WEBVTT
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Hey nerds, I'm Wil Wheaton
and this is "The Ready Room."
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Your official behind-the-scenes hub
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for all things Star Trek Universe.
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Today we're taking a
little unsanctioned mission
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to all things Season 3, Episode 6
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of Star Trek: Discovery.
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So if you want to avoid spoilers
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and a severe dressing
down from Captain Saru.
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It is about trust.
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Then I suggest you watch
that before you watch us.
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Now for those of you who are
ready to break protocol, we
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have an amazing guest joining me today.
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Lead Creature Designer
Neville Page is here to talk
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about bringing his team's
stunning alien creations to life.
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Then later on, as always, I
have a never-before-seen clip
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from next week's episode of
Star Trek: Discovery for you.
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But before we get to either
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of those things, I've
already been alluding
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to our latest "Moments Of
Discovery" which hones in
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on Burnham's daring rescue mission
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to the salvage planet Hunhau.
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What do you say we take a look?
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Control room, engage.
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Hey, Michael. I'm recording this message
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in case I can't tell you in person.
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I was on my way to the Bajoran exchange
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when this guy sitting
next to me started talking
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about a "black box," and I
think his "black box" is one
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of the ones you're looking for.
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He was looking for the thing
that was important for her,
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and the thing that was
important to her was
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to get this black box that
can help solve the mystery
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of the Burn.
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It's on Hunhau, Emerald Chain territory.
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I'm going to do some looking around.
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If things don't go well, I'll set the ship
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to bring Grudge to you if I'm
not back on board in 24 hours.
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Not having been asked to
do that, he puts himself
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in harm's way to go try and
help her with this mission
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that means everything to her.
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It's the thing that she
was pushing for constantly
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over the course of that
year that she was there.
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Here, I got it.
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The black box.
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Who are these friends of yours?
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Very handy, excellent friends.
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A big thing that we
wanted to show was this
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process of letting go that
has happened over this year.
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Much influenced by Book.
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What Burnham appreciated
about Cleveland Booker is
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how he is a master of his own fate
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and you can make a difference.
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We wanted Burnham to have some fun
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and some levity in a
relationship with someone
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and Book is someone she can do that with.
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What does this cat loving friend have
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that made you fall for
him like a two-year-old
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on the edge of a well?
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Excuse me?
They compliment each other.
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Like a yin and a yang.
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I remember shooting that
scene and that moment
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where Cleveland Booker is
in like the salvage yard
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and then Michael Burnham walks in
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and they clock eyes for the first time.
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And it was like seeing her
depth of love in that moment
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and the sacrifice that
she's made to be here.
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But then also her seeing me
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as a captured man in
bondage was really profound.
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It really caught me off guard.
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I love David Ajala.
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He's such a wonderful actor.
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He's such a wonderful human being.
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And I love that he's a
very different character
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than we've ever seen, and I love
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how he's bringing Book to life.
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You weren't supposed to come.
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Hell I wasn't.
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Cleveland Booker introduces
to Michael Burnham a freer way
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of navigating one's way through life,
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that can be fun and have levity.
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You don't have to carry
the weight of the world
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on your shoulders day in, day out.
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As Burnham, I decided over time
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that perhaps the Federation
is not the place for me.
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Perhaps, I can pursue a
life that is more fulfilling
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on my own, as my own.
Defining my own standards,
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defining my own desires.
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When she has physically
put her life on the line
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for him, she didn't have to do that.
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She was warned not to come for him
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but yet Michael Burnham finds herself back
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in harm's way, putting
her life on the line
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for Cleveland Booker.
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Whoo!
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So being faced with that, I
think they both are forced
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to acknowledge how they
feel about each other.
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Where it goes from there, who knows?
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Right now I am joined by one
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of Star Trek: Discovery's
foremost alien design experts,
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legendary Lead Creature
Designer, Neville Page.
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Sir, thank you so much
for taking some time
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to sit in "The Ready Room" with me today.
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Thank you for having me.
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It's a real delight.
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We have moved a thousand
years into the future
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which leaves ample room
and limitless opportunity
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to introduce new aliens and creatures.
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So, first of all, how has
this time jump affected
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the way you approach
creature design if at all?
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It's an excellent question because
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when I heard they were a thousand years
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in the future, my initial thought
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was, "Well, anything goes now,"
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and then the biological Neville steps in
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and says, "Actually, no,
not a lot will happen
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in a thousand years in
terms of evolution."
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You think about human evolution,
like a thousand years ago,
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how different did we as humans look?
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There were not many changes
noticeably physiologically.
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So, really there's not much that
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I have to do differently
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about creature, alien design
being a thousand years
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in the future.
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The only difference really is
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that we, we being the entire
creative team, can start
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to introduce new species
that we have not seen before.
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Is it extra-- "Fun" seems
like not the right word.
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"Fun" does not capture the entirety
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of, "I'm building a new
creature that is now going
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to be part of Star Trek canon," right?
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That's sort of like, yes,
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whatever they call those
weird little ear things
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from Wrath of Khan, these creatures
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that a generation on, we
still talk about them.
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Like our-- you have designed
some very iconic creatures
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that will persist for generations,
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but what about doing that in Star Trek?
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It is fun.
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I mean, you think about my job,
which is to, A: I'm working
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on this incredible franchise.
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B: I essentially get to
think about weird stuff
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and draw and sculpt, and that's my job.
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It's kind of ridiculous.
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So from that point of
view, it is beyond fun.
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If you stop and think, which I try not to,
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about the potential ramifications
of what you're doing,
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for example, when creating
a brand new species,
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you do recognize that that's
going to become canon,
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and if you stop and think
about the importance of that,
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because Star Trek, unlike
so many franchises,
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as you so dearly know, is a very,
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it's got a huge audience
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that has such dedication to it
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that there's a very different
approach and responsibility,
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if I may say,
Yeah.
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to designing things for it,
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because you know how
important it is to people.
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So that's why I say you can't go
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into this thinking about that
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Yeah.
because it
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could be debilitating.
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So I just allow myself the freedom
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to just think loosely
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and if I go too far out there,
there's plenty of people
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in the production that
will keep me in check.
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That's for sure.
