Your Expert Guide to prop storage

It is exciting to create an idea that will become a film and then to choose the Director, the actors, the locations and so on.  It is this creative work that drives the film and TV industries.

The less glamorous side of this business is the storage of the props used and their ultimate disposal. The “rear end” of the business. These phases may not capture the imagination of the creative people but are extremely important. This is something that Henden Manor Estates have recognised since they started offering high end storage services in 2021.

The props may need to be used for a reshoot and so need to be in good condition. It follows that they should be handled with care and stored in good, clean facilities, which can be accessed 24/7 by teams and all types of vehicles from vans to large articulated trucks.

The production may be a success on screening and so merit a further series. Under this scenario the props required will also need to be in good condition and accessible.

If there is to be no further series the props will go for disposal. Here there is often significant waste, much of which could be avoided. Some props could be used by another film, be sold or given to charity. Other props will end up in skips, but in this increasingly regulated and image important world it is important to tick all of the required ESG boxes. So, one will need skips such as those for metal, wood, plasterboard, glass and general mixed waste.

At Henden they are totally focused on this rear end business and recognise the value of props. 

Henden Manor Estates has been storing film and TV props since 2021. It offers secure, high quality private storage for the whole range of props from stage props to wardrobe. Clients have been predominantly major streaming companies, but some independent production companies have used Henden’s facilities as well.

Henden’s storage facilities lie in the centre of a well-financed, privately owned 500 acre estate. The estate is an historic estate of some thousand years. Since the Tudor age the estate was owned at various times by the Earl of Warwick the Kingmaker, King Henry VIII, Thomas and then Mary Boleyn and by Sir John Gresham. Moving into the last century it was rented by Sir Michael Balcon, the film producer who brought the famous Ealing Studios to prominence and where he entertained Alfred Hitchcock, a close friend, many times. The current owners bought the estate in 1997 and have consistently maintained it to a high standard in terms of operations and the environment.

Henden lies in good proximity to the studios close to London. The facilities, which were repurposed in 2021, lie in a secure area, which is closely monitored by 16 state-of-the-art CCTV cameras. The site is managed by an experienced team, who offer the discretion required for the productions, which can include high value and sensitive items. The team also manage or support the efficient disposal of the props in a manner that ticks all of the boxes required by the client and Government regulations, a highly important condition today.

If you have interest in using Henden’s facilities please contact us as below. We always recommend a site visit as experience has shown that visitors find it helpful.

For contacting Henden:

Martin Lovegrove       +44 (0) 7802 215 984                                 lovegrovem@hendenmanor.com

Suzanne Smith           +44 (0) 1732 750 758                                  info@hendenmanor.com

Website:                     https://www.hendenmanor.com/film-tv-storage

Many thanks to Henden Manor for compiling this guide for The Knowledge.