The Prop Building Guidebook, 3rd Edition

Praise for The Prop Building Guidebook

“I really enjoyed the first Prop Building Guidebook. Eric Hart is a real pro in the prop business. If I lived on the East Coast, it would be great to do a project with him. I have been a professional prop maker in Hollywood for 43 years and still learned a lot from the first book! Looking forward to Book II.”

Paul Pearson, President of Custom Movie Props and prop builder on Starship Troopers, 14 seasons of Star Trek, and Daredevil

“The Prop Building Guidebook is indispensable, whether you’re a working props professional or an amateur enthusiast. From basic skills to complex builds, and from the thinking behind a prop and the research required, to figuring out how a prop needs to work—it’s all here. Eric Hart has mastered his wide range of skills in many productions, and is generous and eloquent in sharing them.”

Ross MacDonald, prop artisan on Boardwalk Empire, The Hateful Eight, and National Treasure: Book of Secrets

“If you do crafts, models, cosplay, or anything that involves imagination, engineering, and a unique eye in design and execution, get this book. If you are a serious student in the discipline of Props Design, get this book! The book is inspiringly comprehensive and a must for professionals and academics alike. Eric has given you the keys to the Kingdom and then shows you how to masterfully replicate them.”

Jay Duckworth, founder of the Prop Summit and props master on Hamilton, Shakespeare in the Park, the Public Theater

Eric Hart teaches at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and is a member of the Society of Props Managers (S*P*M). He has built props for numerous theatres on and off Broadway, films, and displays throughout the United States. His photography and articles about props have been published in Stage Directions magazine, Scrollsaw magazine, Theatre Design & Technology, and American Craft. He is the author of The Prop Effects Guidebook: Lights, Motion, Sound, and Magic (Routledge, 2018) and Prop Building for Beginners: Twenty Props for Stage and Screen (Routledge, 2021).