Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
T H E
J O U R N A L
O F
T H E
A R T
D I R E C T O R S
G U I L D
0C1 Cover.indd 1
12/1/15 10:54 AM
0C2 IFC.indd 2
12/1/15 10:55 AM
contents
22
34
Beasts of No Nation
46
Steve Jobs
50
58
66
72
4 E D I TO R I A L
8 C O N T R I B U TO R S
12 PRESIDENTS LETTER
14 NEWS
80 PRODUCTION DESIGN
82 MEMBERSHIP
8 4 C A L E N DA R
8 6 M I L E S TO N E S
8 8 R E S H O OT S
ON THE COVER:
01 TOC.indd 1
12/1/15 10:57 AM
P ER S P EC T IV E
T H E J O U R N A L O F T H E A RT D I R E C TO R S G U I L D
Editor
MICHAEL BAUGH
editor.perspective@att.net
Copy Editor
MIKE CHAPMAN
mike@IngleDodd.com
Print Production
INGLE DODD MEDIA
310 207 4410
inquiry@IngleDodd.com
Advertising
310 207 4410
ADG@ingledodd.com
www.IngleDoddMedia.com
Publicity
MURRAY WEISSMAN
Weissman/Markovitz
Communications
818 760 8995
murray@publicity4all.com
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
MIMI GRAMATKY, President
JIM WALLIS, Vice President
STEPHEN BERGER, Trustee
CASEY BERNAY, Trustee
OANA BOGDAN
KRISTEN DAVIS
PATRICK DEGREVE
JAMES FIORITO
MARCIA HINDS
JOHN IACOVELLI
ADOLFO MARTINEZ
JOHN MOFFITT
RICK NICHOL
DENIS OLSEN
TIM WILCOX
TOM WILKINS
BE
Website: w w w.artdirectors.org
Disclaimer:
The opinions expressed in PERSPECTIVE, including those of officers and staff
of the ADG and editors of this publication, are solely those of the authors
of the material and should not be construed to be in any way the official
position of Local 800 or of the IATSE.
02-03 Masthead.indd 2
12/1/15 10:57 AM
I M P E C C A B L Y M A D E .
B E A U T I F U L .
CHRIS NASHAWATY,
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
A C I N E M A T I C L A N D M A R K .
PETER DEBRUGE, VARIETY
#TheDanishGirl
02-03 Masthead.indd 3
12/1/15 10:57 AM
editorial
A HOLLYWOOD TRADITION
by Michael Baugh, Editor
It seems like just yesterday that we all got dressed up in our evening finery (black tie was optional that night, but
many of the celebrants wore tuxedos and long gowns anyway). It wasnt the fanciest hotel in townthe Sheraton
Universaland it wasnt a banquet, just cocktails and limited hors doeuvres, but there was excitement in the air
nonetheless as the Society of Motion Picture and Television Art Directors (it wouldnt be the ADG for another six
years) gathered to celebrate the arts and crafts we all practice. The Society had held fancy gatherings before,
stretching back to the 1930s, but this one was destined to be different from all the others. It was the First Annual
Awards, as weusing grammar incorrectlycalled it then, somehow knowing that the tradition started that evening
would continue.
Production Designer Jim Bissell was the chair of the Awards Committee and, rather than spend money or effort
on above-the-line talent, he also served as host, presenter and master of ceremonies. A five-piece group of
musicians played on the small riser in the middle of the ballroom, and people mingled, enjoying the opportunity to
reconnect in an upscale environment with friends they otherwise only saw walking through the mill or hunched over
a drawing board. The Awards themselves were pretty rudimentary by todays standards: one award for television
(Herman Zimmerman for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), one for feature films (Stuart Craig for The English Patient),
cinematographer Allen Daviau was given the first Cinematic Imagery Award, Gene Allen got a Special Achievement
Award for his long service to the Society, and Bob Boyle was chosen to receive the very first Lifetime Achievement
Award. The whole presentation was over in less than a half an hour, but everyone there could see this was
something that would last.
The following year, the Awards became a banquet, this time at the Bowl on the lower level of the Biltmore Hotel
downtown. People dressed to the nines once more, and Johnny Crawford and his orchestra played the first of his
seventeen straight years with the ceremony. There was still only one feature film category, but television split into
three, echoing the Emmys of that era. Norman Jewison showed up to accept the Cinematic Imagery Award, and
Henry Bumstead became the second Lifetime Achievement Award recipient.
The third Awards, with Jim Bissell in charge once more, stepped everything up a notch by moving the event to the
Beverly Hilton Hotel, where it has remained ever since. The room has a stage so, like all good designers should, we
built a set for the event, stylishly designed by Roy Christopher. It was also the first foray into the world of film clips:
film editors Michael Sheridan and Jack Tucker edited clips for the five feature film nominees, and gave birth to a
process that has become ever more complicated year by year.
This January 31 will mark the twentieth time we will gather in our evening clothes to see if we recognize each
other without our normal layer of sawdust and paint overspray. There are now eight television categories and three
for feature films, and every nomineemore than one hundred of themis honored with film clips of their work.
Comedian Owen Benjamin will host the ceremonies for the third time, film columnist and Turner Classic Movies host
Robert Osborne will be given the first William Cameron Menzies Award for championing visual entertainment, and
Patrizia von Brandenstein will receive the Guilds twentieth Lifetime Achievement Award. Most importantly, the Art
Directors Guild Awards have become recognized by the studios and the industry press the same way they recognize
awards given by our friends in the Directors, Writers and Screen Actors Guilds. They are a Hollywood tradition.
04-05 Editorial.indd 4
12/1/15 11:01 AM
04-05 Editorial.indd 5
12/1/15 11:01 AM
PRODUCTION DESIGNER
S E T D E C O R AT O R
06-07 Fox-JOY.indd 6
12/1/15 11:02 AM
06-07 Fox-JOY.indd 7
12/1/15 11:02 AM
contributors
KRISTAN ANDREWS is a California native, and grew up in the cultural metropolis of Fresno until she moved to
the Monterey Peninsula. She studied set design and directing at UCLA and is a graduate of its School of Theater,
Film and Television. Ms. Andrews paid some early dues by hanging out with a few Amazing Live Sea-Monkeys, a
couple of Dragons and a few Hollywood Squares. She then landed upon series like Miracles and Six Feet Under.
Following a brief radical-sabbatical as a raw vegan chef and teacher, she returned to Production Design on the
series Incredible Crew, Gortimer Gibbons Life on Normal Street, Benched, a few pilots, and the feature film Ask
Me Anything. She lives in Los Angeles with her perky blonde 6-year-old daughter who likes to visit Mommys work,
especially the craft services table.
NELSON COATES is the fourth of five children whose university professor parents encouraged him to take piano,
sing, dance and act. Building with Lego was the perfect starting point for his design skills, and he still has three
bright tackle boxes filled with plastic bricks. His parents fostered an early analytical design sense by taking him
window-shopping, asking Which do you like, and why? A pre-med major, he began designing for Equity theaters
during college, somehow finding time to do thirty collegiate and professional shows, including Shakespeare in the
Park where he first met his longtime friend, Morgan Freeman. Though he has been an actor/singer most of his life,
Nelson developed a passion for narrative design, creating spaces that transport viewers to other places. Secret in
Their Eyes marks his first interview where he was told not to take the job.
