Make a pull down green screen wall

Using a green screen for special effects and photography is nothing new.  Unfortunately, it can be difficult to set a large one up.  In the past I have spent 10-20 minutes just to set up my green screen.  I needed at least one other person to help me do it.

After doing this a couple of times, I decided that there must be a better way.  At first I had planned to have a pull down screen like they use in classrooms for projector screens.  I could not find any way to make one that was long enough, so I had to think some more.  Then I had an idea.  Instead of the complicated parts inside those spring loaded classroom screens, I could just use a handle.  So I put a handle on one end and manually wrap and unwrap my green screen.

Now that this project is finished, I can quickly and easily set up my green screen by myself in about 1-2 minutes.  The green screen box is pretty long though, so the only place I can use it is in the garage.  I could have it in the living room, but that would be awkward and I would need to move furniture every time I used it.

Here is a list of materials to make a green screen box like this one:
- A green screen (I would assume you already have one)
- Wood (I used 1" x 6" boards) 
- Pipe (Must be metal, other pipe droops down too much)
- PVC pipe fittings (For the handle)
- Some kind of strong glue (I used some contact cement that I already had)
- Very strong cable (To hang it with)
- Some high weight capacity wall hooks
- Chipboard (Dust cover)
- Epoxy
- Duct tape
- Screws, nails, etc.

Tools I used:
- Power drill
- Dremel
- Jigsaw

Also, just for those who try this, you may want to have access to a truck or some kind of large vehicle.  I drive a Toyota Yaris, so my building materials didn't quite fit.  I did still drive home with everything rigged up though.  I needed to get the stuff home and my friends with trucks were busy.  Luckily I keep plenty of bungie cords in my car.

Step 1 Make the box

The first thing I did was to measure the width of the green screen.  Mine is about 11' x 12' so my box had to be pretty long.  I went to Lowe's and got some 1" x 6" boards cut to 144" long.  I kept the scraps to us on other parts like the sides and for supports.

I knew it needed to be open on the bottom to allow for the green screen to roll out without getting snagged or anything.  To help be more cost effective, I decided to only get two long planks.  The top and back are those two planks joined together in an "L" shape.  I know that a box is supposed to have for sides, but it is easier for me to call this a box.

I used the scrap pieces to make the sides of my box.  I also used the scraps for interior support where it was needed.  The rest of the scraps were divided by size and attached to the back to provide some space away from the wall.

Comments

[fastfilmsinc]

Where do you get the "green screen" material

[skittlespider]

I bought mine on Ebay a few years ago.