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So much of what you are designing
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for Discovery now, you
are in some ways standing
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on the shoulders of people
like Michael Westmore
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and Scott Wheeler and Jake Garber
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and do you still turn
to them for reference?
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Are you combining your instinct
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with their canon to develop these things?
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Do I reference Michael
Westmore, for example?
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More than that, I have his phone number
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almost set to speed dial
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Wow.
and I will call him,
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respectfully, on occasion and
say, what do you think of?
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Yeah, wow.
Because it would
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be, not only I think, ever
so slightly disrespectful
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to not tap into that, but it
would be irresponsible to not,
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and I so much would love--
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and he's kind of a father figure,
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so you kind of want your dad's blessing,
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Yeah, sure.
in this.
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But at the same time,
it's-- Whenever I talk
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to him, I always, it's always
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with, "anxiety" is not
quite the right word
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but I'm nervous because I
really want his approval,
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but at the same time, I
am supposed to move things
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in a direction that's ever
so slightly different.
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Whether that be because of
the technologies we're using.
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You know, the cameras
today, HD, et cetera,
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they're going to pick up more details
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Yeah.
than in the past.
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So everything is...
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I'm careful to use words like "elevated"
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because that implies
that the other is sub.
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I understand.
It's not the case.
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It's just that HD cameras
capture more detail
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Yeah.
ergo, we need
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to infuse things with more detail.
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Plus, audiences mature over time.
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The suspension of disbelief
that an audience has today
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is very different than it
was even say 50 years ago,
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which I know is a long time ago,
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but the audience is paying
such close attention.
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Yeah.
I remember at Comic-Con
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a few years back, we had just, kind
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of debuted the Torchbearer
Klingon spacesuit
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Okay.
and it was sitting
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in a display case, Comic-Con
hadn't even opened yet,
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and someone had already commented
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on the engraved Klingon text
that I put in the dagger.
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[Wil] And they translated it?
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[Neville] They deciphered it.
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Amazing!
Comic-Con wasn't even open.
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[Neville] I saw this tweet,
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and I thought, "Wow, it's a good thing
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that I didn't do anything too personal
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with that hidden text."
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Yeah, it's never about you
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but if you're going to plant a seed
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or plant an Easter egg,
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it had better be relevant
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because someone will catch it.
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There's a lot.
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In that Klingon suit
actually, there is a ton of
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Amazing.
referential iconography
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specific to Klingon lore and canon.
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In 303, this character Wen is introduced
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and he's a dilithium
raider and he comes in
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and he looks like he is a
terrifying alien species.
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He's got this great battle helmet on
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and we're like wondering
what in the world is going on
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with this creature, and
then he takes it off
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and it's a human underneath.
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Now I understand that you
and your team designed
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and built his helmet.
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Would you talk about that?
Because it looks like
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Yeah.
there's not
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a human under there.
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Well that's the smoke
and mirrors of design
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when it comes to proportion.
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Everything starts with
a strong silhouette.
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You think about what
is a strong silhouette?
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In this case, front view.
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And the important, the
two important things were
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that the shape would look
like a different type
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of head fits inside of it,
and the second is the sound,
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of course, coming out
of it, slightly modified
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so that you're not hearing a human voice.
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And probably the most fun thing
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about that particular helmet
is really the process.
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The Wen helmet was a really fun process
256
00:12:00.140 --> 00:12:03.400
of quickly digitally sculpting it
257
00:12:03.400 --> 00:12:05.336
Okay.
and understanding
258
00:12:05.336 --> 00:12:09.850
in the round how all of
these shapes could work,
259
00:12:09.850 --> 00:12:13.670
and then 3D printing it and providing that
260
00:12:13.670 --> 00:12:18.320
to Alchemy to then start
doing all the complex finishes
261
00:12:18.320 --> 00:12:20.610
Yeah.
and the technical side
262
00:12:20.610 --> 00:12:23.450
of illumination and
comfort for the performer,
263
00:12:23.450 --> 00:12:28.250
because you put on anything,
makeup in particular,
264
00:12:28.250 --> 00:12:31.230
but helmet comes on and
off, but it still needs
265
00:12:31.230 --> 00:12:32.440
to be comfortable.
266
00:12:32.440 --> 00:12:34.350
They still need to be able to walk
267
00:12:34.350 --> 00:12:37.410
and talk, hear and be heard.
268
00:12:37.410 --> 00:12:39.250
So there's a lot more that goes
269
00:12:39.250 --> 00:12:42.600
into just the aesthetic design of things.
270
00:12:42.600 --> 00:12:45.720
It's quite a bit more.
271
00:12:45.720 --> 00:12:49.730
We are seeing so much
more of Linus this season.
272
00:12:49.730 --> 00:12:52.470
He's such a great character
273
00:12:52.470 --> 00:12:56.720
and David Benjamin
Tomlinson is just getting
274
00:12:56.720 --> 00:13:00.690
to do so much more with Linus this year
275
00:13:00.690 --> 00:13:02.950
than we've ever seen before.
276
00:13:02.950 --> 00:13:06.880
Would you just talk a little
bit about his character
277
00:13:06.880 --> 00:13:09.720
and what goes into creating
his creature effects?
278
00:13:09.720 --> 00:13:12.840
And do you work closely
with Jason Zimmerman's team
279
00:13:12.840 --> 00:13:14.010
to augment him?
280
00:13:14.010 --> 00:13:16.870
You know, we see his eye
membrane go and things like that.
281
00:13:16.870 --> 00:13:19.560
When you're designing those characters,
282
00:13:19.560 --> 00:13:23.330
do you write in like, "By
the way, you know, Zimmerman,
283
00:13:23.330 --> 00:13:27.650
so you know, we would
love it if this happened."
284
00:13:27.650 --> 00:13:29.670
Does it go that far?
285
00:13:29.670 --> 00:13:30.503
It does.
286
00:13:30.503 --> 00:13:31.380
It definitely does.
287
00:13:31.380 --> 00:13:33.830
So from a design perspective, what I loved
288
00:13:33.830 --> 00:13:38.830
about that creature is
the original reference.
289
00:13:39.320 --> 00:13:44.320
I have one tiny little
image that was a front view
290
00:13:45.100 --> 00:13:47.220
and this is what was desired,
it's like, "Neville we want
291
00:13:47.220 --> 00:13:49.870
that canon alien brought to life."