TOM CONROY studied Production Design at the National Film & Television School in the UK. He works in
both film and television. Amongst the many projects he has designed are Neil Jordans darkly comic but moving
Breakfast on Pluto and Damien ODonnells East Is East. Other films include Intermission, The Roman Spring of
Mrs. Stone and West Is West. In television, Mr. Conroy is probably best known for his work on the four series
of Showtime/Working Titles period drama The Tudors. He has been nominated three times for an Emmy for
Outstanding Art Direction, winning in 2010 for The Tudors. He also picked up three Gemini Awards from Canada
was nominated twice for the Art Directors Guild Award, and was nominated eight straight years by the Irish Film &
Television Academy, winning twice.
GUY HENDRIX DYAS is a graduate of the Chelsea School of Art and the Royal College of Art in London. He
worked in Tokyo as an industrial designer for Sony before moving to California to join ILM as a visual effects
Art Director. Dyas gained experience in the Art Department working on a wide range of films as a conceptual
illustrator and Art Director before moving into Production Design in 2002 on his first feature film, X-Men 2 for
Bryan Singer, followed by The Brothers Grimm for director Terry Gilliam. He has also designed Superman Returns
and Elizabeth: The Golden Age. He currently splits his time between Europe and the US and some of his work is
displayed at the Design Museum in London and the Wakita Museum of Art in Tokyo. In 2007, he was named by
The Sunday London Times as one of the top ten British artists working behind the camera in Hollywood.
REN LAGLER was born in Zurich, Switzerland, and graduated from Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles.
Along with five Emmy Awards and sixteen nominations, Mr. Lagler has designed the 57th Academy Awards; the
Grammy Awards from 1983 to 1987; the Emmy Awards; and sixteen years of the County Music Awards from
1991 to 2006. He designed specials and television series for Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, George Burns,
Billy Crystal, Julie Andrews, Carol Burnett, Glen Campbell, Dolly Parton, Barry Manilow, Tony Orlando and Neil
Diamond, and he was Production Designer for the Opening and Closing Ceremonies for the 1984 Olympics in Los
Angeles, and for seven events for David Wolpers Liberty Weekend in 1986, celebrating the 100th anniversary of
the Statue of Liberty. He Lives in Lake Arrowhead, CA, with his wife, singer/songwriter and author Gloria Loring.
08-11 Contributors.indd 8
12/1/15 11:03 AM
08-11 Contributors.indd 9
.
.
12/1/15 11:03 AM
contributors
ARTHUR MAX is a native New Yorker who, after graduating from New York University, worked in the music industry
as a stage lighting designer. He operated a spotlight at the Woodstock festival in 1969, and was Pink Floyds
lighting designer during two world tours. In 1975, he settled in London, completed a bachelor of architecture
degree at the Polytechnic of Central London and later, an MA from the Royal College of Art. He first entered the
film industry as an assistant to Stuart Craig on Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes, and designed
television commercials for Ridley Scott and David Fincher, going on to collaborate on feature films with them both.
He has been nominated twice for Academy Awards (Gladiator and American Gangster) and six times for the ADG
Award. He is currently working on Alien: Paradise Lost, his twelfth film for Ridley Scott.
Art Director MILES K. MICHAEL was born in Detroit and grew up in nearby Royal Oak, MI. After high school, he
joined the US Air Force to travel and work with aircraft. Tech school in Texas and maintaining nuclear bombers in
North Dakota dont seem like training for the film industry, but he moved to Brooklyn in 2001 and immediately
began working in film and television Art Departments. Seasons on series such as The Apprentice, Ink Master, HGTV
Design Star and 24 Hour Restaurant Battle, all with Production Designer Chris Potter, honed his skills. He tried a
stint in Los Angeles, along with many cross-country motorcycle trips, and now splits his time between New York and
Detroit where he has a shop. He loves the Motor City best, but is always willing to leave for a few months on the
next exotic locationlike Ghana where he was the Art Director on Beasts of No Nation.
UNIVERSAL STUDIOS
filmmakersdestination.com
Find Us
DOWNLOAD FROM
APPLE APP STORE AND
GOOGLE PLAY STORE
10
For
DIS
08-11 Contributors.indd 10
12/1/15 11:03 AM
THE
G R E AT E S T I D E A
PIXAR HAS EVER HAD.
A stunningly original concept that will not only delight
and entertain worldwide audiences, but also promises to
forever change the way people think about the way people
think, delivering creative fireworks grounded by a
wonderfully relatable family story.
Peter Debruge, VARIETY
DISNEYSTUDIOSAWARDS.COM
08-11 Contributors.indd 11
B E S T
A R T
D I R E C T I O N
2015 Disney/Pixar
12/1/15 11:03 AM
WOMEN IN MOVIES
by Mimi Gramatky, Art Directors Guild President
When Lucille Ball accepted her Lifetime Achievement Award from Women in Film in 1977, she said that she wished
for a time when awards designated specifically for women would become unnecessary because men and women
would be given equal opportunities, treated and judged equally. Sitting in the audience when Lucy received her
award as a young female Art Director, opportunities for me were few and far between. A friend even told me she
had heard a production manager state that he wouldnt ever want to hire a female Art Director. This year at the
Emmy ceremony, Viola Davis began her Best Actress acceptance speech with The only thing that separates women
of color from anyone else is opportunity. Nearly forty years have passed since Lucys speech and clearly we are far
from achieving the industry she envisioned.
As reported in the study Inequality in 700 Popular Films released August 2015 by the Media, Diversity, & Social
Change Initiative at USCs Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, researcher and founding director
of the initiative, Stacy L. Smith describes the lack of diversity in popular films as an epidemic. The report studied
one hundred of the top-grossing films from 20072014. The numbers are staggering. Women had just 30.2% of
all speaking roles. Only 11% were gender balanced, featuring females in roughly half of the speaking parts. Of the
779 directors during this time, only 28 were women.
In 2014, the top 100 movies were white: 73.1% of all speaking roles were played by white talent; they were straight:
only 19 characters were gay, lesbian or bisexual, none were transgender; and they were young: only 19.9% of
female characters were 40 to 64 years old. The picture that film presents is one that bears little resemblance to our
nations demography, said Dr. Smith. By examining trends over time, it is clear that no progress has been made
either on screen or behind the camera when it comes to representing reality. This report reflects a dismal record of
diversity for not just one group, but for females, people of color and the LGBT community.
What about below-the-line equality, specifically, the Art Directors Guild? In 2014, the ADG initiated 109 members,
29 women and 80 men, thats 26.6% vs. 73.4%, so our statistics are not any better than performers but we are
considerably better than directors. We should not, however, lose sight of Lucys wish. This year, four exceptional
women are being inducted into the ADG Hall of Fame: Carmen Dillon, Patricia Norris, Dorothea Holt Redmond
and Dianne Wager; and Oscar-winning Production Designer Patrizia von Brandenstein will receive the ADG
Lifetime Achievement Award. Previously, these awards have been bestowed predominantly on males. Members
have also elected two females into leadership positions: Marcia Hinds, Chairperson of the Art Directors Council,
and me, Mimi Gramatky, President of the Art Directors Guildboth previously male-occupied positions. Graduate
film schools have enjoyed an increase in female Production Design students, AFIs whole class of Production
Designers this year are women. Our sister guild, the International Cinematographers, just hired Rebecca Rhine as
their National Executive Director, replacing Bruce Doering who is retiring after thirty years. Another sister local, the
Motion Picture Editors Guild, has Cathy Repola as their Western Executive Director. Cathy has also been named
chairperson of the newly formed Womens Committee for the IATSE International. There still may be opportunities
designated specifically for women but we are making progress. My wish is that we are finally at a place where we
may never again hear the words, Whod ever want to hire a female Art Director.
