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putting it together since the fifth awards. He added directing duties to his plate in 2006. According to Margolis, while a few changes were made to the ceremony the year he first took the reins, the format since that time hasn't been altered much. "It's two hours, start to finish," he says. "There are only 13 awards and three special tributes consisting of Life Achievement, In Memoriam and a union tribute package that changes from year to year. We've found something that really works. The TV audience loves the show because it's exciting and fun to watch, and they feel like they're part of the event. The actors in attendance love it because it's a room full of other actors. To them, it feels like they've gone to somebody's home for dinner." Setting the Stage In its natural state, the Shrine Exposition Center looks more like an old roller rink than it does an elegant ballroom, so it's up to the Emmy-winning production design team of John Shaffner and Joe Stewart to create some magic. The process begins on a small scale. "John and Joe come up with three different models of the room to present to the SAG Awards Committee and the producing team," says Emmy-winning Lighting Designer Jeffrey Engel. "After they decide which look they will go with, John, Joe and I start collaborating on the details of the room." According to Stewart, it's more of an Behind the Scenes John Shaffner and Joe Stewart JOE STEWART have served as SAG Awards' production designers since 2004. Stewart sat down with us to discuss the process of creating atmosphere. THE PERFECT AMBIENCE JOE: When you have glamorous celebrities, handsome gentlemen and accomplished performers, you want to have a special environment for them. And you know they're going to be wearing tuxedos and gowns, so it needs to be the kind of environment in which those things can coexist. You don't want to steal their thunder, but you want to also make sure that it doesn't look not formal enough, not dignified enough and not glamorous enough. DESIGN JOE: Design is a mental process. It isn't just drawing. When I go places, I try to record images in my mind. Sometimes what I try to do is enlarge upon those images and say, "Well, can we do this in a theatrical setting, would it light up right and would it change enough so we could look at it for two hours?" FAUX FINISH JOE: It's what I say that actors do when they take a prop and it needs to be gold. With their talent, they can make it into gold. And that's what scene designers do. They present a material to you that isn't what it is but tries to make it appear to be something real. And because of the rest of the proceedings, you can believe it for just a little bit. We're not telling you 100 percent of the truth, but we want you to believe us. SAGAFTRA.org | Special Issue 2014 | SAG-AFTRA 48