Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1536054
12 PROP CULTURE I SUMMER 2025 killed him. I was so inexperienced that I didn't realize you are supposed to use whipped cream and not actual pies. Thank God he was a lovely, patient gentleman. PROP CULTURE: Raging Bull seemed like a graduation of sorts. You were now getting to work with some film heavyweights like Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro. Raging Bull was filmed with a very intentional black- and-white artistic aesthetic. What challenges does this bring about? EMILY FERRY: Working in black-and- white was an amazing experience, which I was able to have again when I worked on Ed Wood. Every item needs to be curated in a certain way, so it's a true challenge. I was so intimidated to be working with Scorsese and De Niro. I was fairly new and all the other crew members were practiced professionals. Luckily, most of them were absolute angels, and some of the funniest, ballsiest folks ever. But there was a cadre of production people and boxing guys from New York who told me to never speak to Bob or interact with him in any way. I had never encountered this phenomenon. I didn't realize that sometimes this is done to protect people's jobs, rather than protect the performer. One day, when we were shooting in the ring, Bob waved me over and pointed to his mouth and mumbled, "Mmmnmnmnm." I panicked and asked, "What, sir?" Bob repeated the action, along with the mumbling. I had never even been introduced to the actor and was frightened as hell. Taking a wild guess, I said, "You want me to remove your mouthpiece???" And Bob, who was confined by boxing gloves, nodded his head. I reached into this revered man's mouth and took out his mouthpiece, and he said, "Thank you, Emily." Bob was aware of everything that was going on around him, was completely adorable, and even knew my name. That was a great welcome to big-time Hollywood. De Niro and I later made two other films together, and each one was a pleasure. PROP CULTURE: Gattaca had some truly unique artistic challenges of creating futuristic science fiction props that had to feel incredibly realistic and grounded. How did you approach that? EMILY FERRY: The biggest challenge on Gattaca was that we had so little money. Luckily, the director and designer were geniuses, and all the crew hitched their wagon to one star. We used ingenuity and a great sense of style to get the film to achieve its one-of-a-kind look. I am incredibly proud of Gattaca, not just from a visual standpoint, but also as a very important film that tackles vital subjects that are even more relevant today. PROP CULTURE: When you stepped into Alien: Resurrection, you were joining what was already a popular and established franchise. How did that feel? Were you able to put your own artistic spin into the creative? EMILY FERRY: I had just finished Gattaca and was deeply ingrained in the aesthetic of that film. Moving right onto another futuristic film proved a challenge for me, because the design world of Alien is so disparate from that of Gattaca. When the art department and I were coming up with ideas for weapons of the future, it took me a while to leave behind brushed- nickel finishes, and transition into the grimy, drippy, reptilian world of the Alien franchise. Manufacturing the guns was challenging and intriguing, but the best aspect of that experience for me was being a part of figuring out what the world of the future will look like, particularly on the Auriga ship. Will there still be paper? What will food look like? How will religion be handled? Liquor? The Property Department had a blast with that. PROP CULTURE: In How the Grinch Stole Christmas, nothing "came off the shelf, right?" You had to do everything? How did you approach such a daunting task? EMILY FERRY: I knew from the start that there was no prop manufacturing house in LA that could handle every single item that the set decoration and Property Department would have to manufacture. From left: HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS and GATTACA