292
00:13:49.870 --> 00:13:53.540
So Glenn and I talked
about, is it just pieces,
293
00:13:53.540 --> 00:13:56.400
is it the full head, how are
we going to execute this?
294
00:13:56.400 --> 00:13:58.010
We want some big eyes.
295
00:13:58.010 --> 00:13:59.260
Are they going to be mechanical?
296
00:13:59.260 --> 00:14:01.350
There's challenges doing mechanical eyes
297
00:14:01.350 --> 00:14:03.193
on a TV show or on any show.
298
00:14:04.780 --> 00:14:07.700
So you have all these conversations first
299
00:14:07.700 --> 00:14:10.530
before you really commit to pen on paper.
300
00:14:10.530 --> 00:14:15.530
From those conversations,
we arrived fairly quickly
301
00:14:16.010 --> 00:14:21.010
at the need and the
knowledge of these giant eyes
302
00:14:21.260 --> 00:14:24.640
that probably, were going
to have to be augmented
303
00:14:24.640 --> 00:14:26.620
in post, like Jason Zimmerman.
304
00:14:26.620 --> 00:14:28.330
So, that would be the next conversation
305
00:14:28.330 --> 00:14:32.400
before designing something too
far is getting on the phone
306
00:14:32.400 --> 00:14:36.250
with Jason and saying,
"What"-- I was gonna say,
307
00:14:36.250 --> 00:14:37.083
"What can you do?"
308
00:14:37.083 --> 00:14:37.916
He can do anything.
309
00:14:37.916 --> 00:14:40.570
So that's a little bit
of a silly question.
310
00:14:40.570 --> 00:14:43.900
What can we do within the scheme
311
00:14:43.900 --> 00:14:45.640
of the production and the time,
312
00:14:45.640 --> 00:14:46.890
Yeah.
and the budget,
313
00:14:46.890 --> 00:14:51.780
and it always comes down to
time and budget for anything.
314
00:14:51.780 --> 00:14:54.260
So rather quickly, Jason was clear
315
00:14:54.260 --> 00:14:56.980
that we can do a cool eye blink,
316
00:14:56.980 --> 00:14:59.440
which would mean we could
kind of keep these eyes fixed
317
00:14:59.440 --> 00:15:01.841
like a snake where it doesn't blink
318
00:15:01.841 --> 00:15:03.930
or emote a tremendous amount.
319
00:15:03.930 --> 00:15:07.460
So then knowing that now it's
the technical side working
320
00:15:07.460 --> 00:15:10.550
with Glenn Hetrick in
Alchemy and coming together
321
00:15:10.550 --> 00:15:12.990
and making sure that
what I'm designing works
322
00:15:12.990 --> 00:15:15.310
for them, works on the actor.
323
00:15:15.310 --> 00:15:18.740
You know, the worst thing
that anyone could do is design
324
00:15:18.740 --> 00:15:21.450
in a vacuum something amazing
and cool that doesn't work.
325
00:15:21.450 --> 00:15:22.940
It's a lie.
326
00:15:22.940 --> 00:15:24.200
It's a waste of time.
327
00:15:24.200 --> 00:15:27.050
So you have to work very
closely, particularly
328
00:15:27.050 --> 00:15:30.130
if you're trying to innovate in some way.
329
00:15:30.130 --> 00:15:31.940
Then I get to, where the fun is
330
00:15:31.940 --> 00:15:33.940
for me, all of it's fun quite frankly,
331
00:15:33.940 --> 00:15:37.130
but then I just sit down and start
332
00:15:37.130 --> 00:15:40.480
to be artistically
creative, visually creative.
333
00:15:40.480 --> 00:15:44.020
Interesting forms,
shapes, textures, colors
334
00:15:44.950 --> 00:15:47.620
and because we've done the groundwork
335
00:15:47.620 --> 00:15:49.510
and we've set the rules
of what things need
336
00:15:49.510 --> 00:15:53.710
to be, the creative side
of it becomes very pleasant
337
00:15:53.710 --> 00:15:55.840
because you know what to do.
338
00:15:55.840 --> 00:15:59.160
Sometimes in rehearsal, other actors
339
00:15:59.160 --> 00:16:01.360
and I will deliberately
push scenes farther
340
00:16:01.360 --> 00:16:03.780
than we feel like they are expected to go.
341
00:16:03.780 --> 00:16:07.600
We want to experience what the
boundaries of the scene are
342
00:16:07.600 --> 00:16:09.920
and frequently, the only
way to find the boundary
343
00:16:09.920 --> 00:16:12.629
in the scene is to clearly push past it
344
00:16:12.629 --> 00:16:15.480
and make a choice that you wouldn't make
345
00:16:15.480 --> 00:16:16.470
when the cameras are rolling,
346
00:16:16.470 --> 00:16:18.190
but they're super
appropriate choices to make
347
00:16:18.190 --> 00:16:20.360
during rehearsal, as
you're puzzling it out.
348
00:16:20.360 --> 00:16:21.780
Do you go through a similar process
349
00:16:21.780 --> 00:16:23.540
when you're doing design?
350
00:16:23.540 --> 00:16:24.880
Oh yeah.
351
00:16:24.880 --> 00:16:28.160
Yeah, if time allows.
352
00:16:28.160 --> 00:16:31.590
Sometimes you have to do one
design and it has to work.
353
00:16:31.590 --> 00:16:32.570
Wow.
Which is scary.
354
00:16:32.570 --> 00:16:33.940
No pressure.
That's like,
355
00:16:33.940 --> 00:16:36.700
they're pretty much at
the, you know, the parallel
356
00:16:36.700 --> 00:16:41.150
there is okay, well we've
got 28 feet of film.
357
00:16:41.150 --> 00:16:43.630
Yeah right, or we lose the light.
358
00:16:43.630 --> 00:16:45.996
We have enough time for
literally a single take.
359
00:16:45.996 --> 00:16:46.829
Yes.
Yeah.
360
00:16:46.829 --> 00:16:47.662
Don't screw it up.
361
00:16:47.662 --> 00:16:49.120
The light doesn't come up until tomorrow
362
00:16:49.120 --> 00:16:50.510
Yep.
and we packed up and gone.
