Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1546033
I also worked closely with costume designer Heidi Higgenbotham on character research and color stories that would harmonize with the sets. Jonathan Krisel also looked to set decoration to reinforce Ludlow's history, and our department — set decorator Christopher Carlson, leadman David Lombard, and buyers Sue Choolian, Page Augustine and Rebecca Keeling—was phenomenal. History is often expressed through mundane detail: not just portraits and plaques, but conduit, light switches, mismatched repairs, aging bulletin boards— evidence that a building has been used, altered and compromised over decades. Dreams, Budgets and the Crew Clayton: Every first season has ambitious ideas and real limitations. How did you approach that balance? Cabot: With respect for both. The dream gives everyone something to aim for; the budget tells you what version you can build. We were constantly asking: What does the audience need to believe? What does the actor need to feel? What can be built, suggested, extended, or solved through graphics, lighting or post? We were fortunate to have a tireless, first-rate construction department led by construction coordinator Dwayne Franks, with an assist by Cliff Whalen, and finished by paint forewoman Brooks Vallerand—it's often the last half-inch of material everybody sees, and this plaster and paint team made the work completely believable. Raf: You can draw the right architecture, but if the finish doesn't have weight, age and truth, the illusion falls apart. Clayton: For PERSPECTIVE readers moving toward Art Direction or Production Design, what did Rooster reinforce about the non-design skills required? Cabot: Leadership is a design skill. Communication is a design skill. Diplomacy is a design skill. Morale is a design skill. A Production Designer has to protect the big idea while staying flexible about how to achieve it. Raf: You also have to create clarity. People move fast when they understand the direction— confusion is what slows everything down. On Rooster, clarity wasn't a luxury; it was survival. Cabot: The crew made the show possible: Raf turned the visual concept into a working Art Department machine; Clayton brought extraordinary speed to the 3D-design process; E. PROP BOOK COVER. GRAPHIC LAYOUT BY MEAGEN BROOKS. F. LUDLOW COLLEGE BRANDING STUDIES. GRAPHIC LAYOUT BY MEAGEN BROOKS. G. ELM IN EXTERIOR. MIDWEST ST. WARNER BROS. BACKLOT. PRODUCTION STILL. H. ELM INN SIGN. GRAPHIC LAYOUT BY MEAGEN BROOKS. G H E F