Do actors all need to agree to casually smoke for some roles?
At least in the United States, smoking is something fewer and fewer people take up these days. This obviously wasn't the case back in the 50's through the 80's, where cigarettes were commonly smoked out in public.
So whenever I see a period movie or show, filmed in the 2020's but taking place in the 60's, there's frequent scenes where characters are smoking cigarettes in a bar or stress-smoking to the filter after a stressful conversation. And I think to myself, "are these actors all smokers? In this day and age? Or is that an unlit prop ciggy with VFX smoke done in post?"
Are fake cigarettes common in film production now, or are these still typically the real deal?
I don’t even think it’s going into the lungs especially with non smokers. If you try to inhale smoke as a non smoker you’ll most likely cough your lungs out. I assume they suck the smoke into their cheeks and blow it out from there.
Most prop masters I've worked with use either this brand or something very similar. From that page the ingredients listed are: Marshmallow Leaves, Red Clover Flowers, Rose Petals, Fruit Juices, Honey. You can also buy packs that are designed to look like real brands(yellow american spirits, the famous "Marlboro Red", and white for marb lights.)
Fake cigarettes have been pretty common props for a while now. Obviously there used to be a lot more actual tobacco use on sets but nowadays, especially with a lot of municipalities outlawing tobacco smoking indoors in public spaces, its almost always all fake/herbal. There are also nicotine free vaporizers that are styled to look like real cigarettes.
they taste like a bouquet of flowers its like smoking your mums garden. the smoke is so light that you think its not lit but then u breathe out smoke. looks real, tastes like rolled up roses. bought 2 packs when I was trying to quit, had 2 and never touched them again
They’re herb cigarettes. Think about how long scenes take to shoot, it could be days for a single scene. They’d be smoking multiple packs in a day of nonstop smoking. Even actual smokers wouldn’t enjoy it.
I have a question of the same kind, how do they do when they clearly sniff coke ? What kind of white powder isn't harmful to the nose is used in cinema ?
I really wish movie makers would drop the ‘smoking is {cool,badass,…whatever} trope.’ I’m happy whenever I find that a whole cast never touches a cigarett on camera (think, How I Met Your Mother or The Big Bang Theory)
How I Met Your Mother literally had an episode only about smoking, revealing that everybody in the main group has smoked at one point, and they all do in that episode.
Besides that, isn't the "smoking is cool" phase in movies a thing of the past already? Most movies don't show anyone smoking, and if, I would say it's most often not the hero, but often some shady guys.
I know that episode. And the message, in red bold face across the screen for the entire episode is “Don’t smoke.” That’s different from the on-screen smoking I’m talking about.
Characters can be shady without smoking. Just because they’re not the hero, the appeal of ‘being shady’ and the incentive to look to them as a role model doesn’t vanish.