363
00:16:50.510 --> 00:16:52.930
Yep.
Sometimes it's like that
364
00:16:52.930 --> 00:16:56.480
where we don't have much
time, so you got one design,
365
00:16:56.480 --> 00:16:59.660
but in a perfect world, at the
very least you've got three.
366
00:16:59.660 --> 00:17:00.493
Yeah.
So you've got
367
00:17:00.493 --> 00:17:04.970
small, medium, large, a
little expected and extreme,
368
00:17:04.970 --> 00:17:08.480
but I always like to
try and give that range
369
00:17:08.480 --> 00:17:11.846
of nuanced and
370
00:17:14.730 --> 00:17:16.200
not so nuanced.
371
00:17:16.200 --> 00:17:18.430
Have you ever brought in not-so-nuanced
372
00:17:18.430 --> 00:17:21.760
and the producers are like,
"Oh man, that's the thing."
373
00:17:21.760 --> 00:17:23.210
Like have you ever pushed it too far
374
00:17:23.210 --> 00:17:24.650
and they're like, "Yeah, that's it."
375
00:17:24.650 --> 00:17:28.467
Or is it more like, "No,
I know I went too far."
376
00:17:30.300 --> 00:17:34.000
Every artist out there
who works in production
377
00:17:34.000 --> 00:17:36.920
of some sort will appreciate
what I'm about to say
378
00:17:36.920 --> 00:17:38.900
because it's just classic.
379
00:17:38.900 --> 00:17:41.240
You want to include as much--
380
00:17:41.240 --> 00:17:43.810
You want to be seen that
you've put in the effort
381
00:17:43.810 --> 00:17:45.130
Yeah.
to the job.
382
00:17:45.130 --> 00:17:47.420
So you've got to bring all the sketches
383
00:17:47.420 --> 00:17:48.510
and you know that when you're bringing
384
00:17:48.510 --> 00:17:53.510
in all the sketches, it includes
some duds and, inevitably,
385
00:17:54.010 --> 00:17:55.267
They pick the dud?
the duds get in,
386
00:17:55.267 --> 00:17:57.683
but inevitably, the dud gets picked.
387
00:17:59.000 --> 00:18:00.970
How have I not learned
388
00:18:00.970 --> 00:18:02.550
Yeah.
that you don't bring in
389
00:18:02.550 --> 00:18:04.320
anything that you don't believe in?
390
00:18:04.320 --> 00:18:05.690
But I do feel like
there's a responsibility
391
00:18:05.690 --> 00:18:07.900
that I have to show it all.
392
00:18:07.900 --> 00:18:08.880
Yeah.
You try
393
00:18:08.880 --> 00:18:10.433
and edit the good stuff.
394
00:18:12.330 --> 00:18:17.083
This season, we have seen
some incredible new creatures.
395
00:18:18.060 --> 00:18:21.300
Is there a particular
creature that has premiered
396
00:18:21.300 --> 00:18:24.280
in Season 3 that you just really love
397
00:18:24.280 --> 00:18:26.873
that you have just felt like so proud of?
398
00:18:29.370 --> 00:18:34.050
Yes, and it's... there's a range.
399
00:18:34.050 --> 00:18:35.220
There's kind of two.
400
00:18:35.220 --> 00:18:36.693
Okay.
Less than three.
401
00:18:40.060 --> 00:18:42.150
There's a character called Molly
402
00:18:43.610 --> 00:18:48.610
and Molly is a giant worm,
for lack of a better word,
403
00:18:49.920 --> 00:18:53.420
Yeah.
and she's massive
404
00:18:53.420 --> 00:18:56.720
and horrifying, yet extremely cute.
405
00:18:56.720 --> 00:18:59.280
Uh-huh.
I remember the brief
406
00:18:59.280 --> 00:19:02.220
and I thought to myself,
oh boy, here we go.
407
00:19:02.220 --> 00:19:03.480
That's a tricky one.
408
00:19:03.480 --> 00:19:08.480
Adorable, cute, but when she
needs to be, just horrifying.
409
00:19:08.820 --> 00:19:11.880
But I really did enjoy
that particular character
410
00:19:11.880 --> 00:19:14.890
because it needed to
be elegant, beautiful.
411
00:19:14.890 --> 00:19:16.610
Just a whole bunch of different things
412
00:19:16.610 --> 00:19:19.630
which is risky, challenging, not risky.
413
00:19:19.630 --> 00:19:21.950
The other one is an insect.
414
00:19:21.950 --> 00:19:25.050
It's this beautiful, little moment
415
00:19:25.050 --> 00:19:27.700
of a bioluminescence bug.
416
00:19:27.700 --> 00:19:29.340
Yeah.
417
00:19:29.340 --> 00:19:31.020
It's the, you know, the scene.
418
00:19:31.020 --> 00:19:33.530
Yes.
It's such a pretty moment
419
00:19:33.530 --> 00:19:36.563
and what I love that we're doing
420
00:19:36.563 --> 00:19:40.030
in Star Trek now is we're creating
421
00:19:40.030 --> 00:19:43.930
basically feature film every episode
422
00:19:43.930 --> 00:19:45.940
Yeah, yeah.
and that's
423
00:19:45.940 --> 00:19:47.623
for every single person involved.
424
00:19:48.530 --> 00:19:50.750
As a designer working on this stuff,
425
00:19:50.750 --> 00:19:55.750
even though you know that the
scene is not about my insect,
426
00:19:56.500 --> 00:20:01.500
but every single detail of
that insect is addressed.
427
00:20:03.240 --> 00:20:07.130
The underside of its
little pads of its claws
428
00:20:07.130 --> 00:20:08.910
that you will never see probably,
429
00:20:08.910 --> 00:20:12.663
but it might seem like isn't
that a waste of time and money?
430
00:20:14.960 --> 00:20:19.960
No, because there's... you feel it
431
00:20:20.700 --> 00:20:24.320
if it is right, you
feel it if it is there,
432
00:20:24.320 --> 00:20:27.640
and you certainly feel
it when it is not there.