12
12-13 PresLetter.indd 12
12/1/15 11:04 AM
BOS_A
12-13
PresLetter.indd 13
BOS_ADG_PERSPECTIVE_NOV_FIN.indd
1
12/1/15 11:04
10/27/15
12:32 AM
PM
news
THE CINEMAGUNDI
A newly designed ADG Award trophy
by Tom Wilkins, Awards Committee Chair
In 1996, the Society of Motion Picture and Television Art Directors held its first awards show. Twenty years later,
we celebrate the success of our event which has taken its rightful place amongst the other top guild award shows.
To mark this milestone, a contest was held to redesign and update the trophy, both in design and in the materials.
Close to fifty designs were submitted by members of the Art Directors Guilds four crafts and reviewed by the
Art Directors Council. The Council has historically had the oversight on the Awards Banquet and the awarding
of trophies. The submissions were narrowed down first to eleven and then to three designs by vote of the
Council in secret balloting sessions. All balloting was conducted and kept anonymous by Jack Taylor and
Debbie Patton.
Above: Illustrator
Fredrik Buchs
rendering of the
new ADG Awards
trophy, called The
Cinemagundi.
14
After the final vote on the three surviving designs, the Council sought to have the old trophy design updated with
an art deco theme, based in part on the final submission that was selected. The Council by majority vote passed
a resolution to have Fredrik Buch, an Illustrator member of the Guild with a background in product design, do an
update of the existing trophy with the idea to emphasis the art deco period which was the dominant design motif
during the birth of our craft. Continued
14-17 News.indd 14
12/1/15 11:05 AM
14-17 News.indd 15
12/1/15 11:05 AM
news
After much design work by Fred and
others, and under consultation with the
Art Directors Council, led by Council
Chair Marcia Hinds and Tom Wilkins, two
final versions were presented to the ADG
membership to select the winner. This
final design (pictured on page 14) will be
manufactured by R.S. Owens & Company,
Chicago, IL. The process of finding a
manufacturer was difficult but eventually, a
true like-minded artistic partner was found
to trust with this new trophy.
The new trophy for Excellence in
Production Design will be called
The Cinemagundi, named after the
organization founded May 1,1924, in
a room at the rear of a Sunset Boulevard
bistro, [where] some sixty-three fashionably
dressed artisans, led by William Cameron
Menzies and Anton Grot, signed a
document establishing the Cinemagundi
Club, the principal purpose of which was
to let the world at large know the extent
of their contributions. [Jane Barnwell,
Architects of the Screen, 2004]
Above is the
Cinemagundi Clubs
original charter,
still hanging in the
ADG offices.The
organizations name
was derived from the
Salmagundi Club,
founded in New York
City in 1871, one of the
oldest art organizations
in the United States.
www.Salmagundi.org
16
14-17 News.indd 16
12/1/15 11:05 AM
14-17 News.indd 17
17
12/1/15 11:05 AM
12/1/15 11:06 AM
12/1/15 11:06 AM
12/1/15 11:07 AM
12/1/15 11:07 AM
22
12/1/15 11:08 AM
Its Not
Rocket
Science
(Oh wait, yes it is)
by Arthur Max, Production Designer
12/1/15 11:08 AM
24
12/1/15 11:08 AM
a 3,200-mile journey across the planet to find a prelanded ascent vehicle meant for the crew of the next
Ares 4 mission which, once modified, can take him back
up into orbit and ultimately, to his rescue.
The parallel stories of the astronaut Watney, his fellow
Ares 3 astronauts, and the NASA Mars mission scientists
on Earth have to strike a balance between science and
fiction that could credibly happen in real life. In his own
words, hell need to science the shit out of this to stay
alive.
Consequently, all the technology used in the film had
to be modeled after rockets, spacesuits and other
space-travel engineering that already existed, or was
in the planning stages for NASA missions to Mars in
the very near future. NASA was consulted on many
technical aspects of the film, and a representative of the
European Space Agency was on the film set throughout
25
12/1/15 11:09 AM
Top, left: A 3D model of the Mars habitat, drawn by Digital Modeler/Set Designer Gbor Szab. Right: The set on stage nearing completion.
Center: The massive Stage 6 at Korda Studios, now the largest purpose-built soundstage in the world (64,000 square feet with a 66-foot grid,
eclipsing the 007 stage at Pinewood) became the home for an immense Martian landscape, here showing the habitat set under construction.
Above, left: The habitat set was built a second time in Jordan for scenes requiring more space. Right: The finished 48-foot-diameter habitat
in Jordan, dressed with vehicles and blown sand.
26
12/1/15 11:09 AM
Above, top to bottom: Mark Watney, once he has recovered from the sandstorm
that stranded him, contemplates his future in the habitation pod. The pod itself
is a scientific laboratory, with a large number of resources, but it lacks one of
the most basic elements of long-term survival: a way to grow food. Mineral-rich
soil from the planets surface can create a usable truck garden, when amended
with astronaut manure. Watney, observing his happy potato plants, declares: I
am the greatest botanist on this planet.
PERSPECTIVE | N OV E M B E R/DE C E M B E R 2015
27
12/1/15 11:09 AM
28
12/1/15 11:09 AM
12/1/15 11:10 AM
30
12/1/15 11:10 AM
Top: For scenes with the Ares 3 and Ares 4 landers, a set of legs was all that was
constructed, as shown in this model by Assistant Art Director Shira Hockman.
The remaining portion of the ascent/descent vehicle was added digitally. Above:
The lander legs in the Martian landscape set on Stage 6 at Korda Studios. Below:
A working drawing for the lander legs, also drawn by Ms. Hockman.
12/1/15 11:10 AM
12/1/15 11:10 AM
33
12/1/15 11:11 AM
THE PROFESSION
OF VIOLENCE
by Tom Conroy, Production Designer
34
34-43 Conroy-Legend.indd 34
12/1/15 11:20 AM
34-43 Conroy-Legend.indd 35
35
12/1/15 11:20 AM
Both Ronnie and Reggie are played, with the help of visual
effects, by actor Tom Hardy. Maybe because of where I was at
the time, I had an image of them as sharks, never stopping,
constantly movingalways hungry.
Top: The Blind Beggar pub where Ronnie Kray, enraged at being called a
fat poof, walks in and shoots rival gangster George Cornell in front of
a room of witnesses. Curiously enough, when the police asked around,
no one could remember seeing anything. The part of the Blind Beggar is
played by the Royal Oak on Columbia Road in Shoreditch. Center, left to
right: The Krays lived on Vallance Road in Bethnal Green in Londons East
End in a modest two-up, two-down, as seen here in a presentation sketch
by Ms. Soode. Mr. Conways Photoshop study of the sweetshop where the
Richardsons try to kill Reggie Kray; it was built into the East End street
location shot in Waterloo. Above: Both of the Kray twins are played by
actor Tom Hardy, seen here with one of the left-hand-drive American cars
like the Krays actually drove.
