Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1470106
new environments, in season two, aer Morhen would play a role across seven of the eight episodes. The Art Department began by looking at the continued globalization of the continent. In season one, we had endeavoured to expand the design language of the project beyond the uropean medieval world. In the case of aer Morhen, we looked south toward the Indian sub-continent to bring a uniue and slightly unexpected feel. In the lore of The Witcher, the name aer Morhen is an evolution of the ancient aer a'Muirehen, which loosely translates to castle or keep of the ancient sea. Knowing that legend had the citadel once near the coast, I very much liked the juxtaposition of an architectural language born out of a warmer climate being now situated high in the snow-covered peaks of the Blue Mountains. The mountains themselves would also need to present what is meant to be a virtually unreachable geography. For this, the production went north to Scotland and the Isle of Skye. The ld Man of Stoor and The Needle provided the base plate for the photogrammetry. This was then augmented in visual eff ects to allow for the citadel's placement and its approach. It's this juxtaposition of the architecture and the environment that give Kaer Morhen its distinct identity. For the interior, this principal challenge was creating a geography that allows the audience to believe that the working environment is far greater than the physical build. Like with the backlot, to do this the Art Department created a mesh of interconnected corridors that gave us the freedom to approach areas of the set from multiple directions, thus changing the audiences point of view on spaces and allowing us to re-dress one space to become many. Art Directors Marco estivo and hantelle Valentine began the early F. KAER MORHEN. SET DECORATION STUDIES. G. KAER MORHEN. GREAT HALL. PRODUCTION STILL. H. KAER MORHEN. GREAT HALL. PLAN AND ELEVATIONS. F G H