Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1514626
3 2 P E R S P E C T I V E | J A N U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 4 N E W S Set Designers, Model Makers and Previs Artists Craft Winner: Greg Papalia A D G L I F E T I M E A C H I E V E M E N T AWA R D G R E G PA PA L I A Greg Papalia was born and raised on the westside of Los Angeles, growing up in the shadow of MGM Studios and all of their many back lot facilities which at the time occupied a sizeable area of Culver City. As a child, he remembers passing MGM's Lot 3's two-mile-long green fence along Jefferson Boulevard over which he could just catch glimpses of the magic beyond. Even as a kid, Greg was intrigued by the little bits of architecture that jutted up above the fence top, hinting of stories depicting both history and adventure. Also nearby was the back lot of Desilu Studios, which one could clearly see as it sat along, and below Jefferson Boulevard, just a little to the east. It had once been the back lot of Selznick Studios where the burning of Atlanta was filmed for Gone With the Wind. The remnants of the great studios is what he grew up around, and while no one in his family worked in the film business, much of Los Angeles and Culver City was a company town that in some way, he felt a part of. And so, it was only natural, upon graduating from high school in 1975, and needing a job, it made perfect sense for Greg to drive over to MGM, walk into the Thalberg Building (pretty much anybody could in those days) and ask if they could use someone like him, a high school-aged kid with a bad haircut and not much to offer except a willingness to do anything. Turns out that was just what they were looking for! Two weeks after turning 18, and two lengthy interviews later, Greg found himself working in the mail room of the biggest and most respected studio around. To say he considered himself lucky would be an understatement! At the same time, he had no idea of the fifty-year adventure that lay ahead. Papalia spent a year and a half in the mailroom before moving into the production department where he was taught to be what today is considered to be a production coordinator. The difference between that time and today is the production coordinator today is dedicated to a single production. Back then, in the mid-'70s, all the films and television shows were run out of a central production department. Two coordinators were responsible for working with every producer, UPM and first AD for every show going on at any given time. His job was to A. GREG PAPALIA. B. MOUNTAIN SHACK FOR AMERICAN PRIMEVAL (2024} ELEVATION AND DETAILS. A B