36
34-43 Conroy-Legend.indd 36
12/1/15 11:20 AM
34-43 Conroy-Legend.indd 37
37
12/1/15 11:20 AM
38
34-43 Conroy-Legend.indd 38
12/1/15 11:20 AM
34-43 Conroy-Legend.indd 39
12/1/15 11:21 AM
40
34-43 Conroy-Legend.indd 40
12/1/15 11:21 AM
34-43 Conroy-Legend.indd 41
41
12/1/15 11:21 AM
42
34-43 Conroy-Legend.indd 42
12/1/15 11:21 AM
34-43 Conroy-Legend.indd 43
12/1/15 11:21 AM
12/1/15 11:24 AM
F O R Y O U R C O NSI DER AT I O N
IN ALL CATEGORIES
INCLUDING
JACK FISK
SET DECORATOR
HAMISH PURDY
12/1/15 11:24 AM
46
46-47 Michael-Beasts.indd 46
12/1/15 11:26 AM
BEASTS
OF NO
NATION
by Miles Michael, Production Designer
Beasts of No Nation is a film about child soldiers and civil war set in an unnamed
West African country. Based on the novel by Uzodinma Iweala and directed by Cary
Fukunaga, it was shot in the jungles, old British colonial towns and provincial capitals
of Ghana. As the Art Director working with Production Designer Inbal Weinberg, I
spent three months in the intense heat, sun and torrential rain of Western Africa. For
my first time in Africa, it was an extremely challenging and eye-opening experience.
Under normal conditions, making a film is hard work. When you add the challenges
of working on a new continent, its a wonder that we finished the film at all.
Scheduling, language, logistics, prices, materials; everything had to be relearned
and adapted to a new country and culture. It was not an easy time but in the end, Im
glad we went through it. For starters, many materials I was used to working with were
scarce or not available at all. Lumber was milled to our specs on large gas-powered
band saws at the timber yard. Screws were scarcely used; instead, we bought nails by
the pound for our carpenters who relied on hammers and handsaws. Paint was called
emulsion and came in plastic pails and only in basic colors like brown, blue, green
and tan. Corrugated metal sheets were ubiquitous, though we had to look harder for
the used rusted pieces that we preferred.
Labor was cheap, materials
expensive, the opposite of what
were used to in the States.
Trucking and logistics were always
an issue. Finding someone to
show up on time with a truck
that worked was the first step.
Next, there would be a long
conversation about the price and
then maybe the truck would break
down or get a blowout or the liti
wouldnt work. And the driving in
Ghana was some of the hairiest
Ive ever seen. People, dogs,
goats, chickens share the highway
with bush taxis, motorcycles and
buses spewing black smoke. With
so many speeding cars, it was
46-47 Michael-Beasts.indd 47
47
12/1/15 11:26 AM
flat-out scary sometimes and there were a lot of near misses. We always
had drivers.
Finally, everything we purchased was negotiated for. No prices were set.
Haggling over the cost of things added twice the time to every transaction
but had to be done. Clearly being foreigners, we automatically got the
high price. We would then talk our way down to 20%30% of the starting
point. Haggling is a skill and we all got to be pretty adept but it ate up a
lot of time.
We entered Ghana through the capital Accra but the majority of our time
was spent hours away in small, small towns and backcountry: a rebel camp
in the jungle, a water-filled defensive trench, a coastal mission.
Putting together a rebel camp in the middle of the jungle was my first task;
a sprawling encampment with low shelters for soldiers, a priests jungle
camp and a commandants HQ. Production Designer Inbal Weinberg had
extensive photo references from the civil wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone
that we worked from and we hired a group of local cassava farmers for
labor. The locals were familiar with the land and used their machetes to
make simple structures out of branches, vines and grasses that were perfect
for rebels living in the bush. These guys worked with us every day for three
weeks and we became friends despite our initial apprehension. It was
strange for us to be in the African jungle and I dont think any of them had
worked on a movie set before. I remember how surprised they were when
100+ crew, actors and extras showed up to shoot. They all seemed proud
of what they built and it was exciting and a litile sad to watch it burn down
at the end of the shoot.
With one set behind us, my unit moved on to building a network of
trenches. Based on Carys references from WWI and other 20th century
engagements, they needed to be deep and I was afraid they were going
to have to be dug by hand. Doing the work by hand would have given
them a different look but we were short on time and after about a week of
trying, I was lucky to find a backhoe to do most of the work. With shovels
and wheelbarrows, our guys lined the floor with cement and gravel to hold
water. We scorched the surrounding field and a water truck was hired to fill
the trenches with waist-deep water. The set is featured in the trailer and is
one of my favorites. The shot of Agu coming down the ladder into the red
trench and standing in water really looks surreal, hellish and exhausting.
Throughout my time in Ghana, I was impressed by how hard people
worked and how strong everyone was. Everything was carried by hand
ormore oftenon someones head. Cement, logs, lumber, stones,
generators; people would carry almost anything on top of their heads with
only flip-flops on their feet. From old men carrying firewood home at the
end of the day to women carrying five gallons of water on their heads
with babies strapped to their backs; it was really humbling, inspiring and
illuminating.
Infections, dehydration, mud, sickness, snakes, malaria; no one on
our crew had an easy time over there. Still, it was a once-in-a-lifetime
experience and Im thankful to Cary Fukunaga and Inbal Weinberg for
bringing me along for the ride. ADG
Inbal Weinberg, Production Designer
Miles Michael, Supervising Art Director
Katie Hickman, Set Decorator
46-47 Michael-Beasts.indd 48
12/1/15 11:27 AM
46-47 Michael-Beasts.indd 49
49
12/1/15 11:27 AM
50-57 Jobs-Dyas.indd 50
12/1/15 11:29 AM
STEVE
JOBS
by Guy Hendrix Dyas,
Production Designer,
and other members of the
STEVE JOBS Art Department
Universal Pictures
50-57 Jobs-Dyas.indd 51
51
12/1/15 11:29 AM
52
50-57 Jobs-Dyas.indd 52
12/1/15 11:29 AM
50-57 Jobs-Dyas.indd 53
12/1/15 11:29 AM
54
50-57 Jobs-Dyas.indd 54
12/1/15 11:29 AM
50-57 Jobs-Dyas.indd 55
55
12/1/15 11:29 AM
50-57 Jobs-Dyas.indd 56
12/1/15 11:30 AM
50-57 Jobs-Dyas.indd 57
57
12/1/15 11:30 AM
A SECRET
IN THE
MAKING
by Nelson Coates, Production Designer
58-65 Coates-Secret.indd 58
12/1/15 11:32 AM
58-65 Coates-Secret.indd 59
59
12/1/15 11:32 AM
60
58-65 Coates-Secret.indd 60
12/1/15 11:32 AM
Chiwetel Ejiofor was the male lead. Location manager Ralph Coleman
and I began two weeks of scouting, locking many of the locations. Then
some casting opportunities arose, and once we discovered Julia Roberts
and Nicole Kidman had thrown their hats into the ring, we were more
than willing to wait out an eight-week push.
With the limited production, we were hunting for a combination
production office, stage/warehouse/mill with potential corners that could
be modified into some of the myriad sets required. The former Hostess
Bakery factory in South Los Angeles looked to be just the ticket, but
redevelopment commenced during the push, cutting up and changing
the space. Once prep geared back up, we were on the hunt again.