433
00:20:27.640 --> 00:20:30.260
And you have to be mindful
434
00:20:30.260 --> 00:20:32.880
of where you do spend your energies,
435
00:20:32.880 --> 00:20:35.830
but what I love about the experience
436
00:20:35.830 --> 00:20:40.050
of designing for the
creatives on Star Trek is
437
00:20:40.050 --> 00:20:43.940
that they are paying
attention to those details.
438
00:20:43.940 --> 00:20:46.350
They want to know what it is.
439
00:20:46.350 --> 00:20:50.260
And I love, my personal
absolute favorite thing
440
00:20:50.260 --> 00:20:51.540
about designing creatures
441
00:20:51.540 --> 00:20:56.540
for world building universes
442
00:20:58.248 --> 00:21:00.560
is trying to make sense
443
00:21:00.560 --> 00:21:03.751
of why it is, and with alien creatures,
444
00:21:06.001 --> 00:21:07.943
I feel my job is
445
00:21:07.943 --> 00:21:11.790
to make sense of why it would have wings
446
00:21:11.790 --> 00:21:12.740
if it's supposed to.
447
00:21:12.740 --> 00:21:15.630
If I'm told, "Hey Neville,
we want a flying bug."
448
00:21:15.630 --> 00:21:18.030
By flying, do you mean wings?
449
00:21:18.030 --> 00:21:21.460
So on that particular creature, I thought,
450
00:21:21.460 --> 00:21:26.080
"Maybe it's not wings that
actually give it lift."
451
00:21:26.080 --> 00:21:29.520
It's an inflatable balloon, essentially.
452
00:21:29.520 --> 00:21:32.550
That gives it its neutral buoyancy
453
00:21:32.550 --> 00:21:34.250
and the wings just
allow it to move around.
454
00:21:34.250 --> 00:21:35.740
So it's kind of like a fish.
455
00:21:35.740 --> 00:21:37.810
The fish goes up and down
456
00:21:37.810 --> 00:21:39.190
Yeah.
mostly because
457
00:21:39.190 --> 00:21:42.580
it's using its fins but it
has essentially a bladder
458
00:21:42.580 --> 00:21:45.970
that allows it to become more buoyant
459
00:21:45.970 --> 00:21:48.500
or less buoyant or ambient
and stay in one place.
460
00:21:48.500 --> 00:21:52.470
So that's where I think I'm
a value to the production.
461
00:21:52.470 --> 00:21:54.270
If they will ask me to design something
462
00:21:54.270 --> 00:21:57.880
and I will then stay up
late at night concerned
463
00:21:57.880 --> 00:22:00.570
about, okay, what is it really supposed
464
00:22:00.570 --> 00:22:02.380
to do biologically-speaking?
465
00:22:02.380 --> 00:22:06.030
And that's just a ridiculously fun part
466
00:22:06.030 --> 00:22:08.430
of the job that no one
should ever get paid for.
467
00:22:09.530 --> 00:22:11.270
As you continue to develop the makeup
468
00:22:11.270 --> 00:22:14.150
and prosthetics for Disco Season 3, you
469
00:22:14.150 --> 00:22:17.960
and your team seem to just
be constantly experimenting
470
00:22:17.960 --> 00:22:21.480
with new techniques to streamline
and enhance the aesthetic
471
00:22:21.480 --> 00:22:24.560
of the creations that
you are bringing to life
472
00:22:24.560 --> 00:22:27.540
and you strike me as
someone who is very much
473
00:22:27.540 --> 00:22:31.563
on the cutting edge of what
is possible practically.
474
00:22:32.580 --> 00:22:35.210
How is new technology changing
475
00:22:35.210 --> 00:22:38.070
the way you develop your designs
476
00:22:38.070 --> 00:22:40.693
and then translate those
designs into prosthetics?
477
00:22:41.820 --> 00:22:43.893
It's a whole different world now.
478
00:22:45.230 --> 00:22:47.790
I do still believe that the pencil
479
00:22:47.790 --> 00:22:52.560
and paper is a place to always go
480
00:22:52.560 --> 00:22:54.550
but sometimes it makes no sense,
481
00:22:54.550 --> 00:22:57.590
and you should just
sketch three-dimensionally
482
00:22:57.590 --> 00:23:01.200
with digital clay in the computer
483
00:23:01.200 --> 00:23:04.530
because it's either more
efficient or more honest.
484
00:23:04.530 --> 00:23:07.770
For example, we'll scan an actor
485
00:23:07.770 --> 00:23:11.610
and their digital scan is in the computer.
486
00:23:11.610 --> 00:23:14.830
So dimensionally, everything
is there that we need.
487
00:23:14.830 --> 00:23:19.580
So when you're sketching on
paper and you know it's going
488
00:23:19.580 --> 00:23:22.780
to be on a specific actor, the process
489
00:23:22.780 --> 00:23:25.190
of getting a likeness first in a sketch,
490
00:23:25.190 --> 00:23:26.620
and then drawing on top of that,
491
00:23:26.620 --> 00:23:29.360
which this is a real old school technique
492
00:23:29.360 --> 00:23:33.000
that's still exists, it's
just not as efficient
493
00:23:33.000 --> 00:23:35.960
as you got the actor in your computer.
494
00:23:35.960 --> 00:23:37.410
So you're going to know
495
00:23:37.410 --> 00:23:39.120
It's so interesting.
so much material
496
00:23:39.120 --> 00:23:40.760
to put on their face.
497
00:23:40.760 --> 00:23:43.810
Wow.
And you know, to be--
498
00:23:43.810 --> 00:23:45.450
when I talk about honest design,
499
00:23:45.450 --> 00:23:46.350
Yeah.
I will take
500
00:23:46.350 --> 00:23:49.660
that actor's head and
I will paint it green
501
00:23:49.660 --> 00:23:54.660
and then I will sculp on top
of it with digital brown clay.
502
00:23:54.770 --> 00:23:56.560
So what that allows me to do is
503
00:23:56.560 --> 00:24:01.560
when there's no green showing,
that means it's all additive.
504
00:24:01.610 --> 00:24:04.230
If I happen to have green showing,
505
00:24:04.230 --> 00:24:06.330
let's say an entire nose is poking through
506
00:24:06.330 --> 00:24:09.390
because I want an alien with
kind of a flattish face,
507
00:24:09.390 --> 00:24:13.860
that either says you need
to have a digital effect.
