Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1470106
The image is fairytale-like and melancholy at the same time, the man who is deprived of the opportunity to join society due to fi erce competition provided me with food for thought. I felt it was also in line with the fairytale quality of Korean fantasy that director Hwang Dong-hyuk wanted to portray, with the goal of breaking away from the typical visuals of current survival and death game genres. Reading numerous books on architecture, seeing photo collections, discussing with the team after watching exhibitions, and visiting bookstores and libraries all served as a foundation for creating the artistic concept for Squid Game. Exploring others' creative works was inspiring and intriguing in that it allowed me to gain an in-depth understanding of each creator's mind. I had the desire to even reshape the ideas that were inside director Hwang's head as my research went deeper. The whole production process was about matching the images I envisioned with those visualized by the director as if we were putting diff erent pieces of the puzzle together. The fi rst mission of Squid Game was to create a compelling space for the four hundred fi fty-six contestants to play the game. Director Hwang intended to depict absurdity by leveraging the contrast between the gloomy reality and the dream-like and fantastical world in the game, which was only possible through the creation of a space that does not exist—where beautiful memories suddenly turn into a harsh and frightening reality. Director Hwang wanted the sets to mimic the ambiance of actual playgrounds to give a sense of reality to the actors' performances. To this end, most of the physical sets were built to actual scale with minimal use of CGI. The production rented three huge sites and started building sets one to two months prior to the shooting, while other sets were built during fi lming. It took one to two months to build each set. Overwhelmingly gigantic spaces were designed, from the six vast gaming arenas to the approximately 1,320-square-meter quarters where the ill-fated four hundred fi fty-six contestants sleep in towering bunks. A. 456 CONTESTANTS IN THE DORMITORY. BUILT IN A STUDIO IN ANSEONG. PRODUCTION STILL. B. D0RM ENTRANCE WALL. RENDERING DONE IN SKETCHUP, V-RAY AND PHOTOSHOP BY GIM EN-JEE. C. DORM PICTOGRAMS. SET PHOTO. D. CONTESTANT DORMITORY AREA. RENDERING DONE IN SKETCHUP, V-RAY AND PHOTOSHOP BY GIM EN-JEE. B C D