Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1504681
I remember a conversation with my agent back in January 2021 where she mentioned there was a Tim Burton project in the offing and was I interested? Laughing, I quipped, "Sure, why not?"—but quickly dismissed it as fanciful. The notion of designing for one of my all-time movie heroes was far from plausible in my eyes. I had had been an Art Director for him a few years before, but this was a very different proposition. So, I was far from expecting an unceremonious email one Sunday morning with a script for Wednesday attached, asking for a meeting later that day! The following Monday morning, I sat at my desk wondering what on earth had happened, and wrestling with the realization that I now had to design a show for Tim Burton, a director who's extraordinary legacy of movies had been designed by a small handful of some of the finest designers there have ever been. Such musings could paralyze a designer if dwelt on for too long and I knew I could never visit those thoughts again if I were to get anything done that day, or in fact, any other day!! The show was an ambitious proposition. Created by Miles Millar and Alfred Gough, Wednesday is a coming-of-age supernatural mystery comedy focusing on Wednesday Addams and her years as a high school student at Nevermore Academy, where she attempts to master her psychic powers; stop a monstrous killing spree of the town citizens; and solve the supernatural mystery that affected her family twenty-five years ago—all while navigating her new relationships. Originally conceived to be shot in Toronto with an optimistic schedule, it soon became clear that the show wasn't going to fit in the box it was intended. The scale of ambition required broader thinking and a complete reassessment of how this show should be realized. Just days before I was due to start work in Canada, the bold decision was made A. EXTERIOR OF NEVERMORE ACADEMY. 3D MODEL BUILT OVER DRONE SCAN OF CANTACUZINO CASTLE LOCATION. B. WEDNESDAY'S DORM ROOM ON STAGE 8A AT BUFTEA STUDIOS. SET PHOTO. B