Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/834282
Opposite page, top to bottom: The interior/exterior of a farmhouse shot on location at Bonanza Creek Ranch, NM. An existing structure was augmented to have more of a log cabin feeling as opposed to the stuccoed adobe that was common in the Southwest. The set was designed to feel isolated and match what had been established in the comics. Construction drawings of the farmhouse were created in Revit. The interior of the cabin was shot in one location and the exterior in another, so horizontal logs were added to the façade to tie the locations together, along with a door at the center of the structure and plant-on windows. Due to the tight production schedule, two units shot simultaneously and the interior of the farmhouse needed to be built closer to the town so the actor playing Cowboy could run back-and-forth between setups to shoot scenes with the other unit. This page, top to bottom: A concept rendering of the interior of the Sundowner Motel stage set, created by Mr. Blass in Thea working over a SketchUp ® model. The room is the scene of an epic fight between Jesse and both replicating angels and a demon, causing mass destruction. Wood paneling and carpet tiles were designed into the decor to allow for bloody resets. Perforated breeze blocks were added to the location to allow a good match with the stage set. This photograph, shot onstage, shows how the blocks bridge between the stage set and the exterior location. Muscari looking for just the right Western vista. New Mexico is one of the go-to destinations for Western films. After a week of looking at all of the options, we settled on Bonanza Creek Ranch. The juxtaposition of the saloon to a building that could be turned into the apothecary, and a schoolhouse worked best, and the farmhouse was a near match for the one in the comics. The ranch also had another key element: the hanging tree, which was used as a bridge from the town of Ratwater to the present-day Annville, built on the same location. The tree needed to look not just dead, but ominous. The dedicated greens team that had just spent weeks building a row of trees leading up to the church, now had the task of defoliating and pruning the hanging tree from a beautiful oak to a visage of death incarnate. For the town of Ratwater, I wanted to play to our strengths. Edward McLoughlin, Mark Zuelzke and I sat down and went over the list of what could reasonably be in the town and, more importantly, what we could do best. I often use the term "paint with a bigger brush" to highlight areas that would play in the background or were less emphasized; providing big impact with fewer details. The scene in the comic took place in the snow at Christmas. We didn't want to create snow, but I did want to have a nod to the comics, so sad Christmas decorations and a stack of Christmas trees were added to one of the buildings that was turned into a lumberyard. Keeping with the big- brush idea, I went with an undertaker's shop with caskets on display, a big vintage Chinese laundry with boiling pots, the Hex Livery in the comics which was a nod to Jonah Hex. I added that as an Easter egg for the fans, and peppered other shops and stores that I knew could be outfitted as well. After ten episodes, the season came to a close and, like the town of Ratwater, the new town of Annville was wiped from the earth by a horrific disaster. There was a running theme throughout the season that the towns were modern-day versions of Sodom and Gomorrah, one destroyed by a tornado and the other by a methane explosion. The season did turn out to be insanity beyond anything I could have imagined, and then the city of Annville was wiped out in an atomic bomb-style explosion. I hope the bar was raised on the mixture of lunacy and highly detailed craftsmanship that can be created on a one-hour drama. If not, Season Two premieres on June 25 and we get to do it all over again. ADG Dave Blass, Production Designer Mark Zuelzke, Art Director Kirsten Oglesby, Gregory G. Sandoval, Derek Jensen, Assistant Art Directors Tyler Standen, Brandon Arrington, Graphic Designers Taura C.C. Rivera, Set Designer Paulo DeFreitas, Jr., Amy Lynn Umezu, Storyboard Artists Edward McLoughlin, SDSA, Set Decorator