Props & Special Effects Fabricators — Film, TV & Live Entertainment
For Props & Special Effects Fabricators — Film, TV & Live Entertainment
You need six breakaway versions of a hero prop by Thursday. The performer's armor has to fit and clear their full range of motion before the stunt call. The creature suit has to read as real anatomy at close camera range. The period firearm needs to exist as a rubber stunt version by Monday without touching the original.
Scanning solves the geometry problem at production speed. Hero to stunt double in the same workflow. Performer body to prosthetic fit geometry in a single session. Organic and creature anatomy captured as dimensional reference, not photographic approximation. We work on set, in prop shops, and at fabrication facilities. Carry-in cases, battery-powered, operational in 20 minutes. Deliverables within 48–72 hours for most prop and body scan work.
Service Listings
Hero Prop Scan — Stunt Double & Breakaway Duplication
Scan the hero prop once. Drive CNC foam carving for lightweight stunt doubles, vacuum form tooling for breakaway shells, rubber casting for impact stunt versions, and resin pours for hero duplicates — all from the same geometry. The original stays intact and never enters the fabrication process. Each duplicate matches the hero dimensionally without a mold pull. Used when production needs multiple versions of a prop that can't be molded, when the hero is a one-of-a-kind original, or when duplication speed is more important than a traditional mold cycle.
From $470
Est. per prop
Actor Body Scan — Prosthetic, Armor & Wearable Prop Fit
Performer head, torso, limb, or full body scanned for prosthetic appliance design, rigid armor fit, wearable mechanical prop geometry, and costume piece fit verification. Silicone prosthetic appliances designed from a body scan fit the first time. Rigid armor pieces clear the performer's full range of motion before casting. Wearable mechanical props — gauntlets, helmets, full suits — are designed around the actual body geometry, not a standard form that gets adjusted in fitting. Particularly valuable for stunt performers where the fit has to allow full motion without restriction.
From $650
Est. per session
Period & Reference Object Scan — Safe Stunt Reproduction
Period firearms, edged weapons, antique artifacts, and irreplaceable reference objects scanned for reproduction as rubber stunt versions, foam breakaway props, and resin hero duplicates. The original is never at risk — no contact, no coatings required in most cases, no mold pull from a piece that can't be molded. A WWII sidearm, a Victorian surgical instrument, a museum-quality artifact — scanned and reproduced as production-safe versions that match the original dimensionally and visually.
From $470
Est. per object
Organic & Creature Anatomy Reference Scan
Living animals in accessible positions, taxidermy specimens, skull casts, anatomical reference, organic materials, and natural surface textures scanned at 0.025mm resolution as design source geometry for creature suits, foam latex characters, silicone prosthetics, and practical creature fabrication. Actual surface geometry — not photographic reference that has to be reinterpreted in three dimensions. Skull geometry, scale pattern, skin fold structure, feather arrangement, and musculature captured as mesh data that the sculptor and fabricator work from directly in ZBrush, Rhino, or Maya.
From $650
Est. per subject
Practical Effect & Puppet Geometry Scan
Practical creature puppets, mechanical effects, articulated props, and cable-driven characters scanned for replacement part fabrication, multi-unit production from a single hero build, and design documentation when the original build shop is unavailable. Common when a puppet or practical effect needs to be rebuilt mid-production, when additional identical units are needed, or when a long-running production needs replacement components for a character that's been in service for multiple seasons.
From $850
Est. — contact for quote
Set Piece & Vehicle Integration — Prop Fit Verification Scan
Existing set piece, vehicle interior, or built environment scanned so a prop can be designed to fit the actual geometry before fabrication is committed. The prop department and the art department don't always share drawings, and what gets built rarely matches what was drawn. A prop designed to fit a scan of the actual set fits on the day. Used for hero props that interface with set dressing, wearable props that have to interface with costumes or rigging, and mechanical props that have to function within a specific physical space.
From $1,200
Est. — contact for quote
Scan-to-Mold — Hand Sculpt to Production Tooling Geometry
Hand-sculpted clay, foam, or mixed-media originals scanned and delivered as clean, watertight mesh geometry for fiberglass mold tooling, silicone pour molds, vacuum form buck geometry, and foam latex mold machining. Removes the original from the mold production process — the shop works from geometry, the original stays in the studio. Particularly useful when the sculpted original is too fragile to use as a direct mold pattern, when multiple shops need to produce from the same form simultaneously, or when the original has to remain available for continued design revision.
From $750
Est. per piece
We Travel to Production
We come to your prop shop, fabrication facility, set, or stage. Equipment is carry-in cases, battery-powered, and deployable in 20 minutes. Class 1 eye-safe lasers — no special safety requirements on set. Within 50 miles of Nashville is included in all base prices. We travel nationally for production. All pricing is estimated — contact us with your prop type, timeline, and what you need the geometry for.
| Within 50 miles of Nashville 37206 | Included |
| 51–150 miles | +$180 |
| 151–300 miles | +$295 |
| 300+ miles / Production travel | Quoted individually |
| National travel | Contact for quote |
When Prop & SFX Shops Call Us
Scenario — Hero prop duplication
Production needs five breakaway versions of a hero prop. The prop is a one-of-a-kind original that can't be molded.
