CFX • PO Box 2395 • Tempe, AZ • 85280-2395

(480) 227-7384 • crstarr@cfxaz.com

CFX WILL NOT SELL OR OTHERWISE DISSEMINATE EXPLOSIVES, WEAPONS, OR OTHER DANGEROUS MATERIALS TO ANY INDIVIDUAL(S) NOT AFFILIATED WITH CFX OR NOT POSSESSING PROPER LICENSING.

If you need it blown up, burnt, shot at or drenched, call CFX!

SERVICES PROVIDED

• explosives, pyrotechnics, weapons, bullet hits, atmospheric and mechanical effects, scale models, miniature pyrotechnics & special effects, custom electronics
• FEATURE FILMS TELEVISION COMMERCIALS MUSIC VIDEOS INDUSTRIALS
• THEATRE CONVENTIONS PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL EVENTS SEMINARS TRAINING

SPECIAL EFFECTS COORDINATOR

• Cory R. Starr - Federal Licensee, established 1989

• Armorer, Weapons Coordinator, and Technical Advisor - prior Law Enforcement
• Education in Mechanical, Manufacturing, and Aeronautical Engineering

LICENSING AND AFFILIATIONS

• BATFE TYPE 20 Federal Explosives License: Manufacturer of High Explosives
• IABTI (International Association of Bomb Technicians and Investigators) Associate Member - Region I
• Phoenix FD (AZ) Fire Dept. Class 3 Certificate: Special Effects
• IATSE (Arizona Studio Mechanics): Local 485 Special Effects & Weapons Coordinator
• APA (Arizona Production Association) Member
• License copies are available upon valid request

 

PYROTECHNICS AND EXPLOSIVES back to top

• bullet hits • multiple gunfire • controlled explosions • fire • flame • smoke • sparks • photos

Being fully licensed to use all explosives, CFX can design and engineer all of your effects from the simplest bullet hit to the most complex building explosion – even "safe" explosions that can be set-off within several feet of an actor.

Our portable blasting boxes are shunted for safety, we also have polarized and non-polarized “nail rails.” We also employ a specialized relay box which can synchronize a bullet hit to the sound of a blank gunshot – this is particularly useful when the weapon and the object being shot are in the same frame.

Flame design creates various types fire – from a smoldering campfire to a 25' tall blast furnace of a bonfire. Flame bars placed inside a building or vehicle can simulate an engulfing or sustained fire, while our flame rails can produce a wall of flame up to 32 feet wide and 15 feet tall.

WEAPONS back to top

• armorer • weapons handler • technical advising • weapon mockups • photos

We have Glocks and access to full-auto firearms through our NFA licensed affiliate!

Having prior Law Enforcement training has allowed me to offer expert weapons handling and technical advising. We have a selection of weapons that are safe to fire at point blank range into am actor's head without any injury, known as “Suicide Guns” because they are used in suicide scenes. These guns have completely sealed barrels; absolutely nothing can be expelled from them. Additionally, we do have weapons that produce full muzzle flash for those scenes requiring such.

Under special situations fully-automatic weaponry can be provided to handle just about any shot envisioned. Or, if desired, mock-up weaponry can be designed and manufactured that can simulate non-existing, or legally or cost prohibitive weaponry for your production. Fully-automatic or semi-automatic bullet hits can be simulated using our CO2 powered ball rifles, these offer a quick, inexpensive, and easy-to-reset method that produces quite realistic results without severely damaging the object being shot. Often used on their own to simulate bullet hits without costly pyrotechnic versions, they can also be used with pyrotechnics to create fantastically realistic effects. Various results can be accomplished by changing the material composition within the balls themselves, from simple dust ricochet shots, to sparking shots.

We can also outfit your SWAT or police “talent” with synthetic weaponry, a great cost cutting alternative to renting live weaponry – with none of the danger.

ATMOSPHERIC EFFECTS back to top

• wind • rain • dust • smoke • fog • photos

Complete atmospheric (weather) effects can be designed to create almost any weather condition your shot requires. We can simulate rain, wind, dust, fog, or just about any atmospheric condition you require – whether it is snow in the summer time, rain in the desert, or wind inside a studio. We recreated an entire thunderstorm as seen from inside a Tour Bus, which was inside a studio.

MECHANICAL EFFECTS back to top

• mechanical effects • physical effects • special effects props • electronics • photos

Numerous sight gags are accomplished through pneumatics, hydraulics, and other mechanical actuation - we design and engineer each of these effects to meet your specific needs, employing off-the-shelf technology wherever possible to keep your cost down.

Stage explosions designed through breakaway pneumatics, hydraulics, and flash compounds can imitate an intense explosion without producing any explosive shock-wave.. This style of explosion is quite useful for on-stage work where using explosives is either disallowed or otherwise not feasible.

Custom made props and electronic devices can be made to simulate just about any real action your script calls for.

MINIATURE EFFECTS back to top

• miniatures • model building • “micro-technics” • photos

Blowing up a full-scale building can be cost prohibitive, or simply out of the question; instead, let us engineer a large-scale (1/12th or larger) miniature for your production. We do complete miniature work, comprising design and construction of miniatures and miniature pyrotechnics (micro-technics), and their subsequent destruction.

Contact CFX to discuss your needs.