September 18, 2009
THE LOST ART OF HOLLYWOOD ... FOUNDNew virtual Film & TV production art gallery opens to celebrate a vanishing art form.
SAN JOSE, CALIF. - September 18, 2009. - Remember what the movie experience used to be like? The smell of popcorn wafting through the lavish lobbies. The walls adorned with beautiful posters promising a wonderful escape into a make believe world, the ushers, and the noisy projectors, feeding their magic of light and sound onto the screen. It made you feel like you had entered into a little piece of Hollywood itself. While watching the film you might ask, "Where did they get that?" or, "How did they come up with that?" or, "Who designed that beautiful dress?"
Who makes this stuff?
The piece to the right, Indiana Jones head study, by Lawrence Noble
Well now you can find out. A new website, www.ProductionArtGallery.com, has found those unsung artists and craftsmen who created the posters, designed the sets and costumes, crafted the very look of the film, and through their art, delivered on the promise that only the magic of movies and television can offer. Many are still around. One thing is for sure, their art has been found and is now, for the first time ever, being offered on a site. And, its all for sale. Viewing the site is like walking into film history. Star Wars, The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, Flash Gordon, Lost in Space, and so much more. They are all represented through the gifted talents of artists like John Alvin, Lawrence Noble, David Edward Byrd, Chris Hopkins, Edith Head, Michael Hobson, Tim Flattery, Ron Croci, and Paul Zastupnevich.
Much of the artwork rendered since the early days of Hollywood, has been discarded and destroyed by studios, networks and advertising agencies, who were unaware, or under appreciative of the value of the art form. And in other cases, pieces have been missing or unidentified and spread all over the globe.
The piece to the left, from the movie Enchanted, by John Alvin
Now a new virtual on-line art gallery is open that specializes in celebrating the vanishing film & television production art form. This week, ScreenUsed (www.ScreenUsed.com), which brokers original movie & TV memorabilia, has launched the Production Art Gallery (www.ProductionArtGallery.com) , which it describes as: "The world's first virtual Art Gallery, solely dedicated to original film & television production artwork."
The Production Art Gallery website features never before seen, hand-rendered, original film & television artwork, including: concept art, storyboards, costume designs, matte paintings, blueprints/schematics, studio photographs, publishing & merchandising art, and rare advertising art; many rendered by some of Hollywood's most talented artists. Original art that is being featured in the preview opening of the website is dated from the 1960's to the present day.
"We have always felt this is a category of original film and television memorabilia that has not really gotten the full appreciation it's due.", said Desi DosSantos, ScreenUsed's co-founder and the curator of the site. "We have found original production art that has often been vastly underestimated in regard to its long term historical value, and are very excited to be promoting this important, lost art form".
"We also think the ever rising prices in the sale of original advertising art, book illustrations, fantasy and comic book art over the past decade are significant signs that there is great potential in the collecting of and investment worthiness of original film & television production art." DosSantos explained. "It's within reason to expect an original piece of film art to sell for over one million dollars in our lifetime. Artwork for a classic one-sheet movie poster might achieve that benchmark." DosSantos stated.
April 19, 2009
Recently, Wendy's Old Fashioned Hamburgers ran a contest where customers could win various adventure prizes. Among the prizes was a screen used trench coat worn by Chuck Norris as Walker, Texas Ranger in the television series. The item was supplied by ScreenUsed for the contest.
Click the picture on the right to see the closed auction web page.
March 1, 2009
Based on popular request from customers, we now have more options in our payment plans. During your order checkout, you can utilize the Optional Payment Plan section to select various payment plans depending on the total of the order. This is provided as a service without any interest or other charges. After all payments are complete, your item is shipped to you. Any cancellation of a purchase based on a payment plan must be approved by ScreenUsed, and will result in store credit only, excluding the value of the non-refundable deposit - no cash refunds.
Below are the various installment options based on the total value of the order:
- Under $750 - 50% non-refundable deposit and a payment in 1 month
- $750 and higher - 25% non-refundable deposit and 3 monthly payments
- $3000 and higher - 25% non-refundable deposit and 6 monthly payments
- $5000 and higher - 25% non-refundable deposit and 9 monthly payments
August 21, 2008
We have removed the PROMO ITEMS section on the website, and combined the items back into the main ITEMS FOR SALE section. As it turns out, when customers were searching for items from specific movies it is preferred to see promo items at the same time.
October 9, 2007
ScreenUsed.com version 3.0 is now online. We have again updated the website based on more customer feedback and requests.
- PROMO ITEMS - After several customer requests for various promotional items, ScreenUsed has created a new section on the website. These are items such as crew gifts, press kits, promotional give-aways, premiere documents, studio documentation, etc. This section can be accessed by clicking on the new "PROMO ITEMS" menu button.
- ONLINE ORDER PROCESSING - When ordering an item from the website, there is now a secure order form that you can view with all detailed information, including payment plans, recent payments, and your outstanding balance. The following is the ScreenUsed order process:
- Select items for your shopping list and click CHECKOUT
- Login to your account or create a new one. Input your contact information and shipping address, along with any comments or questions you have.
Order Status is now "Order Submitted". - The order is processed by ScreenUsed and you will receive an email reply with shipping options and costs, along with answers to any of your questions.
