If you’re on this site, chances are you love film – like, love it – or you can at least name a movie or two that had an impact on your childhood. Star Wars, Indiana Jones, The Muppets Movie, there’s bound to be at least one that puts a smile on your face when it comes on, and when you see that replica of Luke’s lightsaber, your heart leaps. For some, that feeling comes every day as they enter their job at a museum, an effects shop, or even their own home as they gaze upon their carefully curated collection of movie props and memorabilia. Juan Pablo Reinoso’s newest film, Mad Props, follows one such collector on a globe-trotting adventure to talk with like-minded collectors who like their memories of films to be a bit more tangible.
A Curated Cast of Collectors
Tom Biolchini is a lawyer-turned-banker living in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and is a passionate collector of film props. He’s even passed on his enthusiasm to his son, and when selecting items to pursue at auction (including Indy’s Holy Grail and Wilson himself from Cast Away), he gets the whole family involved. Over time, he became curious about exactly who he was bidding in these auctions, and set out to learn more about them. From San Jose to West Essex, Lyon to Los Angeles, Tom talks to personal collectors, museum curators, and the creators themselves about their collections, how they began, and the impact the films have had on their lives.
Along the way, we meet Dave, a collector in San Marcos, Texas, whose tattoo shop proudly displays his collection, as well as Stephen, the founder and CEO of Propstore, and Danny Boy O’Connor, the House of Pain rapper who bought the house from The Outsiders and turned it into a museum dedicated to the film and novel. Tom also has the opportunity to tour the workshop of Alec Gillis, whose company has won an Oscar for their work, alongside Robert Englund and Lance Henriksen.
Mad Props to “Mad Props”
A recurring motif throughout the film is the assertion that not only are films art, but the props themselves are as well. As they are part of the physical and visual art through sculpture, painting, and other media, to paraphrase one interviewee they are deeply rooted in an emotional connection to these movies we love. Mad Props is not only a love letter to film and the prop and effects teams that make movie magic possible; it puts a spotlight on the fans and community that make all the blood, sweat, and foam latex worth it.
Reinoso and Biolchini have approached this documentary with as much passion behind the camera as in front of it, and those who share that love and enthusiasm will be well-rewarded to watch this and feel it for themselves. As Matthew Goode playing Robert Evans says in The Offer upon seeing the horse’s head: “Fuck me…props to props.” (No one tell him the truth.)
Mad Props will be available through TVOD beginning March 23rd and streaming near the end of April.
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