You may have heard us gush about this already, but we're making our way over to the Film Biz Recycling prop shop in Brooklyn tomorrow night for "Lights, Camera, Auction!", an auction for salvaged movie props put together by Film Biz Recycling and the blog and online marketplace Krrb.
We got to sit down with Krrb's Andrew Wagner and Jessica Blackman to get the inside scoop on how everything came together. And don't miss the slideshow for a sneak peak and what you can expect from each of the curators below.
So how did you get the idea for this auction in the first place?
Jessica: It all started because I went to a live auction this summer and it was the first one I’d ever been to. It was so amazing to see a guy do that fast talking and my adrenaline was pumping during the bids. It was completely amazing. I thought, 'We need to do one of these in Brooklyn. We need to bring a live-auction down to earth to everyday people.' Then we approached Film Biz Recycling because their mission is so important and they are an amazing organization.
Andrew: Discarding props is a prevalent thing in the industry. Not surprising, the founder of Film Biz Recycling used to work in the film biz so she saw more of that happening and decided to do something. They have a prop shop where you can go in and walk around to look at all of these amazing, secondhand items, but they give most of the objects away to shelters and charities for people really in need. Sometimes, film industry people come to the prop shop and buy items back for another project -- talk about full circle!
How did you decide which items would be included in your collection?
Jessica: We worked with Film Biz on choosing the main auction items, from super low end items priced at a dollar to more expensive stuff. It’s just a sampling of fun things people would be interested in bidding on. Then we invited five curators to come in and pick their collections. It’s amazing that they donated their time to dig through the prop shop and put their own personalities into each collection, and every curated group is very unique and represents each of the individual curator’s design sensibilities.
Andrew: I picked out my items and was really pleased. I love the carafe, and even though it has a plastic handle, you can always fix it up -- I mean, 22k gold! -- and the pot belly stove is the coolest thing I’ve seen. If I had a backyard, I would have bought it for sure but I’m still looking for some space in my apartment for it...
Jessica: It’s great because it’s an auction so we have this amazing ability to start off low. The pot belly stove would retail online for $350, but we are starting the bidding at $200. We were able to discount the items so much.
Can you tell us which film sets the props are from?
Andrew: Because we’re dealing with the entertainment industry, we needed to keep these things secret.
Any prop envy?
Andrew: When I saw the other curated collections, I thought ‘Damn! Their stuff is so cool!’ I mean, that beautiful vintage tandem bike that Oliver has is amazing, the blue is just gorgeous. And, the piece of the night might be that over-sized chalkboard.
Jessica: Agreed! The piece was hand-built by a carpenter. I mean, have you ever seen a chalkboard like that? Totally unique.
Where did you find an Auctioneer?
Jessica: Our auctioneer is amazing. He’s from Long Island and has a great, thick accent. He’s very respected in the auction world -- he said he went to the Harvard of auctioneer schools. We didn’t even know there were auctioneer schools at first, but rest assured, he’s the best. He’s going to keep us to the time frame because he runs his own auction house on Long Island, Al Baker Country Style Auctions.
And the venue?
Andrew: The venue is really cool. It’s an old industrial location, very magical and interesting place people have never seen before even though it’s just around the corner. We wanted to suggest the adventure in finding new ways to use your own stuff, to get out and explore your own neighborhood, which will always hold surprises.
Jessica: We also created a mini-set where people can take photos with the props they just bought, sort of like those old western photo booths where you can try on hats and costumes -- same thing!
Any last take home messages for everyone?
Jessica: We roped in all local vendors, the Brooklyn Brewery is even providing free beer.
Andrew: This auction is about bringing auctions down to earth. We wanted to stay true to the Krrb roots of not buying anything new -- everything was donated. The paddles for example are upcycled books that we screen-printed numbers on. Everyone who comes will be able to take their's home as a souvenir. This is a combined effort to push the Krrb mission of not buying new and seeing beauty in the old, and we wanted a low overhead cost so as much money as possible can go back to Film Biz and their charities. We would love for people to check it out online and, even more, to come in person and enjoy the event.
Check out this slideshow to see what you can find at Light, Camera, Auction.
