Dramatic Double Doors

“We want sinister here,” an enthusiastic director said. “We want suspense! Swell the music as the badguys march in through the door.” Wait a minute. What door? Where in our house do you expect to find a giant, wooden door for a castle throne room? “That won’t be hard!” the director replied. “A little cardboard and hot glue and you can make it happen.” Well, maybe. How big do you need it? “Oh, just big enough… You know what I mean.” That’s what I was afraid of. “Come on, you can do it. Oh, and while you’re at it, let’s make it double doors. It’s more impressive.”

If you haven’t guessed by now, that was a conversation I had with myself during the pre-production of iSundae II. The director won. The propmaker was sentenced to a week in the craftroom, or until the double doors were done, whichever came first. I had already made a much smaller door for a different part of the movie, so I couldn’t plead inability. I fired up Boomer, my hot glue gun, and started cutting. And cutting and cutting. And gluing. And cutting some more.

I got empty fabric bolts for free from the JoAnn Etc. in our area and used them for the exterior of the doors. I glued them together in a large sheet, then added rings of thinner cardboard to support the shape, since it had to be a thick door. Whoever heard of a throne room door a half of an inch thick?

The back and edges were attached to that, and it was time for the decorative stuff. Cardboard slivers, corrugated edge up, became fancy trim. Cardboard triangles added to the effect, and a cardboard handle finished it off.

I spray painted it brown, which was a mistake because I let the paint spatter and it ruined the wood grain effect. Then some copper accents and you have it. The director was happy, the propmaker was tired, and the double doors looked good.

How did the doors hold up in the movie? Here’s a video of three different entrances, each showing a different way we can use the doors.