Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1438629
W H E E L O F F O R T U N E | P E R S P E C T I V E 1 2 3 When the audience is sitting on their couch watching the contestants spin the iconic Wheel and call out letters in hopes of winning dream vacations, luxury cars or cash, most don't think about the visual aesthetic of the show and how much work actually goes into it. The Wheel of Fortune rt epartment has worked tirelessly oer the years to ensure every detail is attended to on screen, on location, behind the scenes and even on ehibit. fter thirtynine seasons at Wheel of Fortune, a lot has changed, but we have always stayed true to the familiar visuals fans have come to love. Let's take a look at where we've been, how we've kept the Wheel spinning and where we are now. s roduction esigner of Wheel of Fortune, I lead my fantastic team, ody acla, eather eristo and Shaun age, who make up the shows rt epartment. fter twentyone years of working together, whether we are shooting prize cars, capturing opening sequences on location, planning a remote to a venue in another state or creating new sets for Stage in uler ity, we still get excited about the next project or adventure. Together, we have created all of the recognizable game elements that fans know and love; the Wheel and its wedges, the puzzle board and even the contestant name tags sometimes seen on social media as "namestaches." However, our contribution to the aesthetics of the show goes far beyond those constants and, unlike most game shows that hae a consistent set,the Wheel of Fortuneset design changes regularly to match different themes. hether the theme calls for a street in Europe, the illusion of the great outdoors or a large home intricately decorated for the holidays, each is uniue with astly different details and every inch of the stage is considered, dressed and lit accordingly. In earlier years of the show, the sets were built of plywood with paint, metallic wallpaper and glitter. Today, the rt epartment works with so many fun, creative materials and technologies. The main Wheel is made of frosted plexiglass panels with aluminum trim that are backlit with color changing lights. The addition of ideo walls allows us to make the sets feel larger than life, as well as bring various majestic locations into the game enironment. The use of large format backlit uratrans images hae replaced T T S A. WHEEL OF FORTUNE SEASON 39. FULL SET PANORAMIC. SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT, STAGE 11 IN CULVER CITY, CA. ©2021 CALIFON PRODUCTIONS, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. SET PHOTO BY CAROL KAELSON. B. SEASON 39 CONTESTANT BACKING. DESIGN DETAILS BY JODY VACLAV DRAWN IN AUTOCAD.