Two stages were needed. Production was cranking in Los Angeles, and
we could only find one stage available in the zone, at Sunset Gower.
The stage had been put on hold by production supervisor Christa
Vausbinder before the push, just in case. Stage 12 at Sunset Gower
has a basement underneath with a rehearsal hall that could potentially
accommodate several sets. Quentin Tarantinos film, The Hateful Eight,
had just completed several weeks of rehearsal in that space, and we
became the beneficiaries of their leftover lumbera windfall for a small
movie.
Billy and I wanted to feel the presence of Los Angeles in every shot. LA
needed to be a strong character, and the tension of post 9/11 needed
to be omnipresent. He and I combed through the script to marry scenes
with the locations we had found. Billy rewrote several scenes to take
advantage of interesting sites and specific geography.
Much of the action was set in the Los Angeles District Attorneys offices.
We needed private offices, a bullpen with adjacent private offices,
elevators, lobbies, corridors, and all needed to be able to shift to clearly
show the change in years as scenes jumped back-and-forth. Billy also
decided to set the current-day sequences during the Christmas holidays,
to help with the visual shift of eras, so we started the hunt for worn-down
civic decorations.
58-65 Coates-Secret.indd 61
61
12/1/15 11:32 AM
0'
Storage Area
DOWN
Set #144
Hospital Room
Lights
Wild
Photo Backing
Camera & Tripod
Firelane
Set #125
Photo ID Room
Filing Cabinets
Lights
wardrobe
Bumper Wall
Curtain
Counter
Set #144
Hospital Room
wardrobe
Bumper Wall
wardrobe
Firelane
Bumper Wall
Set #125
ID Room
DOWN
Photo Backing
Photo
Concrete Block Wall
from Chop Shop
Counter
Set #144
Hospital Room
Wild
DOWN
Counter
Curtain
Firelane
Count
Counter
wardrobe
Set #132
Jail Holding
Cell & Hallway
Filing Cabinets
+0
- 4'-0"
Counter
+0
Counter
- 4'-0"
wardrobe
Set #132
Jail Holding
Cell & Hallway
DOWN
DOWN
+0
- 4'-0"
DOWN
Floor Grates
Floor Grates
New Build
Prison Bar Wall
New Build
Prison Bar Wall
Note: theseNote:
sets
aresets
to be
struck
these
areshot
to be out
shot and
out and
struck
before redress
as
CCB
beforespace
redress
space
asVault
CCB Vault
5'
10'
Drawing above: The initial layout of the Harmony Room rehearsal hall,
showing sets nesting within sets to take advantage of as much square
footage
and location
wall20'as possible.
0'
5'
10'
30' Drawing by Aaron Jackson. Top,
left to right:20'
The district attorney
case file vault set. All the concrete
30'
block used as accents in lower floor sets was actually sheets of heavily
textured and painted cardboard pulp, finished with a rich glaze.
Another view of the case file vault set in the Harmony Room rehearsal
hall. The brass doors at the back of the set are a modified photograph
applied to a flat surface with added dimensional hardware. Opposite
page, center, left to right: A Good Samaritan Hospital room circa 2002
built in the Harmony Hall basement space at Sunset Gower. Parole
office sets were built into the Sunset Gower set dressing storage of the
SCANDAL series in order to utilize adjacent hallways for a walk and
talk. Bottom, left to right: More rehearsal hall sets: a hallway in the old
Los Angeles County jail, and a jail cell set which was later converted
into Rays (Chiwetel Ejiofor) Mets Stadium office.
62
0'
5'
10'
20'
30'
After scouting the actual District Attorneys offices, I knew flat white
Sheetrock was definitely not the look to support the narrative ofInt
this
Photo Studio / Int Hospital /
Int Jail Holding Cell & Hallway
complex thriller. Most of the buildings I presentedJACKSON
Billy were 125,
stone
132, 144
Sunset Gower Studios, Stage 12, Basement
edifices constructed in the early 1920s. I was hoping
to show the
JACKSON
125, 132, 144
01/14/2015
accumulation of time and bureaucracy with the furnishings, layers of
01/14/2015
remodeling and technological details to support the grave nature of the
subject as well as to demonstratively show the slow wheels of justice.
Int Photo Studio / Int Hospital /
58-65 Coates-Secret.indd 62
12/1/15 11:32 AM
Storage Area
Counter
Photo Backing
Camera & Tripod
Lights
wardrobe
Room
Set #125
Photo ID Room
Wild
Curtain
Filing Cabinets
Counter
Counter
Wall
wardrobe
downtown
views. The buildings started real-world renovation during
Set #132
Jail Holding
Cell & Hallway
the production
push, but we concluded that was for the best, and
production would be better served if all the offices and bullpens were
on stage. The PacMutual lobby was modified for filming and elevator
inserts were installed to match the elevator set on stage that needed
to incorporate breakaway mirrors. A few small sets were tucked
into other unfinished
areas in the building to help make the limited
Floor Grates
shooting schedule.
New Build
Prison Bar Wall
park traffic, or the emergency exits, all the while working with the
adjacent office building to allow vehicles to enter and exit the parking
garage and make deliveries to the dock. A new entry with double
gates and minaret bases was designed and built modularly off-site to
speed installation and reduce impact on the location. Several original
tile wallpapers were created digitally and individual faux-glazed
tiles were fashioned out of wood, then combined with CNC-routed
ornaments and faux limestone. During the week prior to filming,
the Central Library acquired a new director who began reviewing all
contracts, plus a major speaking event had been newly scheduled on
the day prior to filming, which required Secret Service security. All this
caused us to lose a prep day; fortunately, the crews kicked it up a notch,
and the modular set was installed in just two days.
58-65 Coates-Secret.indd 63
63
12/1/15 11:33 AM
Above: A redress of
Coles restaurant in
downtown Los Angeles
served as a Dodgersthemed sports bar.
Right, top to bottom:
Trick dumpsters were
fabricated from scratch
to include fold-down
sides for camera
angles, and built to
proportions and with
hand and footholds to
aid Julia Roberts into the
dumpster in any of the
several ways she chose
during the scene. The
Downtown Metro station
dressed for circa 2002,
a few months post-9/11.
Metro Alert signage
was created by Graphic
Designer Martin Charles.
A downtown Los Angeles
mural in the style of
circa late 1990s, painted
by Scenic Artist/Muralist
Gabrielle McKennaElliott from Mr. Coates
initial design.
64
58-65 Coates-Secret.indd 64
12/1/15 11:33 AM
1/8"
1/8"
1/4"
1/4"
1/8"
58-65 Coates-Secret.indd 65
12/1/15 11:33 AM
Pope
The
Above: A digital rendering by Mr. Lagler of the set, dressed for the mass, in the center of Philadelphias
Benjamin Franklin Parkway with the Philadelphia Museum of Art in the background. Inset: A photograph of
the mass set, built on the Eakins Oval in front of the steps made famous by the ROCKY films.
66
66-71 Papal-Lagler.indd 66
12/1/15 11:34 AM
in Philadelphia
by Production Designer Ren Lagler,
speaking with journalist Sharon Stancavage
from LIGHTING & SOUND AMERICA
magazine
66-71 Papal-Lagler.indd 67
67
12/1/15 11:34 AM
68
The Papal visit to that city included three events: a visit to Independence Hall, a concert on
the Benjamin Franklin Parkway and a mass the next day for the World Meeting of Families. The
Independence Hall visit was fairly straightforward, a smaller set that required a baldacchino;
the concert and mass were more complex. Ren explains, The concert was a nighttime event.
