Rosco Scenic Coatings & Paint Systems

In brief: This page brings together Rosco Foamcoat, FlexCoat, Tough Prime, scenic paints and Flamex into a simple system. It’s designed to help scenic artists, fabricators and production teams in Australia and New Zealand choose the right combination for their project.

Rosco’s scenic range is designed to work as a system – primers, hard coats, flexible coatings, paints and flame retardants that all play nicely together. Below is a quick overview of how the main pieces fit, with links to detailed guides where you can dive deeper.

1. Priming & Surface Prep – Tough Prime

Rosco Tough Prime is the go-to primer for difficult scenic substrates – PVC, metals, plastics, MDF, and mixed materials that need a common base before paint or coatings.

  • Bonds to a wide range of surfaces.
  • Water-based and easy to work with in scenic shops.
  • Creates a solid, toothy base for scenic paints or coatings.

2. Hard Coats for Foam – Foamcoat

Rosco Foamcoat is a rigid, sandable, paint-ready hard coat for XPS, EPS and pink foam.

  • Turns fragile foam into a tough, impact-resistant surface.
  • Can be sanded and carved after curing.
  • Ideal for rockwork, masonry, architectural details and durable props.
  • Water-based, inherently flame retardant and compatible with Rosco scenic paints.

For detailed usage info, see the Rosco Foamcoat Guide.

3. Flexible Coatings – FlexCoat

Rosco FlexCoat is for builds that move, compress or take impact – soft props, touring sets, foam puppets, masks and scenic drops.

  • Dries to a flexible, rubberised finish – does not crack when bent.
  • Ideal for props and scenery that are packed, shipped and handled repeatedly.
  • Paintable with Rosco scenic paints and acrylics.

Learn more in the Rosco FlexCoat Guide or compare in FlexCoat vs Foamcoat.

4. Scenic Paints – Off Broadway & Supersaturated

Rosco scenic paints are the colour layer that sits over primers and coatings. In most scenic shops we see:

  • Off Broadway – a ready-to-use, water-based scenic paint line for most stage and themed applications.
  • Supersaturated – highly concentrated colours that can be diluted and manipulated for washes and glazing.

Both systems sit happily on top of Tough Prime, Foamcoat and FlexCoat when surfaces are properly prepared.

Explore the range here: Rosco Scenic Paints.

5. Flame Retardant Treatments – Flamex

For fabrics, drapes, raw scenery and decor where flame performance is important, the Rosco Flamex range provides material-specific treatments.

  • Formulations for fabrics, wood, paper and other substrates.
  • Used in theatres, schools, public spaces and events.
  • Designed to integrate into an overall Rosco scenic system.

How It All Fits Together

In a typical scenic workflow, you might:

  1. Prime difficult surfaces with Tough Prime.
  2. Build up foam durability with Foamcoat (rigid) or FlexCoat (flexible).
  3. Apply colour using Off Broadway or Supersaturated scenic paints.
  4. Use Flamex where flame retardancy is required by venue or production guidelines.

Need Help Choosing the Right System?

If you’re not sure which combination of Rosco coatings, primers and paints is right for your project, we’re happy to walk through it with you.

Call us on 02 9906 6264 or email sales@cfats.com.au, and we can help you match the product system to the build, the venue and the timeline.