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Hi i am trying to find out if there is a comercial product out that will fill my needs or if someone knows how to create this effect.

I am working on a play in which an actress is suposed to hold a book over an open flame and the book dosent burn. i dont know if this is possible.

Looking for ways to properly flameproof a book, or buy a book built for this kind of illusion. Or maybe there is a flame substance that dosent bunr not enough to burn a book. not sure please help.

Mike

or.... you could not use a real fire

you could use a flame retardant cloth (sometimes used to make certain types of overall) and glue it over the cover of the book so it looks like a simple clothbacked cover... (clothbacked isnt actually the correct term i dont think but ive had a bad day and its the best description your likely to get at this point!)

How about using cold flame.

Like white or yellow phosphorus.

It burns giving flames but is not hot enough to burn anything.

Be VERY CAREFUL while handling that substance.
Its toxic.

I agree with Lawrence - it's the theatre after all! Make it a stylistic thing .

we can use fake fire but it dosent llok as cool as when real flames are surrounding the object. thanks for the suggestions though

I'm guessing this is a smaller theatre...I think there are restrictions on how much fire can be used in a performance anyway .

Any good (proper) tool shop, that sell welders etc or perhaps a plumbers merchant will sell heat proofing by the sheet. They use it for welding/soldering with a blow torch flame and not burning the skirting wood behind the pipe, or in the case of welding, damaging paintwork with an oxyacetalene!!!!.

A blow torch is hotter than a normal flame and so this sheeting could be used to cover the back of a book and is flexible enough to allow it to close.

You now have just two major considerations left

First the problem of heat conducting to the hands of the holder, this is why the welding sheet would be best (it will take the longest if at all).

Second when the flame hits the back of the book it will spread sideways across the back untill the flame reaches the edge of the book. If there are fingers in the way holding the book open........

Just assuming, how would it be if the book starts burning.

Damn I hope that does'nt happen

How long does the book need to be over the flame, etc?

You could simply cover the front of the book with plexi glass - or real glass for that matter....it would allow you (from a distance on the stage) show the book and cover to be visible, but without any sleights, etc...you could put the book in the flame......really depends on exactly how long, how in the fire, etc

I should imagine the actor might have a problem holding their arms over a real fire also


You can get some quite good looking fake fire things, like this for example:
http://timeforhalloween.com/fake_fire_video.htm

there's a video clip of it in action too on there.

Or how about not using fire at all? Neither fake nor real.

You can find this here.
There are also many different gimmicks out there.
I have seen this as a combination of a light, thin silk and a fan that blows the silk up, so it looks like flickering flames. Looks very realistic

I watched the Circ du Soleil show, 'O' in Bellagio, Las Vegas....there's a bit where a guy comes out with a burning book and he himself is on fire! He then sits down and reads the book...on fire!

The book was made of metal so it seemed. And I assume the guy was a stuntman. But as in a theatrical product, it has been done....


I have also seen flaming books for sale at some magic shops (you'll need to search online).

I'd opt for a pepper's ghost type effect... easily done with a TV screen and a piece of glass.

The whole outcome of this depends on how far you're prepared to take it for the sake of realism.

How about a coloured light with a piece of cloth over it blowing upwards like the kind you see on those tv award shows?