I didnt want the stage to have an over-the-top, rock & roll look, because I had to transform it
into an appropriate setting for a mass. I had used the arch motif for The 3 Tenors in Paris and
felt certain that its gentler shape would be just what was needed. I drew it up and never even
considered a square stage.
Since the venue needed to provide the setting for a mass, there were religious aspects that had
to be considered. There were certain elements to accommodate, such as the Papal procession.
I didnt want to do an endless staircase, so I designed a pair of fifty-foot switchback ramps with
66-71 Papal-Lagler.indd 68
12/1/15 11:35 AM
a 22 x 32 foot mid-level forestage that facilitated the entrance of the participants. There
were also the physical needs of the mass: a Papal chair, altar ambo (a type of raised pulpit),
lectern and the cross. Ren continues, I used Larry Hoy, of Renovata Studios in Port Chester,
NY, to create the cross. I had used him on a previous project to build a Papal chair. He did
a great job. The cross itself was gold-leafed in two different shades.
Seating arrangements during mass were also a concern. Ren explains, Theres a very strict
layout of who sits where, dictated by the Vatican with details concerning the type of chairs
and stools. All of the seating had to precisely be laid out according to the liturgic order.
Through the entire process, Ren worked closely with Father Gill at the Archdiocese of
Philadelphia, and, to some extent, the Vatican. It was very important to all of us that this
66-71 Papal-Lagler.indd 69
69
12/1/15 11:35 AM
5'-6 1/2"
1'-4"
1'-0"
8"
1 1/2"
1"
8"
1"
1'-11 1/2"
6 1/2"
1'-4"
10'-4 1/2"
10 1/2"
6"
1 1/2"
5"
7 1/2"
5'-11"
5'-0"
1"
1"
1'-6"
8"
10"
8 1/2"
6 1/2"
6 1/2"
RADIATING BURSTS
IN THEATRICAL GOLD LEAF
6"
10 1/2"
1'-11"
first US visit by Pope Francis be very special on all levels. Those of us on the
production team worked for months to incorporate all the wishes and wants
of the diocese, and make them function in a practical and visually pleasing
way.
The concert portion of the event included a veritable army on stage: the
invited families, the choir, the entertainers, the Pope and the Philadelphia
Philharmonic. Ren confides, The challenge was for all this to work within
a 108 x 108 foot deck space. It was most difficult for the orchestra. Ive had
these space limitations with orchestras before, and sometimes suggest that
maybe they need to cut a few musicians so they can all fit in. Of course, that
never happens; they figure it out. Ive learned that musicians are like water;
they find their own level. In the end, we agreed that we did the impossible
and everyone was happy.
The concert look included an eighty-foot-wide staggered LED wall provided
by VER of Los Angeles, hung on a sixty-foot radius truss. Ren notes, In
the last few days, we had to reconfigure the LED by taking two rows off the
top in order to see more of the museum faade, as it was part of the Philly
branding.
The stage layout for the concert took some tweaking. The initial idea was to
have the orchestra up high, at least eight or ten feet above the stage floor,
with the Pontiff and others in front. But then we were told that the Pontiff had
to be upstage, Ren confides. For the final layout, Lagler split the stage in
half. The orchestra, at stage right, came exactly to center stage, while stage
left was used for the Pope and the families.
The mass, the Scenic Designer explains, was a straightforward layout of a
series of risers with its center focal point a backing with side columns and a
recessed shape to feature the cross.
Renes color palette was based on tradition. The Papal colors are yellow
and white, and because of this particular season, the additional liturgic color
was green, which was incorporated as an accent as well.
70
66-71 Papal-Lagler.indd 70
12/1/15 11:35 AM
5'-11"
10'-4 1/2"
8"
1'-11 1/2"
2'-3"
1'-6"
3 1/2"
6"
1'1'-1 1/2
6 1/2"
"
1'-5
1'-3 1/2"
9"
4 1/2"
4 1/2"
"
3'-9 1/2"
3 1/2"
6'-4"
3'-1"
7'-10"
2'-1 1/2"
3"
1 1/2"
2'-5 1/2"
2'-3 1/2"
1'-9"
1'-2"
8"
1"
3"
1'-9"
2"
4 1/2"
2"
Cove Moulding
4 1/2"
1'-6"
4 1/2"
2'-3"
1'-10"
3'-0"
2'-4"
8"
All Open
Railing
3'-0"
70 degree
26'-3"
+32"
5'-4"
Metal Railings
Center Line
98'-0"
49'-0"
+50"
<Ramp up
>
Ramp up
R.17'-6"
+32"
+40"
5'-0"
+64"
>
Ramp up
<Ramp up
R.20'-6"
R. 21'-6"
R.22'-6"
R.23'-6"
+24"
+16"
5'-0"
PLANTER RISERS
TOP & FACE
PAINTED GREEN
2'-0"
+30"
+20"
+64"
2'-0"
+64"
25'-0"
R. 20'-6"
2'-0"
25'-0"
+8"
+0"
Stage Apron Plan
66-71 Papal-Lagler.indd 71
12/1/15 11:35 AM
Nostalgic
TELEVISION
in a
D i g i t a l Wo r l d
72
72-79 Andrews-Gibbons.indd 72
12/1/15 11:36 AM
Amazon Studios
Opposite page: A production photograph of the studio set for Mels thirdstory observatory, the kids main hangout. This page top, left and right:
Set stills showing two angles on Mels observatory, with its hand-tinted
wallpaper. Center, left: Yvonne Garnier-Hackls Vectorworks plan of
the elevated Mels observatory set, first rendered in SketchUp. Right: An
inspiration board, and a separate color, wallpaper and wood-detail mood
board, both created for the observatory set by Ms. Andrews using Keynote
for iOS. Left: Ranger, Mel and Gortimer peer outside the observatorys bay
window, double-faced on stage near Echo Park in Los Angeles.
PERSPECTIVE | N OV E M B E R/DE C E M B E R 2015
72-79 Andrews-Gibbons.indd 73
73
12/1/15 11:36 AM
74
72-79 Andrews-Gibbons.indd 74
12/1/15 11:36 AM
The location served many purposes: the front porch, guest bedroom, kitchen and
backyard became Gortimers house, while the dining and living rooms were dressed
to be the home of a mysterious and blind neighbor, Miss Hudspith (played by the
wonderful Fionnula Flanagan), who is plagued by the incessant croaking of a frog.
The houses master bedroom was given a fanciful makeover as the bedroom of Mel,
Gortimers close friend and resident genius scavenger. A local mini-mart got a miniface-lift. A neighboring home was enlisted for the exterior of Miss Hudspiths house.
(An old lady in an old house, sitting on top of ultimate doom.)
There was one serious set piece missing from this seemingly normal equation. The
script called for a climactic action sequence in which Gortimer crawls under Miss
Hudspiths house to capture the frog of doom. The crawl space he is in quickly floods
72-79 Andrews-Gibbons.indd 75
12/1/15 11:36 AM
and Gortimer falls through a sinkhole and into a mysterious abyss where
he finds a boy with golden eyes. Since the scripted action could not be
accomplished in a location space and the original budget was unable
to accommodate the construction required to film the sequence, we
had to do the unthinkable, ask the studio for more money. In order to
successfully pitch what I had in mind, I brought in Assistant Art Director
Jerry Ortega to help create a design that captured the mood and action
of the sequence.
