Do movies use airsoft ?

Masada

If you clip away some of the URL you'll get to the parent folder, where i found this.,


Dont look like an airsoft rifle to me.

NakedDex

I think it's a polycast. The kind of thing used in films like Saving Private Ryan and Braveheart where a large number of items that look like the real thing from a distance are needed cheaply. Doesn't happen as often with modern weapons though, since it's just as cheap and easy to rent or buy real/deact/replica units andnot have to worry about poor shots showing off the cheap effect.

ED E

According to the source they are extras. I dont know how much CG was used but if you've seen the movie there are literally thousands of both V's and Guards, only the front row would really need perfect kit.

Dont look like an airsoft rifle to me.

Yeah, thus the comment saying even cyma look better than that.

NakedDex

I know the technique they used. They needed a few hundred people which were then cloned. Attention to detail is what makes a film good, and the Wachowskis are famous for it. I'm sure their multi million dollar budget stretched to a few hundred rented rifles from a prop company.

Hivemind187

The BBC seem have come into a large number of G36C's over the last two years ... a huge number of them were used in the filming of Doctor Who, Torchwood, Jekyll and Frankenstein and I dare say that a number of them were JG clones tarted up like a whores drawers.

The Master

Hivemind187 wrote: »

The BBC seem have come into a large number of G36C's over the last two years ... a huge number of them were used in the filming of Doctor Who, Torchwood, Jekyll and Frankenstein and I dare say that a number of them were JG clones tarted up like a whores drawers.

The ones used in Doctor Who/Torchwood were a mix of TM G36C's and Real Steel firing blanks

Fallschirmjager

28 weeks had a load of them.

Shiva

Hivemind187 wrote: »

The BBC seem have come into a large number of G36C's over the last two years ... a huge number of them were used in the filming of Doctor Who, Torchwood, Jekyll and Frankenstein and I dare say that a number of them were JG clones tarted up like a whores drawers.

They use one of my suppliers, and I was mistakenly sent their invoice for a batch of 40 JG G36cs
Poor buggers were paying through the nose for them too.

True story.

spicymchaggis

know for a fact airsoft guns used in hot fuzz, friend worked on set, but it was mainly pistols

Fallschirmjager

28 weeks was a definite...

its an easy choice particularly with 1080p on the rise, the old resin props just dont cut it anymore and with cheap alternatives why would they not. that looks like a resin prop in the V picture above to me at least. a dead giveaway is the flash hider (it looks filled to me) as resin is prone to breaks they tend to fill in bits like that.

Spitfire666

they used airsoft armalites in Jarhead too.

Hivemind187

Spitfire666 wrote: »

they used airsoft armalites in Jarhead too.

ICS to be specific.

ScumLord

I always thought that if the hammer was flat (no pin to hit the bullet) that it was an airsoft gun but I'm not sure if that's true after seeing some real steel pictures.

Stercus Accidit

If its a revolver, yes, but some airsoft revolvers have a false pin anyway, even my bell revolver.

Real semi auto's have a flat hammer that strikes the pin.

Frank the Manc

semi autos and most modern revolvers use a flat hammer to strike a seperate firing pin or transfer bar, so that wouldnt be a good indicator

SniperSight

Heckler wrote: »

http://www.imfdb.org/index.php?title=Main_Page

Nice site if you want a movie load-out !

Good site alright,
bit off about its statements about "replica" ACOGs .
It states that you can tell its an airsoft ACOG 'caus of the lack of the fibre optic band.
Even a glance at the Trijicon website would show that there are many ACOGs which dont have the Optical band.

I heard that at some satge you can see a UTG(Steyr SSG) sniper rifle being used be an extra in Vantage Point??

ojika

Hi guys , newbie here, this is a great source of info. I am currently in pre production for a low budget movie I have written and there are a couple of close up scenes where I need gun effects. Going to use airsoft for most scenes, but been looking at PFCs or the chance of getting forward venting blank firers so I dont have to put fake muzzle flash or blank ejection in post production. Any FX advice or pointing in the direction of suppliers would be appreciated.
you can message me or mail me on ojika@hotmail.co.uk

thanks,
Mark

gungun

wowzorz... necro:rolleyes:

diverdriver

Doing extra work for some years now. I have to say I've never seen an Airsoft replica in use. But then again, Airsoft is a recent phenomenon in Ireland. I worked with two different armourers. One used mainly deacks and dummy or blank firers. The other, quite well known in the trade used the real thing, mostly.

He also had 'rubber' SLRs which he told me had been used in 'Bloody Sunday'. They didn't bear close examination but worked for distance shots. He had real AK-47s and we used a real Beretta for the shooting. It was funny because my friend who was in the scene firing the gun was clueless about guns and was waving it about like it was a 'gangsta' movie. The armourer told me that was a problem because untrained people and blank firing can be lethal. I had a look in his van, it was a treasure trove of guns (real and prop). Incidentally we had an armed detective on set, discreetly of course.

The other armourer used a deacked AK and blankfirers with the muzzle blocked. They were issued to extras for running around with.

