Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1512164
We quickly set our hearts on filming at the Institute of Advanced Study—where Oppenheimer once served as director. It was largely untouched since Oppie's time, giving us the Institute, the pond, surrounding woods, and the manor home where he and Kitty resided during his tenure. From there, we headed down to Washington, D.C. to tour the Capitol, where Lewis Strauss's exact hearing took place in the spring of 1959. It was incredibly inspirational: a midcentury modern space with sprawling, 40-foot veneered walls and floor- to-ceiling marble hallways. We took our time walking the entire mall. (Here, during WWII, temporary buildings had been erected to house the wartime overflow, including Room 2022 where Oppenheimer's hearings were held.) Though D.C. left its mark on us, the reality was that any locations there to do with the U.S. government were a non-starter for filming consideration. From D.C., we headed to Berkeley, California. As Hans Bethe put it, "Oppenheimer established UC Berkeley as the greatest school of theoretical physics that the United States has ever known." The University has an indelible aura and quickly rose to the top of my list as a must-shoot location, as well as Oppenheimer's actual residences throughout the city. A Graveyard of Models Upon returning to LA, I had copious location imagery to pore through but also needed to begin laying out initial concepts for the film's version of Los Alamos. It was incredibly daunting to know the true size and scale of Los Alamos—and that CGI was off the table in any capacity. With the support of Set Designer Jim Hewitt and with Chris's direction, we started with a simple A. & B. LOS ALAMOS WHITE MODEL, ART DEPT. OFFICES AT UNIVERSAL STUDIOS.MODEL BY ADAM GELBART. C. LOS ALAMOS. DETAIL OF WHITE MODEL. D. EARLY EXPLORATION OF LOS ALAMOS MOCKED UP IN SKETCHUP BY ART DIRECTOR JAKE CAVALLO. A B C D