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So if it’s impossible to light a pool of gasoline with a match, what is being used in movies when this appears to happen?
by gnicholas 4y ago
So if it’s impossible to light a pool of gasoline with a match, what is being used in movies when this appears to happen?
- MichaelDickens 4y agoI would think any fire on film is either CG or, if real, is lit by a hidden fuse being controlled by a pyrotechnician. It would probably be too dangerous to have an actor directly light a fire using a match.
- suzzer99 4y agoI've lit a pool of gasoline with a match before. Screwing around in junior high melting our plastic toys in the driveway - not something we should have been doing.
- giantg2 4y agoA lot of times it looks like they're burning alcohol to me. It's even more funny when they show them lighting jet fuel with a match or lighter.
- anon_cow1111 4y agoCigarette, not a match, which is an important detail. Gasoline absolutely will ignite if you drop a burning match on it (assuming the match doesn't go out as it's falling). If a movie shows a close-up slow motion shot of a match hitting the ground+igniting gasoline, it's probably "real", but the larger shot of the building or whatever going up is filmed separately. They usually use propane/natural gas for large fires because it can be piped in and turned on/off easily.
- gnicholas 4y agoAh yes, good point. So what is it different about a match and a cigarette? Is the latter always successful?
- boomboomsubban 4y agoA match has an open flame which burns at a higher temperature. Tobacco has a particularly low burning point I believe, many things would cause instant damage due to the temperature if smoked like a cigarette.