Order Status is now "Shipping Selection". - Login on ScreenUsed, select the shipping option you prefer, and then make a payment. Payments are via Visa/MC/Amex/Discover, PayPal, Money Order, Cashiers Check, or Wire Transfer. If the payment is either credit card or PayPal, it will be processed in real-time and you will recieve a confirmation right away.
Order Status is now "Order in Process". - Once the payment is processed or received, ScreenUsed will send you an email with shipping date and possible tracking information.
- If you selected a payment plan, you will see the payment plan and due dates in your online order. ScreenUsed will send you a reminder email for each payment. You can login at any time and submit a payment using the method you choose.
Order Status is now "Order Completed".
- REAL-TIME PAYPAL and CREDIT CARD CHARGES - When using the new online order processing system mentioned above, all PayPal and credit card payments will be processed in real-time when you submit them. In addition, ScreenUsed now accepts Discover cards, in addition to previously accepted payments with Visa, Mastercard, American Express, PayPal, money orders, cashiers checks, and wire transfers.
August 23, 2007
ScreenUsed.com version 2.1 is now online. You now have the ability to search for items by actor - just use the new Actor pull down list. You don't have to scroll through the whole list, just click on the pull down then start typing the last name of the actor and it will jump to their name.
May 28, 2007
ScreenUsed.com version 2.0 is now online. We have updated the website based on customer feedback and requests.
- INSTANT NOTIFICATION! - Once you have an account and login, you can sign up for automated e-mail and SMS mobile phone notification the instant an item is posted on the website that matches your criteria. You can select from any movie and/or any actor, along with narrowing that down to props, wardrobe, production items, or other. Lastly, you can type in a comment to assist in describing any particular item in more detail that you are looking for. All information is secure using our SSL connection (you will see a lock icon in your browser). Below is an example showing some active subscriptions.
- CUSTOM DISPLAYS - ScreenUsed has a complete workshop for creating custom display cases for your props and wardrobe. Each display is uniquely styled to accommodate the individual prop or costume piece. The majority of our display cases can include printed screen captures if the movie is available on DVD, along with a custom descriptive plaque. Please view some of our past display cases in the Custom Displays section for examples, along with the Archive section of the website.
- FORMAT and SORTING - When searching in Items For Sale, Archive, or the Private Collection, you now have additional abilities for formatting and sorting the display. First, we still have the GRID view that everyone is familiar with; in addition, there is a LIST view that allows you to see a text listing of the items. Sorting can be selected by Oldest, Newest, Movie Name A-Z or Z-A, along with Highest Price or Lowest Price. Select any of these settings then click the SEARCH! button.
February 16, 2007
Stephan Lokotsch will be leaving ScreenUsed to endeavor into more production oriented projects in Hollywood. He has several projects under way and will be focusing his future on that aspect of his career. We wish him luck.
October 6, 2006
We are glad to announce Brad Castillo as another new member of the ScreenUsed team. Brad has been building custom display cases with us for the past several months and is now working with us full time in order to handle the continuous volume of displays. If you are interested in a custom display case for one of your treasured pieces, or a piece from our website, please click this link for details and examples of the cases that Brad and Jeff both design.
April 10, 2006
An article was written about ScreenUsed at The Hollywood News. See www.thehollywoodnews.com
January 19, 2006
Because of the volume of requests from collectors, ScreenUsed is now offering a custom display case service. We will work with you to design a one-of-a-kind display case for your original props and wardrobe. There is no better way to show off your prized piece than in a protective display case from ScreenUsed. For more information, see our Custom Display Case page.
December 14, 2004
We are happy to announce that Stephan Lokotsch has joined ScreenUsed. Stephan has been an avid prop collector for approximately 20 years. He is an award-winning feature and short film producer and has worked in the Entertainment field for well over a decade. He has written for various international movie magazines and books, such as Artificial Worlds by Effects experts Dr. Rolf Giesen, Claudia Meglin and Academy Award® winner Volker Engel (Independence Day). He is also one of the driving forces behind "Movie FX", the first publication on Special Effects in Film and Television in DVD format.
Stephan's keen interest in special effects and subsequent work on the subject matter has resulted in excellent contacts among the Special & Visual FX greats of our time, as well as the Hollywood Studio system.
February 6, 2004
We have entered into several agreements with some collectors and Hollywood industry insiders. From these relationships, several new high end pieces from various popular movies will be coming available during this year. Some of them will be featured on our home page from time to time. Pieces from movies such as Star Wars, The Matrix, Terminator 2, and many others will be featured. So keep checking in.
September 19, 2003
New ScreenUsed.com web site opened. The site has been designed to make it easier for you to find that treasured piece of movie memorabilia you have been looking for. Use the menu on the right to start the general search criteria in an area of interest. From there, you can select from a list of movies, display 4 or 8 items per page, sort by the newest items, and select what kinds of pieces you are interested in. You can also switch between For Sale, Private Collection, or Sold items. In all cases, after setting your selections, click the Search button to display the matching items.
July 12, 2003
BTTFprops.com and ScreenUsed.com join together. Brought together over the years by a shared interest in the Back to the Future trilogy, the owners of the two web sites decided to combine the display of their collections in one place. This idea started at the Back to the Future Exhibit displayed at the FX-2002 SciFi show in Florida. Both collections were displayed together and received positive compliments from those that attended. This size of display had never before been attempted for the Back to the Future trilogy. Through the years, they have built relationships with many collectors, property masters, weapons coordinators, crew members, and studio contacts.