Film Term of the Week: Property Master

Property Master

1. The property master is an artistic and organizational employee in a film, television or theatrical production who is responsible for purchasing, acquiring and/or manufacturing any props needed for a production. The property master also works with other members of the production managing the physical appearance of the stage or set, for example they might work with the script supervisor to maintain set continuity. The property master is on staff during preproduction, develops the stylistic concept of the physical production, then continues on as a member of the physical shooting/production crew.

During preproduction, the props master develops a props breakdown. This is essentially mapping out the logical progression of each prop throughout the story. During shooting, the props master maintains the logical progression by ensuring the props are positioned in their correct logical place for each scene according to the props breakdown. If the logical progression of a prop changes during shooting, the props breakdown is revised to reflect the change.

Source: Ldsfilm, Wikipedia