Russell Bobbitt

OZ The Great & Powerful

Props by Russell Bobbitt can next be seen in Sam Raimi’s “Oz The Great and Powerful,” debuting March 8, 2013

Bobbitt Wins HAMILTON BEHIND THE CAMERA AWARDS 2011 Best Movie Props

Director Jon Favreau Presents Property Master Russell Bobbitt Hamilton's "Behind the Camera Award" for his superior film work on "Cowboys & Aliens," "The Hangover 2" and "Thor" all of which debuted in 2011. This is Russell Bobbitt's second honor in this category. He first received the Behind the Camera award in 2009 for his work on "Iron Man.

USA TODAY Covers “Cowboys and Aliens” Attention to Detail

Excerpt from the article:

From rare period firearms to Olivia Wilde’s proper underwear, the movie features an array of intricate 1870s nuggets apparent to shrewd observers and true fans of the genre. “The authenticity was really important for us,” star Daniel Craig says. “It’s all about the sophisticated moviegoers getting the most bang for their buck.”

Here’s a breakdown of the film’s top hidden gems:

Handsome hardware. Nothing says Western lawman like his star. The blacksmith hired by prop master Russell Bobbitt forged each nickel-plated brass badge using methods from that time. “There are a lot of store-bought badges you can get,” Bobbitt says. “But these had the right look, feel and the weight.”

Ford’s pistol. Craig uses one of three authentic pistols Bobbitt rustled up from collectors around the world. “There were a few actors jealous they didn’t have that piece,” Bobbitt says. “They are very hard to find.”

Ford was convinced his affluent cattle-rancher character would have used a Colt Peacemaker. One problem: Colt wouldn’t give up the showcase revolver.

“Not even for Harrison Ford,” Bobbitt says. “But we loved it so much we replicated the piece that’s sitting in a museum.”

The filmmakers rebuilt the gun down to the pearl handles while making changes they saw fit. For example, the trigger was adjusted to accommodate Ford’s index finger, which is still affected by an old injury. The two replicas are so stunning that Ford is working through the paperwork to acquire them. “Jon is making a deal with him to own one, but Harrison will get the other,” Bobbitt says. “They are really cool.”

The Hangover Part 2 Debuts May 26, 2011

THOR Debuts May 6, 2011

Where Rock Meets Props…This is Gonna Hurt

Most of you know Nikki Sixx as the bassist for Mötley Crüe and Sixx: A.M. What you may not know is that Sixx is also an author, clothing designer, musician and is the host of the Radio show Sixx Sense.  With the launch of his new book, This Is Gonna Hurt: Music, Photography and Life Through the Distorted Lens of Nikki Sixx, he can add kick-ass photographer to that lengthy list of accomplishments.

In 2009, Nikki and I had neighboring studios. He shared the concept of his photography project, scribbling furiously on scrap sheets of paper to convey his rapid-fire thoughts. Before I knew it, I was onboard the creative Sixx train designing and manufacturing insanely cool chain mail and steel prosthetics for a beautiful blonde, amputee model. We called my buddy Tommy Harper, Stunt Coordinator, to join in the fun as well.  The book is out April 12, 2011.

The Hangover 2… It’s a Wrap

2 THOR Article Mentions On JoBlo.com

http://www.joblo.com/index.php?id=35076

Excerrpt:

We then got a visit from the Props Master, Russell Bobbitt, who brought us some of the various Asgardian weapons being used in the film. As a sword nut, this was particularly awesome for me. And then, of course, came the motherf*cker of all weapons… Mjolnir. Yes, I wielded the Thunder God’s favored weapon. We all even had our pictures taken with the giant hammer, but alas, we weren’t able to have them for you today. But believe me, the sucker is massive.  And it’s funny, but “massive” is exactly the way to describe everything we’ve been shown. We later walked into Odin’s Throne Room, a set that was already half taken down, but that was still incredibly enormous… and yet detailed… just everything, even the minutia of what still remained. That’s a dynamic we clearly saw on set in every aspect, not just with a room or a weapon. That philosophy, which always accounts for the best kinds of stories, seemed to be at play in the direction of the film itself – Largeness filled with intimacy.

LOKI (Tom Hiddleston) interview on JoBlo.com

http://www.joblo.com/index.php?id=35095

You got to play with some of those fantastic weapons, how have you learned to wield them?

It’s been fascinating actually. And one of the first things I did when I came on board was that we started with stunt training. And we thought like what is… it’ll be boring if Thor was a tank. It’d be boring if Loki was another tank and they were just running into each other. So we thought if Thor is thunder and power and muscle and brawn and he’s got his hammer, Loki should be like… he should be so quick he’s like the wind. So if Thor is heavy, Loki is light. We thought what would be the weapon that Loki would be fighting with? So we thought throwing knives… because I think Loki doesn’t like to get his hands dirty in a fight. He likes to be quick, efficient and lethal. It’s like one blow – slam. So we thought it would be throwing knives. And I thought if there was a way… if Loki could fight in a way that was as impressive as Thor’s, but was completely different so in a way Loki is too quick and Thor can’t catch him, you know? I kind of conceived of Loki as a kind martial artist with these throwing knives. Someone who’s like a dancer. He dances his way out of combat and these knives are his way of keeping his foes at arm’s length but it’s lethal. When you get one of those knives in, you’re gone. I had a great time actually, we were shooting on another set shooting a bit battle sequence. And the set was made of this stuff. It looked hard but it was soft. It was foam. And my stunt knives were rubber so they didn’t like take out the grip or the camera operator. But we found like… I’d always throw them and Russell Bobbitt, the Props Master, would always go and retrieve them for me for the next take. And he couldn’t find one of the daggers and we were like looking all over the set for this dagger. And I’m like where the hell did it go? And like about half an hour later we’d thought we lost it somewhere in the green screen. And he said, Tom, and he pointed up and this rubber knife was stuck clean into the set, so I knew I was throwing them with some kind of velocity.

THOR

In the words of MC Hammer, “It’s Hammertime!”

On The Road Again…

Cowboys & Aliens Trailer