Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1480624
M I N X | P E R S P E C T I V E 3 1 smaller swing stage would have to carry the burden of any added stage builds. Thus continued the push-and-pull of the Art Department fitting the set into the stage. We decided to maximize our set height by building right to the existing ceiling of the stage with the raised two-story area of the set; the clerestory windows at that level could be lit from the sides if we made the lower set ceiling a supported working platform to provide access for electrics. This developed into the entire set being a self- supporting structure that would stand on the deck, rather than being hung or supported by the dubious stage grid. The stage itself would mostly be a roof over the set. Working backward, the design team studied the proportions of the original warehouse and downsized them to maintain the relationships of windows to floor, windows to doors to ceilings, and so forth. The exterior spaces were designed with drops hung to the fire lane to maximize the distance between the set and drop. One exterior wall was designed as a full warehouse facade, with detailed, dimensional features and practical building lights to allow for lighting that would coordinate with the interior set. Several weeks later, with the stage stripped of unnecessary pipes and rigging and leftover scenery, and assorted repairs completed, construction began in earnest as the first steel girders and beams were stood upright and welded in place. Almost immediately, set dressers were in the space, layering in electrical conduit, water pipes, meters, gauges, fire prevention sprinklers, overhead lighting and the like. The race was on to finish the set for Day One of filming, about three weeks away. Not unexpectedly, the glass for the factory windows was a huge effort. To mimic the look of the patchwork textures of glass (some dating back to the 1920s, and some cracked and broken), the crew put together an order mixing six different obscure glass choices. It was important to keep the panes at the top of the windows fully obscure to protect views off the top of the exterior set backings. But approaching the bottom of the windows, I wanted the glass to be almost transparent, so the camera could see out and realize the sense of depth outside the set. This required a careful calibration as to which type of glass went where. A team of glaziers worked to install over five hundred sixty-five unique panes of glass referring to drawings that oriented each piece according to the scheme. Then, working on the heels of the glaziers, set painters went to work to build up the layers of alternating pale color and years-deep "grime." Doug's Office ---: As the boss of the company, Doug needed a more upscale office with a more carefully constructed look. Most of the groundwork for the Bottom Dollar set was laid by the set decorator for the pilot, Jennifer Gentile; series Decorator Doug Mowat was later able to quickly rough in just about every space with similar choices, and then carry on to fine-tune the details. Doug's office is a masculine space, dominated by a power desk to one side. A colorful, but faded, photo mural of a mountain scene dresses the wall behind the desk (this is a leftover from a previous business that Doug has neglected to remove). The colors are dark, with a medium-toned wood paneling accent, to create a sense of separation and intimacy, in contrast to the wide-open and well- lit ambience of the bullpen just outside. C. DOUG'S OFFICE AT BOTTOM DOLLAR PRODUCTIONS. DECORATED IN MASCULINE 1970S BROWN AND OLIVE BY JENNIFER GENTILE (PILOT) AND DOUG MOWAT (SERIES). SET PHOTO BY KATRINA MARCINOWSKI. C