508
00:24:13.860 --> 00:24:17.180
"Hey Jason, what can you do?"
Yeah.
509
00:24:17.180 --> 00:24:19.020
Wow.
And if budget says "No,"
510
00:24:19.020 --> 00:24:20.990
then it's like, well we got
to make the green disappear
511
00:24:20.990 --> 00:24:21.823
and pull it out.
Yeah.
512
00:24:21.823 --> 00:24:25.950
So it allows you to be honest
with what you are proposing
513
00:24:25.950 --> 00:24:29.170
and that's something
that's not impossible to do
514
00:24:29.170 --> 00:24:31.710
with pen and paper but
it's just not as efficient
515
00:24:31.710 --> 00:24:34.350
because you get to rotate it.
516
00:24:34.350 --> 00:24:35.850
My final question for you is
517
00:24:35.850 --> 00:24:39.410
on behalf of all the young people
518
00:24:39.410 --> 00:24:44.350
who desire a career in
visual effects design,
519
00:24:44.350 --> 00:24:46.050
special effects makeup, creature design.
520
00:24:46.050 --> 00:24:47.650
They want to do what you do.
521
00:24:47.650 --> 00:24:50.070
There's someone watching this right now
522
00:24:50.070 --> 00:24:52.590
who cannot believe that they are getting
523
00:24:52.590 --> 00:24:54.620
to hear this information from you.
524
00:24:54.620 --> 00:24:56.620
If that person is in front of you
525
00:24:56.620 --> 00:25:00.427
and they're like, "Hey man,
if you could just give me--
526
00:25:00.427 --> 00:25:01.777
what's the little piece of advice
527
00:25:01.777 --> 00:25:04.590
that really helped set your career up?"
528
00:25:04.590 --> 00:25:07.670
What would you choose
to share with someone
529
00:25:07.670 --> 00:25:10.610
who is looking to follow
in your footsteps?
530
00:25:10.610 --> 00:25:12.770
Who's been inspired by your work.
531
00:25:12.770 --> 00:25:15.130
So I would say the most important thing is
532
00:25:15.130 --> 00:25:16.640
to be patient with yourself.
533
00:25:16.640 --> 00:25:18.620
Art is action, unless you're blessed,
534
00:25:18.620 --> 00:25:21.210
and I do not consider
myself blessed as an artist.
535
00:25:21.210 --> 00:25:24.913
I've had to work hard to get good enough.
536
00:25:26.400 --> 00:25:27.820
Be patient with yourself.
537
00:25:27.820 --> 00:25:32.820
It takes quite a while
to get good at this craft
538
00:25:33.380 --> 00:25:36.910
and the worst thing that
one can do is give up
539
00:25:37.830 --> 00:25:41.080
while they're in that
process of getting good,
540
00:25:41.080 --> 00:25:43.910
and that's a hard thing
to try and convince anyone
541
00:25:43.910 --> 00:25:47.033
is to recognize, you know,
keep your eye on the prize.
542
00:25:48.860 --> 00:25:52.450
But patience is not what
you're taught as an artist.
543
00:25:52.450 --> 00:25:54.310
You're not going to learn
patience at Art Center
544
00:25:54.310 --> 00:25:55.980
Yeah, right.
or Gnomon or any school.
545
00:25:55.980 --> 00:25:58.830
That's not, I don't think
that's actually on the roster.
546
00:25:58.830 --> 00:26:00.730
Right.
So, know that patience
547
00:26:00.730 --> 00:26:04.133
is an incredibly valuable skill.
548
00:26:05.060 --> 00:26:07.080
There's a great old comedy bit
549
00:26:07.080 --> 00:26:09.220
from a Canadian sketch
group called The Frantics
550
00:26:09.220 --> 00:26:11.410
where the guy is like trying
to learn a martial art
551
00:26:11.410 --> 00:26:12.617
and the instructor says, "You have
552
00:26:12.617 --> 00:26:13.730
to learn patience."
553
00:26:13.730 --> 00:26:15.787
And the guy says, "Right, right, right.
554
00:26:15.787 --> 00:26:16.620
Patience, patience.
555
00:26:16.620 --> 00:26:17.800
How long will that take?"
556
00:26:17.800 --> 00:26:19.883
[laughs]
557
00:26:21.150 --> 00:26:24.980
That is sensational advice
and it is applicable
558
00:26:24.980 --> 00:26:28.370
to all of us in the
arts, and I am grateful
559
00:26:28.370 --> 00:26:30.380
to you for sharing it
and I'm really grateful
560
00:26:30.380 --> 00:26:31.503
to you for your time.
561
00:26:32.500 --> 00:26:34.990
Thank you for everything
you have contributed
562
00:26:34.990 --> 00:26:37.850
to so much media I've enjoyed,
but especially thank you
563
00:26:37.850 --> 00:26:39.410
for your contributions to Star Trek,
564
00:26:39.410 --> 00:26:41.380
and thank you for joining us
in "The Ready Room" today.
565
00:26:41.380 --> 00:26:44.470
It has been such an honor and
a privilege to speak with you.
566
00:26:44.470 --> 00:26:48.150
You're very kind, Wil, and back at you.
567
00:26:48.150 --> 00:26:52.180
This has been a real delight
and I hope that our paths cross
568
00:26:52.180 --> 00:26:54.710
in a different creative way as well.
569
00:26:54.710 --> 00:26:55.970
I'm looking forward to it.
570
00:26:55.970 --> 00:26:57.320
Yeah, thank you.
571
00:26:57.320 --> 00:26:58.153
Thank you.
572
00:27:12.920 --> 00:27:13.810
This week's episode
573
00:27:13.810 --> 00:27:15.940
of Star Trek: Discovery
saw the crew outfitted
574
00:27:15.940 --> 00:27:17.750
with some impressive new tech
575
00:27:17.750 --> 00:27:20.420
as well as a few nifty gadgets on Hunhau.
576
00:27:20.420 --> 00:27:23.700
For more on these high-tech
gizmos, let's hear
577
00:27:23.700 --> 00:27:26.900
from Discovery's own Prop
Master Mario Moreira.
578
00:27:26.900 --> 00:27:28.092
Take it away, Mario.
