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Property masters work closely with the production designer and the director to create the film’s look and feel. In films with tobacco, that includes acquiring and keeping track of branded packs, loose cigarettes or cigars, counter displays, posters and billboards, vending machines, lighters, even matches and ashtrays.
While systematic product placement worked at many levels of the industry, tobacco industry documents show that product placement agencies paid property masters cash bounties for snapshots of their client’s tobacco brands on the set. Cartons of cigarettes were routinely handed out to prop masters to promote use of particular brands in Hollywood films.
Today, if cigarettes — branded or unbranded — show up on screen, the film’s property master keeps track of them. If the property master doesn’t decide what brands appear, who does?
Property masters with the highest tobacco scores (2002-2004)
|
PROP MASTER |
50+ INCIDENTS |
LESS THAN 50 |
SMOKEFREE |
BRANDS |
Robert Griffin, Jr. |
1 |
2 |
0 |
Camel
Newport
Winston |
Doug Harlocker |
2 |
4 |
0 |
Marlboro |
Étienne Lapointe-Proulx
|
2 |
1 |
0 |
Marlboro |
Martin Lasowitz |
1 |
2 |
0 |
Marlboro |
Dean Eilertson |
1 |
1 |
0 |
Camel |
Sandy Hamilton |
2 |
0 |
0 |
Sweet Aftons |
Tania Bell |
1 |
0 |
0 |
Montecristo |
Jennifer Gerbino |
1 |
0 |
0 |
Winston
Marboro
Newport |
Doug Madison, Jr. |
1 |
0 |
0 |
Tareyton
Camel
Winston |
Hope Parrish |
1 |
1 |
1 |
Marlboro
Camel
Winston |
Method: Prop masters with minimum of 3.5 points awarded as follows: 1 point for a movie with 50+ tobacco incidents, 1/2 point for each movie with tobacco, minus 1/2 point for a smokefree movie, 2 points for a movie with brand display. Ranked by total points, alphabetically within score groups. Sample: Ten highest-grossing films in theaters each week between January 1, 2002 and December 31, 2004. Source: Thumbs Up Thumbs Down Project of American Lung Association-Emigrant Trails (Ca.): www.scenesmoking.org.
Updated May 5, 2005.
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