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Cougar Cockpit Set
Revelations sets out to build the cockpit set for Declan's Cougar.

Starting with the design and renders from the CG artist, Adam Benton, who came up with the concept and model of the Cougar, it was difficult to build the set to scale and recreate the complex angles that make up the cockpit shape.

Day 1 gets going as I start to build the basic frame work that will make up Declan's cockpit set. By taking the CG renders I was able to both determine a basic scale size and allow for the available work space. The warehouse space used to build the cockpit was generously provided by Precision Engineering, who was kind enough to allow Revelations a bay area in their back section.
Building the angled window frames for the cockpit required compound cuts that were difficult to determine, but with some determination I was able to get it done. This is the front section of the cockpit, with the pilot and co-pilot console section in the front and side stations sweeping around.
A side shot of the cockpit frame looking towards the pilot area.
On the second day of work I was able to start framing in the rest of the consoles and side wall, as well as get the back wall framed up. Some pieces of hardboard have been cut and added to the tops of the front consoles already. So far, I've done all this myself.
Looking in from the back of the cockpit we can see the set is fully framed and some of the hardwood paneling is beginning to be put into place. Both Matt Henry and Chris Santana have started helping out on the project now. The entire cockpit measures 156 sq. feet and is roughly 13' across and 12' long.
With all the framing up we can begin to start putting up the hardwood pieces to make the set wall. Hardwood was used for the inexpensive cost (roughly $6 for a 4X8 sheet) - it's lightweight and flexible. It took about 12 sheets total to cover.
Since I didn't like the shape and framing of the cockpit hatch door the way I originally had it, I altered the look and re-designed the hatch.
Using a retail paint sprayer, we are able to coat the cockpit walls with regular water-based semi-gloss black paint. This paint will serve as the foundation and base for the walls as we start to add panels and detail.
Starting to look like a cockpit now? With the use of gray / black / white Styrene plastic we start creating our ship panels and detailing with junk components and stuff. A run to Bank's Junkyard provided seats for the cockpit. We also acquired all kinds of consoles, dash-boards, buttons, knobs, shifters.... In other words, junk. More and more detail still needs to be added but the cockpit is slowly coming to life. The initial framing process took roughly 3 days, two working by myself. Once you start getting into set detail the work load will really slow down, but it's the most fun.
We start adding detail and paneling to the pilot main console section. This is far from complete but is shaping up very nicely. Junk auto parts and miscellaneous items create console tops. It's important to remember that the Star Wars look is solid state -- it's buttons, knobs and levers, not touch panels. You want touch screens, go to Star Trek!
Here you can see the beginnings of the pilot / co-pilot controls with more components and paneling still to be added.

It's been about 3 weeks of work to build the cockpit, and most of those days are on the weekends with only a few brief hours on weekday evenings. We are scheduled to have the cockpit completed and shoot the scene at the beginning of May. We are doing very well with our time table, however there is still a lot of work to be done for film readiness.

So what do you do once you have completed building your full size cockpit set and invested so much time, energy, money and hard work in to it? That I don't know.... You build it, shoot it, tear it all down and trash it! Breaks your heart, doesn't it.... Perhaps eBay??

So that's the latest on what Revelations is up to. We're looking to wrap production (princple photography) in June and our post-production schedule is looking to be on track. More updates as they come.
















*NEW UPDATE 4/27/03*
With work starting on 3/14/03 and shooting scheduled for 5/03/03, we are almost done with the cockpit construction. As you can see here, we now have the sliding hatch doors in and have completed a lot of the paneling and detail work. All that remains before shooting are a few tweaks and details.
Here is the back wall section with a look to the side wall behind the pilot section. Contributing their time and effort to the set were Matt Henry and Frank Hernandez. I could not have gotten it done on schedule without their great creativity and help.
A look at the back wall and side wall section behind the co-pilot. Some more paneling is needed for the console tops and the lights will be added. A close-up of this section appears below.
Here is the back of the set with the sliding hatch doors closed. You can get a good idea of how the hatch doors are cut out and how they come together. The pilot and co-pilot seat are there on the floor waiting to be mounted the the swivel bases.
Give me some LIGHT! We're starting to add lights to the set and they really help to bring the whole thing together. Plus, we now have the two front seats in. The back passenger seats are still being re-covered and will go in this week.
With lighting added (thanks to the movie magic of Christmas lights, if you can believe!), the set comes more and more to life. Here are the walls behind the co-pilot section.
A closer look at some of the panels with lights added. The top consoles now have paneling. The look of the ship is growing closer and closer to my design idea. Almost there!
Side shot of the pilot side. Still more detail has been added to the consoles. It's like the world's biggest model kit.
And here are a few shots of how the cockpit might look on film. The rear seats must still be added and the lighting design for principle photography still has to be determined but the set is basically done. I added a flat behind the hatch door area so actors can come in and out of the set without showing the workspace. It has involved a lot of time and effort to build the set -- a true labor of love -- but all in all I am very pleased with the finished product. The sad part is that after the shoot, the whole thing will simply be trashed, unless we can find a buyer for the set who can come and pick it up. The set is quite large and we simply do not have the storage space for her. Some excellent work went into the building of Declan's cockpit and I would like to thank Matt Henry, Frank Hernandez, and Chris Santana for all their help in the construction and detail.