579
00:27:43.070 --> 00:27:45.480
These are two items that we used
580
00:27:45.480 --> 00:27:50.480
in the Mercantile scrapyard.
581
00:27:50.610 --> 00:27:53.220
Andorians and Orions
that have come together.
582
00:27:53.220 --> 00:27:55.580
They've basically got this slave market
583
00:27:55.580 --> 00:27:59.800
and you'll see one of our
characters getting branded
584
00:27:59.800 --> 00:28:02.290
with a little explosive device.
585
00:28:02.290 --> 00:28:06.970
This is the drill that
they put into the back
586
00:28:06.970 --> 00:28:08.730
of the character's neck.
587
00:28:08.730 --> 00:28:12.380
Because we're so far into the
future this year, this season,
588
00:28:12.380 --> 00:28:15.440
a lot of our props are working
in conjunction with VFX.
589
00:28:15.440 --> 00:28:18.400
So you'll see a lot of
our stuff coexisting
590
00:28:18.400 --> 00:28:19.930
with special effects.
591
00:28:19.930 --> 00:28:22.050
Through a lot of our meetings, we discuss
592
00:28:22.050 --> 00:28:26.600
what we can do to help VFX
enhance what they're going to do.
593
00:28:26.600 --> 00:28:29.290
A lot of the times they ask
for, you know, just a little bit
594
00:28:29.290 --> 00:28:31.370
of movement or a little bit of light just
595
00:28:31.370 --> 00:28:33.293
for them to have something to key off of
596
00:28:33.293 --> 00:28:35.420
and something to work off of.
597
00:28:35.420 --> 00:28:37.280
This is the piece later than
598
00:28:37.280 --> 00:28:40.200
that Book sort of MacGyvers together
599
00:28:40.200 --> 00:28:42.860
to create his little handmade bomb.
600
00:28:42.860 --> 00:28:45.370
Those are all the little
explosive devices, sort
601
00:28:45.370 --> 00:28:49.450
of put inside one of the old
transtator coupler pieces.
602
00:28:49.450 --> 00:28:51.050
And then he tosses this and it turns
603
00:28:51.050 --> 00:28:52.940
into essentially a pipe bomb.
604
00:28:52.940 --> 00:28:56.390
And this is just a super
lightweight throwable piece
605
00:28:56.390 --> 00:28:57.523
and safe to use.
606
00:28:59.600 --> 00:29:02.260
One of our big baddies this year
607
00:29:02.260 --> 00:29:04.710
have these henchmen called the Regulators.
608
00:29:04.710 --> 00:29:06.860
You've seen them in a few of the episodes.
609
00:29:06.860 --> 00:29:10.520
This is their hand cannon
that when we were thinking
610
00:29:10.520 --> 00:29:13.620
about phasers and rifles
this year, we were trying
611
00:29:13.620 --> 00:29:16.620
to get away from sort
of traditional shapes.
612
00:29:16.620 --> 00:29:17.770
And we, you know, came up
613
00:29:17.770 --> 00:29:21.293
with this sort of blaster.
614
00:29:23.710 --> 00:29:26.440
We knew we were going to do
a lot of heavy duty stunts
615
00:29:26.440 --> 00:29:29.280
and a lot of big action
sequences this year.
616
00:29:29.280 --> 00:29:33.620
So we started experimenting
with new paints
617
00:29:33.620 --> 00:29:37.030
that take us directly from
what we call a "hero prop,"
618
00:29:37.030 --> 00:29:40.830
like a very good on-camera
closeup prop, to a stunt prop.
619
00:29:40.830 --> 00:29:42.997
Which wouldn't have usually
had a great paint job
620
00:29:42.997 --> 00:29:45.480
and would have been made
out of softer materials.
621
00:29:45.480 --> 00:29:48.470
What we're able to do now with
our new paint technologies
622
00:29:48.470 --> 00:29:51.150
and with our new printing
technologies is go directly
623
00:29:51.150 --> 00:29:54.460
to a stunt prop that looks
like an on-camera ready-to-go.
624
00:29:54.460 --> 00:29:57.900
So, this is actually all
soft and is actually ready
625
00:29:57.900 --> 00:30:01.200
for hits and for punches
and drops and everything.
626
00:30:01.200 --> 00:30:03.750
So they're all fully stunt ready.
627
00:30:03.750 --> 00:30:05.343
Everything is a hero prop now.
628
00:30:06.980 --> 00:30:08.150
We're here.
629
00:30:08.150 --> 00:30:09.830
Federation headquarters.
630
00:30:09.830 --> 00:30:11.260
One of the cool things this year
631
00:30:11.260 --> 00:30:15.103
about meeting the
Starfleet in this season is
632
00:30:15.103 --> 00:30:17.910
that we know they're going
to have some design changes
633
00:30:17.910 --> 00:30:19.220
and some design aesthetics.
634
00:30:19.220 --> 00:30:22.170
One of the cool things
in Season 1, for me, was
635
00:30:22.170 --> 00:30:24.600
to work on the badges,
the Starfleet badges
636
00:30:24.600 --> 00:30:26.883
and I got to do that again for Season 3.
637
00:30:28.433 --> 00:30:30.450
The great thing about some
of the stuff we're doing
638
00:30:30.450 --> 00:30:31.660
with new metalworks.
639
00:30:31.660 --> 00:30:34.490
What we would normally
have to do is build this
640
00:30:34.490 --> 00:30:37.490
in a bunch of different pieces
and then stick them together.
641
00:30:37.490 --> 00:30:40.380
What we did this year
was we created a stamp
642
00:30:40.380 --> 00:30:43.250
and then the hard part
is the different colors.
643
00:30:43.250 --> 00:30:46.280
So what we did was we masked the touch pad
644
00:30:46.280 --> 00:30:48.550
and we sandblasted this area
645
00:30:48.550 --> 00:30:53.550
and then hand metal
finished the gold inside.
646
00:30:53.980 --> 00:30:56.820
So every single badge is hand painted.
647
00:30:56.820 --> 00:30:58.370
It's a bit of an effort,
648
00:30:58.370 --> 00:31:01.363
but it's, you know, it's a labor of love.
649
00:31:02.647 --> 00:31:04.190
Are we supposed to get new holoPADDs, too?
