April 21st, 2025
10minute read
The pros in Hollywood can make the impossible seem entirely real.
However, all that gunplay also requires that the film set be safe for the cast and crew.
Hollywood then changed the practice.
Larry Zanoff is lead armorer and assistant weapons manager at Independent Studio Services (ISS), the foremost source for firearms and props for the entertainment industry. Image: Alex Joseph/Springfield Armory
Masters of their Craft
Hollywood is full of magic makers.
So, clearly, a firearm could be considered a prop.
Having said that, prop has also taken on the meaning of something that is fake.
Zanoff brings more than two decades of experience to his role at ISS, managing a wide and varied collection of firearms. Image: Alex Joseph/Springfield Armory
As noted, the industry does have a very good track record.
All of it is done safely, by a small group of experienced, dedicated professionals.
And it is the exception, not the rule.
This highly decorated and customizedM79is from the 2020 film “Birds of Prey”. Image: Alex Joseph/Springfield Armory
That is true on the big screen, but also with many television productions.
There has been a lot of what we would call gun fight choreography, said Zanoff.
That was a lot of excitement.
ISS Props has its own gunsmiths for producing and modifying firearms for its projects. Image: Alex Joseph/Springfield Armory
Today there can be multiple people with guns, and then there are knives and other weapons.
Audiences are demanding much more today, and that requires more visual input that is almost constant action.
You cant have a dead moment in some of these films, and there has to be action throughout.
Training rifles for Ed Harris and Jude Law for the 2001 film “Enemy at the Gates”. Image: Alex Joseph/Springfield Armory
At ISS, its all done with a focus on safety.
Suspension of Disbelief
Beyond the safety concerns, the armorers have other challenges.
This can include making everything on screen seem as real as possible.
Ed Harris, shown here, portrays a German sniper during the Battle of Stalingrad. He is armed with a Karabiner 98k sniper rifle. Image: Paramount Pictures
In other words, this is what allows us to believe the magic we are witnessing.
However, today movie viewers can be quite discerning when it comes to the accuracy and realism of firearms.
As an armorer well always strive for 100 percent accuracy, Zanoff explained.
A Springfield Armory 1911 pistol gets some attention here on the gunsmith’s bench at ISS Props. Image: Alex Joseph/Springfield Armory
But we have to remember were creating entertainment.
So we have to take license on how the characters react.
Sometimes, the directors vision overrules the reality factor, again, because he/she is just telling a story.
Movies like “Lone Survivor”, above, show a greater degree of accuracy when depicting firearms than movies from prior decades. Shown are a M4A1 and Mk 12 Mod 1 SPR. Image: Universal Pictures
We dont write, produce, fund or direct the film.
So there are times that we ISS, and other on-set armorers do not get the final say.
In the case of science-fiction films, that can require making weapons that seem realistic and convincing.
Zanoff and the team at ISS Props bring unrivaled expertise and attention to detail to their work. Image: Alex Joseph/Springfield Armory
That can involve modifying modern firearms into something futuristic.
Other times it can require sourcing firearms from around the world for historic dramas and period pieces.
Global politics can even come into play.
For instance, we cant get any Russian armaments, historic or otherwise, right now.
Yet, the staff at ISS is always up to the task.
Period weapons are always a problem, but we also adapt, Zanoff explained.
If we cant find it, well replicate it.
That is just another part of the magic of Hollywood.
And ISS plays a big role in making that magic happen.
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