These were mostly for low budget RTE crime reconstructions too.

For low budget filmmakers, beware, isn't a permit required to film with replicas in public? You can scare people easily. I remember setting up for a scence. A bunch of us on a public road, all tooled up with balaclavas, AK-47, RPG, revolver and sledgehammer. A guy came around the corner is his car. The look of horror on his face was hilarious.

Firekitten

However, gaining a licence to use replicas in a public place is MUCH cheaper and easier to aquire than one to use real firearms, do you realise rubber guns are still realistic imitation firearms?

Point with real weapons is that you require a firearms officer on set at all times they are out of the locked armoury, and guarding when in. Theres an insurance nightmare, and when toys look the same, frankly, theres no point, Special effects and tech voodoo can make up for the lack of muzzle flash and sounds... Theres really no need to use real ones.

Gatling

the G36's in alien vs predator were built by wolf armouries airsoft in the uk useing the CA 36's for the the project

Masada

The Madbull AGX grenade launcher in the movie, "The Punisher, WarZone".





Theres also a number of productions by RTE and TG4 that used airsoft stuff they got from tony.

area51comando

the armed gaurds in one of the new epesodes of kilaniskully used airsoft USPs

Gatling

if anyone has the unit season 2 boxset they have a documentry on the the Dark side of the moon episode ,
they break down what guns used in the episode from m200 .50 snipers to m4's /m16s and m16 m203
now they give serving military personel or former now pro stunt guys blank firings guns normal joe extras only get rubber m16s
so what most people reckon are airsoft proably arent and so on

TheDoc

horgan_p wrote: »

heres the footage :

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/1666118/punisher_war_zone_restricted_footage/

here's the blurb on arnies :
http://arniesairsoft.co.uk/news2/3378


its at around 1:34 on the video. its their launcher apparently

I'm slowly but surely building his loadout.

Need launcher, his drop leg mag pouches and his vest, which costs in excess of 500 euro, sweet jesus

Hivemind187

Gatling wrote: »

if anyone has the unit season 2 boxset they have a documentry on the the Dark side of the moon episode ,
they break down what guns used in the episode from m200 .50 snipers to m4's /m16s and m16 m203
now they give serving military personel or former now pro stunt guys blank firings guns normal joe extras only get rubber m16s
so what most people reckon are airsoft proably arent and so on

It really depends on the production company tbh. If they already have a stock of rubber guns that are still serviceable (and dont require too many close ups) then they will use those. But believe me, the difference in realism between even a budget model airsoft and a rubber rifle is marked.

Damn ... now I'm depressed because all I can see is the flaws in the presentation of otherwise brilliant storytelling (except Merlin which is a total trousers).

The Beeb are rumoured to have bought in a shed load of G36C airsofts (along with a small number of blank firing) in the last few years. You'll notice that since about 2005-6 nearly all BBC productions where the police or the army is called in they have been using that model. This is because its the same production teams involved with the same resources. Its a lot cheaper (not to mention miles safer) to add in muzzle flash and spent cartridges with Premier or Avid etc after you have shot a sequence than using live kit on set. There is also the benefit of not having to teach your extras to use them properly.

Keep an eye on some of the guns you see in films for moving components. Its one of those easy to overlook things for inexperienced or lazy sfx people. Does the recoil look realisitic or muscle controlled? Does the rifles external mechanism (bolt carrier etc) move? These are small tings but you can sometimes spot a spent cartridge flying out of a sealed breach or even (in the case of early 1980's attempts) .45's whose slides appear fixed when ejecting cartridges.

Edit: this doesnt just apply to guns. Check out some of BBC's work on Robin Hood and Merlin and you'll see some very suspicious looking swords (exposed wooden blades, impossible movements considering the weight of a real object etc) and armour (lack of "chinking" sound, impossibly fluid dexterity etc).

gungun

saw that in a episode of the a-team:P
B.A. was firing a 1911, the slide locked back, but he didnt cop on so he brought the muzzel up again:pac:

Gatling

Hive "merlin" flying dragons and your looking at dodgy looking swords ,i blame the cost of cgi,

Masada

gungun wrote: »

saw that in a episode of the a-team:P
B.A. was firing a 1911, the slide locked back, but he didnt cop on so he brought the muzzel up again:pac:

You watch the A Team and thats the only unrealistic thing you can come up with?

Hivemind187

Gatling wrote: »

Hive "merlin" flying dragons and your looking at dodgy looking swords ,i blame the cost of cgi,

which has been reducing in cost every year thanks to Korean animation sweat shops.

You wouldnt bother with cgi for swords anyway, there should be thousands of them in the prop masters closet. They would normally only be used for children or ornaments so why they were used in combat scenes is beyond me (basic stage combat is part of every third level acting course so there really is no excuse).

I think it might have more to do with the insurance costs. Apparently the price to insure and actor is now absurdly high and nearly impossible to get if they are doing anything involving stunts. Certainly stuntmen havent been able to get a decent deal on insurance for many years.