Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1529668
During his research for the book, Blake had come to know Dr. Clifford Johnson, theoretical physicist and professor at USC. Dr. Johnson became Blake's expert consultant for the novel and, lucky for us, for the show as well. That's how I began to make (some…faint, kind-of) sense of the theoretical conditions that The Box would have to meet to be completely insulated from absolutely everything, not just from the room or the atmosphere, but from the cosmos. A sort of cosmic insulator. Now, how does one come up with something that doesn't exist? Something that may never exist? Gladly for me, there was a blueprint, a starting point within Blake's novel and then scripts. It contained a sense of scale, of mystery and a detailed description of the lack of details that this Box would have. So, at the beginning, the Art Department allowed The Box not to be a box. To have round edges; to have no edges; to be cyberpunk and have mufflers and cables; to be futuristic and smooth and to be… invisible. Then, it became a box again. At some point, we knew we had it. The Box was born. From The Box came The Infinite Corridor. From The Infinite Corridor came The Worlds. Every door in the corridor opened to a new world, a new story. This article is just a glimpse into Dark Matter's Art Department and our approach to creating some of the sets, some of the world where it all happened. Thankfully, I was able to gather a fantastic team: Helen Britten, set decorator; David Bridson, Supervising Art Director; Matt Cavaliero, property master; Troy Osman, construction coordinator, and a significant number of other team members, too long a list to name now, but for whose contribution I will always be grateful. The Infinite Corridor Once in The Box, with the door closed, the travelers inject themselves with a solution and The Box opens up, becoming an Infinite Corridor. A corridor with doors on both sides that go on forever, each one opening to a different version of the world. The design of The Box was established, so it was a matter of making this corridor practical, shootable and resistant to the daily grind of a shooting crew. When it comes to designing sets, there's always an aesthetic and an emotional side to them, but a mechanical side as well. While I'm thinking about an environment, as a Production Designer, I want 2022.08.22 MESQUITE PRODUCTIONS, INT/EXT. BOX BLAKE CROUCH PATRICIO FARRELL FLOOR PLAN/ELEVATIONS 31ST ST STAGES (1-3) P.OLEKSY 310 1.0 2 SCALE X/X" B C A A 01 D 1.0 D 3'-7 1/2" 4'-9" 3'-7 1/2" 12'-0" 5" 10" 3" B 1.0 C 1.0 13'-3" 6'-10 1/2" 6" 4'-4 1/2" 12'-0" 2'-2" 6" 7'-4" 6" 2'-2" 8'-4" 12'-8" 8" 8" 10'-0" 8" 8" 12'-8" 8" 8" 10'-0" 8" 8" 12'-8" 2'-2" 7'-4" 2'-2" 8'-4" 12'-8" 8" 6'-0" 8" 12'-0" 11'-0" 1'-0" 7'-0" 3'-9" 3" 1'-6" 10'-0" 6" 12'-0" 6" 3'-9" 6" 12'-8" 2'-3" 4" 5" 2'-7" 7'-6" 2'-7" 11" 4'-10 1/2" 6'-10 5/8" 1'-0" 8'-0" 1'-6" 6" 11'-0" 6" 4" 6" 4" 12'-0" 1'-6" 10'-0" 6" 12'-0" 12'-8" 2'-7" 7'-6" 2'-7" 1'-6" 6'-0" (SKYLIGHT) 2'-6" 11'-0" 6" 2'-3" 10'-0" 7'-6" 11'-0" 6" 4'-4 1/2" 13'-2" 1'-6" 1'-0" 6'-0" 1'-0" 1'-6" 8" 1'-0" 4'-0" 4'-0" 1'-0" 1'-0" 9'-0" 1'-0" OPEN CEILING EL. 11'-0" FROM PLATFORM EL+12'-6" EL+11'-0" SLOPE REMOVABLE FLOOR PANELS EL. 12" FROM STAGE FL. GRATING TBD 1'-9" 9" 7'-6" 3'-6" 4'-0" 3'-6" 11'-0" 2'-6" 6'-0" 2'-6" 8'-0" 4" 9 1/2" 1'-0 3/8" 11'-4" 9 1/2" 10'-0" 1'-3" 6" 1'-3" 6" 6" 6" 6" 6" 6" 6" 6" 6" 6" 6" 6" 6" 6" 4 3/4" 4 3/4" 6" 6" 6" 6" 6" 130° 50° R1" 2'-2" 6" 7'-4" 6" 2'-2" 8'-4" 12'-8" 13'-3" 9" 6" 12'-0" 3" 7'-0" 3'-9" 1'-0" 3'-8" 12'-8" 4'-0" 3'-8" 4" 4" 1'-10" 1'-10" 4" 1'-0" 135° 6'-0" 1'-0" 1'-6" 8'-0" 148° 3'-6" 3'-6" 2" 2" 5" 1'-0" 1'-6" LIGHTS TBD 2'-6" 4'-4 1/2" 2'-1 1/2" 3" BUILD UP FLOOR 3'-9" 1'-0" 9'-0" 1'-0" 4'-0" 4 1/2" 4'-4 1/2" 4'-0" 4 1/2" 4'-4 1/2" 5" 132° 3" 1'-0" 1'-6" 4" 4" 1'-0" 2" 10" 1" 1" 3/8" 9" 1'-0" 3/8" 11 1/4" 3/8" 1'-0" 4" 2" 10" A. EARLY BOX CONCEPT ILLUSTRATIONS. B. BOX CONSTRUCTION DRAWING. B A