Built a homemade 5'x5' scrim today on the cheap. It will be used for diffusing light between a light source (such as the sun or a studio light) and an actor/scene. $35 (compare with $200-300 if purchased commercially). How? Go to Home Depot and buy the following: four 5' sections of 3/4 inch white plastic pipe (the kind used for hot/cold water; very lightweight), four 1/2" plastic elbow joints to connect the 3/4 pipe pieces (easy, fast, can disassemble and reassemble fast). Then to fabric store to buy 5' wide scrim fabric (that's what it's called, they sell it to theatre departments), 72 inches to allow for overlap around a pipe at each end; and a role of double-sided tape at the fabric store to secure the fabric to each of two ends around the plastic pipe. You can get it all for about $35, much cheaper than buying it.

Independent Filmmaking.
Seeking to tell Hero's Journeys
http://borealpictures.com