier for someone to make “post production” replicas to pass off as “original” (from the production).
Please note that the Original Prop Lexicon has two definitions of “Post Production” because of the issues surrounding props and authenticity:
Post Production: Post Production generally includes all phases of production following principal photography. Examples would include editing, soundtrack, music, special effects, sound effects. See Development, Pre-Production, Production, Distribution
“Post Production” (Outside of Production): An important distinction from the stage of production called Post Production, hobbyists often refer to activity that occurs subsequent to and not authorized or serving the production as “post production”. As an example, a prop made by the original propmaker, but not intended for use in the actual production, and therefore is not Original but a replica. See Original, Post Production, Production Used, Replica
The concerns regarding “Made for Production” props are related to the second definition above, “Post Production” (Outside of Production). This relates to one of the more serious issues the hobby faces – those props made outside of production and passed off as either “Original” or “Made for Production” that are replicas, not originals (see article The Dirty Little Secret of the Hobby).
Given the fact that many props designated “Made for Production” differ from what is on screen and/or are unfinished, these public for sale offerings are reviewed with far less scrutiny. I suspect it is not uncommon that, essentially, replicas are produced and “trumped up” as “Made for Production” and sold 1) more easily and 2) for more money than replicas, but without any real attention paid to these offerings in terms of scrutiny. Certain types of such pieces seem to come up with great frequency.
Made for Production Props “Finished Post Production”
More troubling are pieces that are characterized as “Unfinished” Made for Production that are subsequently “Finished Post Production”.
Why is this a concern?
1) If the piece was originally a true and legitimate “Made for Production” piece (i.e. not a post production replica passed off as original) and it has been significantly modified post production, in my opinion, it has been devalued and made “replica-like”, if not “replica-ized” by the very changes made (painting, replica additions, etc.).
2) Worse, because it has been essentially converted (in my opinion) into a replica by being “finished”, it has a good likelihood of being passed off as “original” (trumped up beyond the “Made for Production, Not Used in Production” status) once it’s traded hands once or twice. This makes distinguishing originals from replicas (modified pieces with purported original origins) that much more challenging.
3) Worse still are those pieces that have been “Finished Post Production” by individuals/technicians/prop makers from the production. These “expertly finished” pieces are obviously that much more difficult to identify as replicas, since they are made/completed by those individuals that made them for the production. Even if initially sold with full disclosure, given the nature of the hobby and the “restarting” of provenance with each subsequent seller/dealer, the ability is there for unscrupulous sellers to trump up these pieces as more than they are.
The Upside to “Finished Post Production” Props?
None.
They are essentially (in my opinion) replicas (originals converted to replicas) that can be passed off as originals.
I would hope that fellow original prop hobbyists would not participate in the production and/or the alteration of legitimate “original” pieces, as well as the selling and trading of them. Once they are put into the marketplace, it becomes another potential obstacle and concern for dedicated collectors trying to keep the hobby clean and genuine.
And, as with most issues in the hobby, these problems are born of an attempt to make money.
My personal view is that legitimate and authentic (original) “Made for Production” pieces should not be modified from whatever state that they were in when the production ceased using them – if unfinished, it should be left unfinished. It is an example of the movie-making process and is of the highest value in its production state. If one cannot appreciate any prop for what it is, it should be left alone. It honors the piece and does not create issues for the hobby at large.
Jason De Bord