The UFO
Disclaimer: I have
nowhere to store props from year to year, so they get tossed after Halloween.
Because of this, all
props you see are made to be cheap but NOT very durable!
The UFO
Disclaimer: I have
nowhere to store props from year to year, so they get tossed after Halloween.
Because of this, all
props you see are made to be cheap but NOT very durable!
 For
the main section of the flying saucer, we bought a cheap child's wading
pool and cut a large hole on top for the "bubble" and smaller portholes
around the side. Because of the way the ship would have to be mounted
on the front of the building, we only needed to use one pool. It
was then painted with cheap, silver spraypaint which was highly prone to
cracking and chipping, but since no one would see it up close, it wasn't
a problem. The inside of the ship was covered with two coats of spare
latex paint to keep the image of cartoonish sea creatures from showing
through once the interior light was in place. |
|
Here, Thunder
is lightly spraypainting squares of tracing paper. These were taped
with strong, clear packing tape to the portholes from the inside.
A light fixture would be placed inside the ship, making the portholes glow
bright green. |
|
 A
clear plastic dome whose original purpose remains unclear was used for
the "beacon" on top of the ship. Red gels were stuffed inside, followed
by clear, flashing Christmas lights. The whole thing was then taped
from the inside with MASSIVE amounts of duct tape. Next, two fullsheets
of 1/2" plywood were each cut into semi-circles then painted silver (after
a sealing coat of grey latex paint). The two halfs were joined together
with a large scrap piece of plywood in the center, with smaller, inconspicuous
pieces attached at the ends. Two holes were drilled through the center
for mounting purposes. A light fixture and bulb were attached to
the center wood support. Finally, the upper section of the ship was
attached to the wood using a heavy-duty staple gun; the electrical cords
for the lights were run out from one of the holes underneath. |
|
Next, a string
of blue Christmas lights was attached to the edge of the saucer section
with clear pushpins We had hoped to use chaser lights, but they were
impossible to find on short notice. We set the string of lights to
flash instead. Last, a length of strong rope strong rope was strung through
the holes at the center of the saucer section. These ropes were used
to hoist the ship up onto the balcony of the building, and to secure the
ship to the building by tying them to nearby metal rails. All of
this was hidden from the view of partygoers in the courtyard by a large
sheet of black plastic covering the opening. A fog machine hidden
under the ship provided the "smoke" from the crashed ufo. |
