Black gooey stuff on the ceiling

N

N3D

Active member
Okay so i'm gearing up to shoot a horror web series and i think this is the right place to post.

I want to practically and safely apply some sort of black or brown (rusty brown) stain upon the ceiling.

It could be like a water/leak stain.
Gooey/slimey/oily.

Just need a safe way to apply it and then wipe it off without repainting or leaving a permenant mark.

Any ideas?

I tried it in post using After Effects but it just looks too fake. I'd happily ADD to it in post to further enhance it.

Thanks guys,

Ned
 
That will depend on the current ceiling - is it painted, and with what sort of paint (acrylic/enamel)? I realise you probably won't know, unless you painted it yourself. :( So that means anything you apply will unpredictably react to the ceiling - perhaps harmlessly wiping straight off, but perhaps sinking in indelibly. By far the simplest solution would be to prepare to repaint the ceiling afterwards.
 
Put up a false ceiling fixed just under the real one, and stain that. It could be a thin plastic or canvas sheet any colour you like, stretched out flat to keep the creases out of it.

Try staining a sample of it before it goes up to see what it looks like. Maybe plywood? Stand it up against a wall to shoot some angles prior.

Cheers.
 
I agree with Allan that putting up a false ceiling would be a great approach. Build a 1x3 stage flat large enough for your angle and lens choice and stretch medium weight muslin over it. Just google "stage flat" or "theatre flat" for more info on that. Then just prop it up with some more 1x3's or even light stands and you're good to go. You can paint it whatever color it needs to be and add whatever stain you want. If you want to add some texture to match a certain type of ceiling you can add sand or sawdust to the paint to break up the surface and catch some light.

Another thing you might want to try... I can't swear that this will not leave a stain so TEST IT FIRST!!!! But I've done something similar on a stage set once where I needed a wall to have mildew grow between acts. I spread Vaseline on the wall then dusted it with fuller's earth and bits of peat moss. Then every night after the show that was all wiped off and cleaned off only to be reapplied during intermission the next night. Now, back to my disclaimer of TEST IT FIRST. This was on flats that were built and painted just for this show and were supposed to look shabby and distressed so if it was leaving stains we didn't notice because we didn't care. But it did look really good because anywhere the Vaseline was showing through the dust and bits it caught the light and looked wet. So if it does not leave a stain you could play with other materials to dust onto the Vaseline to find the look you want.
 
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A false ceiling's a great idea, except you have to somehow attach it to the real ceiling and/or walls, which probably means nail/screw holes afterwards.
 
clang said:
A false ceiling's a great idea, except you have to somehow attach it to the real ceiling and/or walls, which probably means nail/screw holes afterwards.
Click to expand...

There are plenty of ways of rigging a false ceiling safely without drilling into the structure. That's the biggest reason for using a muslin covered flat, the weight. Just build whalers (long L shapes with 1x3) and use one in each corner. Paint them wall color then use props and such to dress them out. Industrial setting, paint some large PVC pipe and use that. Rundown house, dress the supports with junk homeless have left in there. Elegant ballroom, paint it to match whatever trim and frills are all over the room. There is always a way.

Or better still, just frame the supports out of the shot. Then you can just rig it with some C-stands or use 1x3s as legs.

And all of that is moot if the ceiling has beams or trusses showing. Then you just need some big C-clamps with baby pins and some baby plates to screw to the flat.
 
I wonder if you could have a “wrap” made. Like the wraps put on race cars or commercial vehicles.
I would think you could get any color you needed and hold it up with double sided tape.
Just thinking.
 
Ah this is a sticky situation. Still thinking of how to do this.

Im not entirely sure how to stick the false ceiling.
 
You'd probably have to suspend it just under the real ceiling if > you want to show your talent reacting to discovering it and moving around under it.

But if you can block it to show *it* then the reactions, you maybe able to use a large square of plywood supported by C stands in each corner as Dan says ..
then cut to the reactions.

Either way lighting is vital, plus some horror music in the mix.

Cheers.
 
Depending on your required shots, the ceiling can be completely fake, doesn't even have to physically be in a ceiling position, e.g. could actually be a panel of plasterboard leaning against a wall but shot from angles to imply it's the ceiling (lighting will be important here). If you need to also show a bit of wall, that could be done with a second sheet of plasterboard (painted or papered to look similar to the room's actual walls) at right angles to the first.

If you're really worried about staining the room's actual ceiling (and I totally sympathise, the location's owner could be very unimpressed by a sudden stain), that's probably the simplest and safest solution, even though it may restrict your shots somewhat.
 
Liquid latex is great (the milky stuff kept in liquid form by ammonia). Once dry, its rubber-like and will be tearable as one piece without residue from almost any surface*. Small splashes or really thin layers can be rubbed off, anything with thickness of about 1mm or more can usually be ripped of in one part. Apply one clear layer to protect the surface from any dyes or pigments, let it dry, then mix any paints, pigmets, fillers, sawdust, flour, ground, whatever to latex to get an appropriate gooey stuff to apply on top of the clear layer.

It might depend on the type of latex, I'm used to use "Revultex LR" brand, which unfortunately is only available in big containers from an industrial provider which is a bit of pain as it doesn't have the greatest shelf life. Not sure of other brands but I've heard same kind of stuff is available in < 1ltr bottles in special DIY stores or FX makeup companies, for about 100x the price.

A thin layer will dry in < 5 minutes. A thickened surface of about 5-10mm takes about one night to dry, anything more might take practically forever as it kind of encloses itself possibly leaving the innards wet forever. It doesn't necessary need to be dry for shooting, but ripping it of should generally only be attempted when it's completely dried to a rubber piece.

* ALMOST any, its always good idea to test. The main exception would be most textiles, especially wool and similar, which it will stick to forever, with absolutely no way to never get it cleaned ever. It might be also possible that some surfaces will react to the ammonia, but personally I haven't seen that happening with anything. It really stinks like hell (really, a sniff is like a punch in the face, only less dangerous), but once it's dry, the smell won't stick around for long unless you shoot in an airtight bubble.
 
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