Calgarians are getting some unusual new options for getting creative with Stampede decorating this year.
It’s all about giving that wild west look a really wild twist.
Bleeding Art Industries, a Calgary company that provides props and other items for movie and TV productions, is holding a closeout sale as it shuts down.
“We do a lot of things,” Bleeding Art’s Becky Scott said, ”practical special effects, custom fabrication, we make our own blood.”
The closeout sale provides a rare chance for people to pick up unique props used in westerns.
“No denim – we’re going to create a new kind of Stampede,” Bleeding Art’s Leo Wieser said.
Items for sale include a flexible horse’s leg and a life-sized horse’s head made of clay.
“Run a pipe through the head and you could have champagne coming out,” Wieser said. “Or beer.”
Props such as that might lend a social event a traditional feel, while items created for horror productions could add a real twist on tradition.
“Who wants horseshoes and hay bales?” Scott said. “Like, do something a little different.”
The decision to shut down operations after more than two decades was a difficult one, but Scott says it’s the right move at this time.
“There’s a writers’ strike going on, so that has affected what productions are shooting right now – all the activity that people were expecting hasn’t quite come to fruition yet,” Scott said. ”It’s still a tough industry, and I think COVID has affected us as well – costs have been going up and there are still supply chain issues, so it’s still a challenge to run a company like this.”
The closeout sale continues until July 31 on the company’s website.