A hand-forged, one-of-a-kind hero weapon — irreplaceable, can't be molded, needed in five breakaway versions for a fight sequence by end of week. We scan the hero, deliver a mesh to the foam shop, and CNC-carved lightweight duplicates are cut from the geometry. Each breakaway matches the hero dimensionally. The original never enters the fabrication process. The stunt coordinator gets five safe versions built to the same geometry as the hero.
Scenario — Prosthetic fit
A performer's full-face prosthetic is failing fit checks. The appliance was designed from a lifecast that didn't capture the full expression range.
A full-face silicone prosthetic that fits at neutral expression but lifts at the jaw when the performer opens their mouth fully. The original lifecast was taken at rest. We scan the performer at neutral and at the key expression positions — open mouth, brow raise, full smile — and deliver the expression-range geometry to the prosthetic designer. The revised appliance is designed around the full range of the performer's face, not a single static position.
Scenario — Period weapon reproduction
A weapons master has a rare period flintlock that needs to exist as a rubber stunt version. The original can't be molded.
A museum-quality 18th century flintlock — lock mechanism, stock carving, furniture detail — that needs to be reproduced as a production-safe rubber stunt version for a fight sequence. The original can't be molded without risk. We scan it in the weapons master's case, deliver a full-resolution mesh to the rubber shop, and the stunt version is cast from geometry that matches the original in every detail without the original ever being at risk.
Scenario — Creature anatomy reference
The creature department needs accurate skull and skin anatomy for a large predator build. Reference photography isn't giving them what they need.
A practical creature suit for a feature — a large predatory reptile that has to read as real anatomy at close camera range. The sculptors have photographic reference but keep losing the correct skull proportions and orbital depth when working at scale. We scan a reference skull cast and available skin texture samples and deliver the geometry to the sculpture team. The character head is built from dimensional anatomy, not reinterpreted from photographs, and it shows on camera.
Scenario — Practical puppet replacement
A cable-driven puppet character is in its third season. Components are failing and the original build shop has closed.
A long-running practical character puppet — cable-driven facial mechanism, silicone skin, internal armature — that needs replacement components for season three. The shop that built the hero is out of business and no geometry documentation was preserved. We scan the surviving hero puppet and the worn components, extract the geometry needed for replacement fabrication, and deliver models to the new shop. The character continues into the next season with matching replacement parts.
Scenario — Scan to mold tooling
A hand-sculpted clay original needs to go to three fabrication shops simultaneously. The sculptor can't release the clay.
A complex creature head sculpted in oil-based clay — the sculptor needs it for continued revision and can't release it to the mold shop. Production needs three shops to start tooling simultaneously for a compressed delivery schedule. We scan the clay original, deliver the geometry to all three shops at once, and the sculptor keeps working on the clay. Each shop produces mold tooling from the same scan geometry. The original never leaves the studio.
Questions from Prop & SFX Fabricators
Can you scan a hero prop to produce stunt doubles without molding the original?
Yes. We scan the hero and deliver a full-resolution mesh that drives CNC foam carving, vacuum form tooling, rubber casting, and resin production — all without the original ever entering the fabrication process. Each duplicate matches the hero dimensionally. This is faster than a mold cycle for foam and vacuum form versions, and it's the only option when the original can't be molded — irreplaceable pieces, fragile materials, or props where a mold pull would damage the finish.
Can you scan a performer at multiple expression positions for prosthetic design?
Yes. We capture the performer at neutral and at key expression positions — full open mouth, brow raise, maximum smile, any expression the role requires the prosthetic to accommodate. The prosthetic designer receives geometry for the full expression range, not a single static position. Silicone appliances designed from expression-range geometry fit the full range of the performance, not just the fitting room. This is particularly important for facial prosthetics that have to survive a full shooting day of performance.
Can you scan organic reference — skulls, taxidermy, living animals — for creature fabrication?
Yes. Skull casts, taxidermy specimens, living animals in accessible positions, organic material samples, and natural surface textures can all be scanned at 0.025mm resolution. The result is actual surface geometry — skull volume, orbital depth, scale pattern, skin fold structure — that the sculptor works from in ZBrush or that drives CNC carving directly. Character work built from geometric anatomy reference reads correctly at camera range because the proportions are dimensionally accurate, not eyeballed from photographs.
How quickly can you deliver on a production schedule?
Scan sessions are typically two to four hours on-site. Processed mesh files for most prop and body scan work are delivered within 48 to 72 hours of the session. For situations where the schedule is tighter — a set is wrapping, a performer has a narrow availability window — contact us directly and we'll discuss what's achievable. We understand that production doesn't wait.
Can you convert a hand sculpt to mold tooling geometry without releasing the original?
Yes. We scan the sculpted original — clay, foam, mixed media — and deliver a clean, watertight mesh to the mold shop. The sculptor keeps working on the clay. The mold shop has the geometry they need to start tooling. Multiple shops can receive the same geometry simultaneously from a single scan session. The original never has to leave the studio or stop being worked on.
What file formats do you deliver for prop shop and creature fabrication workflows?
Full-resolution meshes in OBJ and STL — compatible with ZBrush, Maya, Rhino, Fusion 360, Mastercam, and the fabrication software your shop uses. For mold tooling and CNC carving, STL is the standard. For sculpting and design work, OBJ with texture maps where relevant. Parametric SolidWorks STEP is available as a quoted add-on for mechanical and wearable prop work that requires engineering-grade models.
Ready to discuss your project?
Tell us what you're building, what the timeline is, and what you need the geometry for. We respond fast.