By designing a 24-foot elevated and enclosed crawl space set (all built
in a small side yard of the house), the burden of filming underground
was eased, and access was available for camera-tracking moves, lighting
and the special effects flooding rig necessary to ensure the safety of
a 12-year-old star. A removable section of false floor was created for
Gortimer to fall through, and a three-quarter round, 10-foot diameter
pit filled with gold glitter and mica-flecked foam completed the look. The
76
72-79 Andrews-Gibbons.indd 76
12/1/15 11:36 AM
72-79 Andrews-Gibbons.indd 77
77
12/1/15 11:36 AM
78
72-79 Andrews-Gibbons.indd 78
12/1/15 11:36 AM
Set decorator Kris Fuller came in to replace Beth Wooke, who was
tied to another series, and we were able to leave Gortimers house
extension standing, expand on Mels house ground floor and create
an entire home for Rangers multi-generational household.
One of the crews favorite swing sets of season two was the Normal
Record Store. At first read, I was hesitant to build this set on stage,
knowing that the limited time and resources meant we would not be
able to create the level of patina and layering that could be found
at a location. Scouting led us to notice sleek boutique record stores
popping up. Thus inspired, a store was created on stage with custombuilt record bins, a small Chesterfield sofa in a cozy corner and some
warm antique pieces set off by a beautiful wall treatment executed by
scenic painters John Michael Hull and Chris Bodine. The exquisitely
crafted stencil from The Stencil Library in the UK was finished in pale
gold by Modern Masters. The end result was like an art deco argyle
version of a sonic wave. Knowing my proclivity for wallpaper, the crew
was in awe of the walls and could not believe it was stencil. Im not
sure construction coordinator Mark Knightley may ever indulge the
manpower to bring my stencil dream to fruition again, but it sure was
pretty.
Season two also brought an episode with a very visually rich storyline.
Her story weaves the towns history with modern day and ends with
an elaborate play about the founding of Normal Street. The play was
a highlight of creative synergy amongst all departments. Everyone
seemed to get it. In the end, the sets, costumes, hair/makeup, lighting
and camera all came together to create a visually stunning and
unexpected ending to a poignant episode.
It is special and rare to work in such a collaborative and creative
environment. Each episode is able to stand on its own and we are
artistically free to employ a different look or style for each. One week
might deal with a very somber rite of passage with a visual language
that is dark and moody. The next week might have elements inspired
by a wacky fantasy or childhood memento. Gortimer Gibbons Life
on Normal Street reflects on adolescence with affection and touches
on the magical nature of childhood. The whimsical perspective of
the characters is inspiring and energizing. It is my great challenge
and joy to help create a world that celebrates the extraordinary in the
ordinary, a place where, perhaps, a seemingly normal life may be
anything but normal. ADG
72-79 Andrews-Gibbons.indd 79
12/1/15 11:36 AM
production design
PRODUCTION DESIGN
CREDIT WAIVERS
The following requests to use the Production Design screen credit were granted at its July and August meetings by
the ADG Council upon the recommendation of the Production Design Credit Waiver Committee.
THEATRICAL:
Julie Berghoff THE LAST WITCH HUNTER Lionsgate
Richard Bridgland AMERICAN ULTRA Lionsgate
Barry Chusid INDEPENDENCE DAY: RESURGENCE
20th Century Fox
Nelson Coates SECRET IN THEIR EYES
Gran Via Productions
Michael Corenblith THE FINEST HOURS
Walt Disney Studios
Jack Fisk THE REVENANT New Regency Pictures
Troy Hansen SANTAS LITTLE HELPER WWE Studios
Derek Hill THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN
MGM Studios
John Lavin BROTHER IN LAWS Broadway Video
Mara LePere-Schloop THE WHOLE TRUTH
Atlas Entertainment
Ina Mayhew BARBERSHOP 3 MGM Studios
Carlos Osorio THE BELKO EXPERIMENT
MGM Studios
John Paino DEMOLITION Fox Searchlight Pictures
Nigel Phelps PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN:
DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES Walt Disney Studios
Steve Saklad HOW TO BE SINGLE Warner Bros.
Richard Sherman THE GIFT Blumhouse Productions
Annie Spitz THE NIGHT BEFORE Columbia Pictures
Brent Thomas ASHBY Paramount Pictures
Robert Ziembicki THE WOLVES AT THE DOOR
Warner Bros.
TELEVISION:
Russell Barnes HAP AND LEONARD
Sundance Channel
Bill Boes STAY ABC Studios
Charles Breen ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING
Disney Channel
Maria Caso FEAR THE WALKING DEAD
AMC Studios
Henry Cota EPIC OFFENDERS Disney XD
Jennifer Dehghan TEEN BEACH 2 Disney Channel
Mark Hofeling DESCENDANTS & INVISIBLE SISTER
Disney Channel
Jim Jones BUNKD Disney Channel
Carey Meyer INTO THE BADLANDS AMC Studios
Andrew Murdock SCREAM QUEENS
20th Century Fox Television
John Shaffner THE CARMICHAEL SHOW
20th Century Fox Television
Mark Worthington SCREAM QUEENS
20th Century Fox Television
coming soon
THE FINEST HOURS
Michael Corenblith, Production Designer
William Ladd Skinner, Supervising Art Director
Samantha Avila, Assistant Art Director
Po Sing Chu, Jonas De Ro, Concept Artists
Mauro Borrelli, Illustrator
Martin Charles, Graphic Designer
Lorrie Campbell, Robert Andrew Johnson,
Bria Kinter, Masako Masuda, Steven M. Saylor,
Clint Wallace, Set Designers
Darrin Denlinger, Warren Drummond, Trevor Goring,
Storyboard Artists
Doug Cluff, Charge Scenic Artist
Todd Clevenger, Scenic Artist Foreman
Kim Nelson, Dave Manning, David Rickson,
Rae Signer, Taylor Weeks, Scenic Artists
Opens January 29, 2016
80
80-83 ProdDesignMembership.indd 80
12/1/15 11:38 AM
/$V3UHPLHU3URGXFWLRQ)DFLOLW\IRU)HDWXUH)LOP&RPPHUFLDO 7HOHYLVLRQ3URGXFWLRQV
80-83 ProdDesignMembership.indd 81
81
12/1/15 11:38 AM
membership
WELCOME TO THE GUILD
by Emmanuel Espinoza, Membership Department
82
80-83 ProdDesignMembership.indd 82
12/1/15 11:38 AM
Now
Open
BR I D G E P RO P S.CO M
80-83 ProdDesignMembership.indd 83
12/1/15 11:38 AM
SUBSCRIBE TO
PERSPECTIVE
PERSPECTIVE
T H E
J O U R N A L
O F
T H E
A R T
US $8.00
D I R E C T O R S
calendar
G U I L D
November 7 5-8 PM
Art Unites 9
Opening reception @ Gallery 800
PERSPECTIVE
J O U R N A L
O F
T H E
A R T
D I R E C T O R S
G U I L D
ic
-C
on
Is
su
T H E
Co
US $8.00
November 26 & 27
Thanksgiving Holiday
Guild Offices Closed
VOTING TIMETABLE
THE 20TH ANNUAL ADG
EXCELLENCE IN
PRODUCTION DESIGN
AWARDS
PERSPECTIVE
T H E
J O U R N A L
O F
T H E
A R T
D I R E C T O R S
G U I L D
December 5
ADG/SDSA Holiday Party
@ Cal Mart
US $8.00
Nominations ANNOUNCED
Tuesday, January 5, 2016
Rates:
$40 per year (6 issues)
$32 student/educator
(with current ID)
To subscribe, contact:
Sandra Howard
sandra@adg.org
818 762 9995
84
December 25
Christmas Day
Guild Offices Closed
84-85 Calendar.indd 84
12/1/15 11:39 AM
TREAT YOURSELF
TO SOMETHING NEW!