650
00:31:04.190 --> 00:31:05.640
You already have them.
651
00:31:05.640 --> 00:31:08.250
The badge now is called the Tricom badge
652
00:31:08.250 --> 00:31:12.300
and it is a tricorder, communicator,
653
00:31:12.300 --> 00:31:13.770
and a personal transporter.
654
00:31:13.770 --> 00:31:15.130
One of the fun things I got
655
00:31:15.130 --> 00:31:17.850
to do this year was actually
work on the gestures
656
00:31:17.850 --> 00:31:21.230
that you'll see the actors
doing to operate these.
657
00:31:21.230 --> 00:31:24.390
So if you're, you know, if
you gesture up with your hand,
658
00:31:24.390 --> 00:31:26.210
that would bring up your holoPADD.
659
00:31:26.210 --> 00:31:27.880
If you squeezed and pulled out,
660
00:31:27.880 --> 00:31:29.140
that would bring out your tricorder,
661
00:31:29.140 --> 00:31:32.850
and then the reverse movements
would bring it all back in.
662
00:31:32.850 --> 00:31:37.740
And then a single tap would
bring up a transporter, sort
663
00:31:37.740 --> 00:31:41.760
of a GPS coordinate system
that you could then type in
664
00:31:41.760 --> 00:31:45.010
where you needed to go,
tap again and you're gone.
665
00:31:45.010 --> 00:31:50.010
Or every Tricom badge has a home button
666
00:31:50.440 --> 00:31:53.430
and a double tap would
transport you directly back
667
00:31:53.430 --> 00:31:54.530
to where you're going.
668
00:31:57.770 --> 00:32:00.861
This is not the science lab. [Sighs]
669
00:32:28.820 --> 00:32:30.210
And now that we've caught up on everything
670
00:32:30.210 --> 00:32:32.700
that went down in
"Scavengers," I think it's time
671
00:32:32.700 --> 00:32:36.310
to look ahead to next week's
episode of Star Trek: Discovery
672
00:32:36.310 --> 00:32:40.148
which is entitled "Unification III."
673
00:32:40.148 --> 00:32:41.410
What?
674
00:32:41.410 --> 00:32:42.770
Let's watch a clip.
675
00:32:42.770 --> 00:32:44.653
One-one millionth of a microsecond.
676
00:32:45.750 --> 00:32:46.730
You were right.
677
00:32:46.730 --> 00:32:47.730
That was the difference.
678
00:32:47.730 --> 00:32:49.930
The U.S.S. Yelchin, the
first black box you found.
679
00:32:49.930 --> 00:32:52.250
When the Burn happened, it lost contact
680
00:32:52.250 --> 00:32:56.433
at precisely 81986 mark 272139.
681
00:32:56.433 --> 00:32:59.250
Now the Gav'Nor, a thousand lightyears
682
00:32:59.250 --> 00:33:01.540
away, lost contact one-one millionth
683
00:33:01.540 --> 00:33:02.940
of a microsecond later.
684
00:33:02.940 --> 00:33:04.900
What about the Giacconi? The
data recorder Book found?
685
00:33:04.900 --> 00:33:05.940
Computer's still working on it.
686
00:33:05.940 --> 00:33:08.070
But with three points of
data, we can triangulate
687
00:33:08.070 --> 00:33:09.570
and pinpoint the source of the Burn.
688
00:33:09.570 --> 00:33:12.390
In two dimensions, maybe, but
in three-dimensional space,
689
00:33:12.390 --> 00:33:14.850
that still leaves an area
far too large to explore
690
00:33:14.850 --> 00:33:15.840
in several lifetimes.
691
00:33:15.840 --> 00:33:18.040
So, we have to narrow it down.
692
00:33:18.040 --> 00:33:20.540
Somehow we need to find more data.
693
00:33:20.540 --> 00:33:21.880
Well I flagged this.
694
00:33:23.400 --> 00:33:26.430
When I was going through
Federation databases.
695
00:33:26.430 --> 00:33:28.610
It's an experiment, SB-19.
696
00:33:28.610 --> 00:33:30.620
They spread sensors across dozens
697
00:33:30.620 --> 00:33:31.600
of lightyears of subspace.
698
00:33:31.600 --> 00:33:33.590
They had a front-seat view of the Burn.
699
00:33:33.590 --> 00:33:35.300
SB-19 recorded no findings.
700
00:33:35.300 --> 00:33:37.300
So either the sensors
didn't record anything--
701
00:33:37.300 --> 00:33:38.133
Which isn't likely.
702
00:33:38.133 --> 00:33:39.810
Or they didn't make their results public.
703
00:33:39.810 --> 00:33:42.030
In which case, the Admiral
might have access to it.
704
00:33:42.030 --> 00:33:44.608
He's not my biggest fan right now.
705
00:33:44.608 --> 00:33:46.180
This is bigger than you,
and bigger than him--
706
00:33:46.180 --> 00:33:47.530
It's bigger than everybody.
707
00:33:50.757 --> 00:33:53.010
Hmm, fascinating.
708
00:33:53.010 --> 00:33:54.870
Thank you all so much for tuning
709
00:33:54.870 --> 00:33:56.870
into this week's "Ready Room."
710
00:33:56.870 --> 00:34:00.020
I will be back next Thursday
with an all new installment
711
00:34:00.020 --> 00:34:03.240
where I am so excited to
be interviewing the one
712
00:34:03.240 --> 00:34:05.400
and only Sonequa Martin-Green
713
00:34:05.400 --> 00:34:07.710
to discuss Season 3, Episode 7
714
00:34:07.710 --> 00:34:09.070
of Star Trek: Discovery.
715
00:34:09.070 --> 00:34:11.520
I am so unbelievably
excited, I can't wait.
716
00:34:11.520 --> 00:34:13.120
Is it next Thursday yet?
717
00:34:13.120 --> 00:34:14.460
Okay, how about now?
718
00:34:14.460 --> 00:34:16.310
Look, we're just, we're going
to have a really good time
719
00:34:16.310 --> 00:34:17.660
and I'm excited for it.
720
00:34:17.660 --> 00:34:20.150
Until next time, I'm Wil Wheaton.
721
00:34:20.150 --> 00:34:22.103
Live long and prosper.