Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1538080
4 2 P E R S P E C T I V E J U L Y / A U G U S T 2 0 2 5 There is a visual strategy to The Bondsman. It's a mashup of genres—family drama, country music, southern crime and supernatural horror. The production aimed to create an eerie tone, incorporating elements of fire, horror and dread, to contrast with the hope and love that characterize the family dynamic. Music is at the forefront of the story, while religion is a recurring theme in the background. Symbolism plays a significant role, as does the use of metaphor, enhancing character narratives and the underlying settings and themes that lie beneath the surface. The Art Department crafted this world using controlled color palettes, interesting profiles, real textures such as rough-sawn wood, concrete blocks, plaster with movement and unusual fabrics that feel well loved and worn. Our hero sets—the bond shop, Kitty's farmhouse and the boxcar—are characters unto themselves, with layered histories evident in their design, color choices and set decoration. My first task upon being hired was researching the culture and history of the show's locale, at the end of the Appalachian Trail in Northern Georgia. Inspired by the images that captured the most realistic representation of everyday life in North Georgia's Appalachian region, I used these to create a bible, guiding the design team through the creation process. S u p e r n a t u r a l M e e t s D u c t T a p e D E S I G N I N G T H E B O N D S M A N B Y E V E M C C A R N E Y, P R O D U C T I O N D E S I G N E R A