return to the forbidden planet

return to the forbidden planet air lock

#1 jonathan.1

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Posted 03 November 2011 - 09:39 PM

hi all

I am working on a school production of return to the forbidden planet and had been asked to create a back lit air lock.

we have a wall and the back of the stage with a sliding door in that has a a chamber built behind. what would be the easiest and cheapest was to fill this with smoke and then be able to discharge it very quickly. would 2 400w holgen flood lights also be bright enough to create a "blinding" light as a member of the cast walks out of the airlock.

sorry for so many questions but help would be greatly appreciated

many thanks in advance

Jonathan

#2 J Pearce

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Posted 03 November 2011 - 09:42 PM

Smoke machines tend to be very good at making smoke. Check for smoke sensor alarms first though!

Halogen floods sound a good idea, make sure they're not near anything flammable as they'll get hot.

It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one’s mouth and remove all doubt
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#3 jonathan.1

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Posted 03 November 2011 - 09:52 PM

J Pearce, on 03 November 2011 - 09:42 PM, said:

Smoke machines tend to be very good at making smoke. Check for smoke sensor alarms first though!

Halogen floods sound a good idea, make sure they're not near anything flammable as they'll get hot.

thanks :-), I have checked for smoke alarms, would I need to use an external fan to get the smoke out of the air lock quickly tho?

#4 J Pearce

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Posted 03 November 2011 - 09:55 PM

Best bet is try it out. You may find the movement of the actors is enough to pull the smoke out.
A good solution I've used before is two crew with big lumps of hardboard wafting the smoke out.

It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one’s mouth and remove all doubt
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#5 timd

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Posted 03 November 2011 - 10:02 PM

We did it with a double skin of perspex as the window, with a smoke machine and hoover piped into the void. It gave a very nice swirly effect.

Tim

#6 paulears

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Posted 03 November 2011 - 10:39 PM

We had a single open white parcan immediately above, and 20 ceiling type recessed fittings on the frame pointing outwards towards the audience as blinders - which when the stage lighting dimmed out and the air lock door lifted up worked pretty well when the smoke came out. Just a case of experimenting to see how long a burst of smoke you need without the actor coughing.

Most of the version we did was modelled on the touring version going around in 1996/7 and I did manage to get my hands on the lighting plan at the time - if you're interested in a no moving head rig here it is.
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#7 gareth

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Posted 04 November 2011 - 12:51 AM

I remember that version - it visited the North Wales Theatre while I worked there. A cracking show with some great songs in it - lighting design by Benny Ball, if I recall correctly. It was a fairly big touring rig for its time - the lights on the above plan are only part of the story, the practicals and eye-candy stuff mounted in the set filled an entire 72-way Avo rack!

This post has been edited by gareth: 04 November 2011 - 12:51 AM

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#8 Ken Coker

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Posted 04 November 2011 - 07:41 AM

paulears, on 03 November 2011 - 10:39 PM, said:

Humbug.......

KC

#9 jonathan.1

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Posted 06 November 2011 - 06:19 PM

thanks for all the advice, after a little thought a smoke machine and 4 400w halogen floods with 3 standard desk fans all into a portable dimmer with a switch facility did the job quite nicely gives a pretty good effect when the main foh bar is dimmed

many thanks for all the help

Jonathan