Our rental catalog gets bigger and better every year!
Indulge your creativity and find the next great backing for
your production. The latest update includes rental backings
made for "Arms and the Dudes", "Ben Hur", "Central Intelligence"
and "Hail Caesar!". Check availability today!
Call us or visit www.jcbackings.com
310-244-5830
www.jcbackings.com
facebook.com/jcbackingscorp
84-85 Calendar.indd 85
85
12/1/15 11:39 AM
milestones
EDWARD HABIT
1924 2015
by Lockie Koon, Scenic Artist
One day, about ten years ago, Eddie Habit, the man who had been the head
of the Scenic Department at ABC for more than fifty years, pulled an immense
English flogging brush out of his desk and handed it to me. This was the passing
of the torch, acknowledging that I was now the department head for ABC Scenic.
This symbolic gesture was profound, and I was deeply honored. I had met
Eddie as a child. My father, Charles Koon, was the Production Designer for The
Lawrence Welk Show and had worked with Eddie for years. Growing up, I knew
Eddie Habit as a legend.
Of Lebanese heritage, from Uniontown, PA, he was a 54 macho giant of
a man. People said his true lovesin this orderwere cigars, horse racing,
cards, gambling and women, and yet he was one of the first Scenic bosses to
hire women. He fought in WWII, seeing service as a combat infantry rifleman in
Germany, the Ardennes and the Rhineland campaigns. After the war, he earned
a Bachelor of Professional Arts degree from Art Center College.
His first job in the industry was as a shopman at Triangle Studio for Phil Riaguel,
who was in charge of the Scenic work for the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera. He
worked there for three seasons, painting Peter Pan and Kismet among others. By
1963, he was at CBS Studios where he was soon promoted to journeyman based on the work he did for Playhouse
90. In the following years, he worked off and on at Paramount Studios, painting for Rear Window (1954) and The
Ten Commandments (1956); and at Warner Bros., working again for Phil Riaguel on A Star Is Born (1954), King
Richard the Lionhearted (1954) and other large productions. He painted for John Coakley at 20th Century Fox, and
had a long run on such productions as The Robe (1953), Daddy Long Legs (1955) and The King and I (1956).
At RKO, Eddie did ninety percent of the Scenic work on the Oscar-nominated Around the World in Eighty Days
(1956). Producer Mike Todd and the designers, Ken Adam and James Sullivan, arranged a full-time station wagon
and driver to escort him to wherever any Scenic work was to be done. He painted Greek figures in battle on the
films signature thirty-six-foot-high balloon. Besides RKO, he painted a theater front and a backing at MGM. At Fox,
he painted a faded dragon on a Chinese junk and decorations on an elephant. When Around the World in Eighty
Days ended, he was appointed head of the Scenic Department at RKO. A movie with Frank Sinatra was started.
Three weeks into the movie, all the departments were summoned onto a stage and were told that Howard Hughes,
who owned RKO, had sold the Studio to Desilu Productions. Everyone was dismissed at the end of the week. To fill
in, Eddie went to work at Grosh Studio for Jimmy McCann, painting on a backing for Guys and Dolls (1955), and
another for Oklahoma which were done at the Shrine Auditorium. He worked on four projects for Disneyland: Snow
White, Peter Pan, Mr. Toads Ride, and a mural before Disneyland opened in 1955.
He did a stint at ABC as a casual, and soon was put on staff. In 1957, he was promoted to department head, a job
he would hold for half a century. There were just three Scenic Artists then, but within a month, new projects began to
arrive. From The Lawrence Welk Show on, ABC grew at a rapid pace. Over his years there, he supervised hundreds
of specials and series, from The Hollywood Palace to Milton Berle, Jerry Lewis and Ernie Kovacs; game shows
included The Dating Game, Lets Make a Deal and Family Feud; sitcoms, too, such as Barney Miller, Welcome Back,
Kotter and Benson. All this was slotted in between the Emmy Awards, the Country Music Awards and thirty-five years
of Oscar shows.
Above: A pen-and-ink
sketch of Eddie Habit,
drawn in the paint shop
break room at ABC
Television Center in
Hollywood by Scenic
Artist Angel Esparza.
86
In 1989, I asked him for a job. I didnt use my dad or anyone, I just needed a job and was hired as a shop boy
washing buckets. He was always a fair and honest man bringing many people into Scenic Art and giving them a
chance. He gave me a chance, too. I worked for twenty-five years starting from the bottom and never thought I
would be his equal. He is survived by his sons, Ed Habit Jr. and Andrew Habit, a daughter who kept his household
going in later years, and Craig Grady, his stepson. He could be a hard-ass, he was feisty and a true character, but
very generous and fair at the same time. He will be missed.
86-87 Milestones.indd 86
12/1/15 11:40 AM
Quality Prefabricated
Paint Ready Interchangeable
Easy to Assemble
SET RENTALS
Great Service, Great Prices
2x10 WALL
DOOR 146
8x10 WALL
WINDOW 108
6x10 WALL
FIREPLACE 101
WINDOW 110
DOOR 107
FIGURATIVE
DRAWING
WORKSHOP
DOOR 146
WINDOW 108
FIREPLACE 101
818.834.2500
WINDOW 110
info@rentaset.la
rentaset.la
DOOR 107
86-87 Milestones.indd 87
87
12/1/15 11:40 AM
reshoots
88
88 Reshoots.indd 88
12/1/15 11:41 AM
Were here
when
need us
1-800-876-8320
uclahealth.org/mptf
Woodland Hills
Jack H. Skirball Health Center
MPTF Wasserman Campus
23388 Mulholland Dr
(818) 876-1050
M-F, 8 am 9 pm / Sat, Sun, Holidays 9 am 5 pm
Toluca Lake
Toluca Lake Health Center
4323 Riverside Dr
(818) 556-2700
M-F, 7 am 6 pm / Sat, 8 am 4 pm
Santa Clarita
Santa Clarita Health Center
25751 McBean Pkwy #210
(661) 284-3100
M-F, 8 am 5 pm / Sat, 8 am 4 pm
West Los Angeles
Westside Health Center
1950 Sawtelle Blvd #130
(310) 996-9355
M-F, 8 am 6 pm / Sat, 9 am 1 pm
Los Angeles, Hollywood, Mid-City
Bob Hope Health Center
335 N. La Brea Ave
(323) 634-3850
M-F, 8:30 am 5 pm / Sat, 8 am 4 pm
9/29/15 10:56 AM
12/1/15 11:42 AM
12/1/15 11:43 AM