International Wood International Wood 2008 | Page 13

From his 26-year perspective in the business, Katz reports a lot of
evolution on the technical side of set building, such as lighting and elec-
trical developments. He also states that there has not been much change
in material technology. “From a manufacturing standpoint, there may
be some differences, such as different adhesives and manufacturing
processes,” explains Katz. “But for us, lauan is an old standard for set
construction. It takes stain, paint and paper well, has a clean face and is
easy to machine-cut to any size. Lauan has been around since builders
started using laminated goods. If you pull up old reference books on
scenery construction from decades ago, they describe how to use hand
tools on lauan. It is the mainstay of scenery walls.”
A closer look at the process of set building shows why material
choice is so crucial and why lauan is the industry standard. At Cinnabar,
every project is built from start to finish within a 30,000 square foot
workshop in Los Angeles. Once the design work is complete, the pieces
are cut, assembled, painted and finished with all the trimmings and
mouldings. Then they are broken down and taken to a sound stage,
location, or theater, and reassembled. “Lauan is as lightweight and du-
rable as it comes,” explains Katz. “We tried using MDF but it adds too
much weight. It makes it impractical for building and moving large
pieces. The lauan is much better suited for the type of work we do.”
“Lauan is as lightweight
and durable as it comes. We tried using
MDF but it adds too much weight. It makes
it impractical for building and moving large
pieces. The lauan is much better suited for
the type of work we do.”
Kip Katz, General Manager of Cinnabar California Inc.
i m p o r t e d w o o d
13