Staff
Blade Runner 2049
Initially, we thought about setting smoke bombs off downtown and having our star run down the street. But then we realized we’d have better access (and less chance of causing an incident) if we found an on-campus location.
We bought a few smoke bombs and started checking out rooftop views until we found a perfect site. Unfortunately, our Facilities Department did not agree that using smoke bombs next to air intake vents on the roof was a good idea. And come to think of it, shrouding the top of the research building with smoke while simultaneously blowing fumes into all the hallways might have been a bit much. Director James Grigg and manager Jim Pruitte did, however, lead us to an enclosed campus power plant area where we could run fog machines.
I had a couple of fog machines at home, leftover from past Halloweens. But I realized I was out of fog juice, and apparently it’s hard to find in local stores in January. Never fear though, the internet offers glycerin and water recipes. It’s funny that no one questioned Phil and me brewing a batch in the back of the office.
Once again, Tim knew how to get another movie-style outfit. He found the costume for Decker of Blade Runner from his friends at Wages of Cine.
We were back in business, chasing the perfect 6 p.m. light so that we could capture the darkness starting. We positioned ourselves and started to build up a fog, then we tripped the power to the fog machine. And then we moved it, and tripped it again. Then we decided to try multiple outlets and multiple fog machines, which yes, we tripped again. James and electrician Brenson Alford patiently helped us reset power each time. We finally got everything working and built up a nice cloud of fog, then asked Brian to start running in character. And it was going great, until an exhaust fan immediately above us kicked in and blew away all our fog. James had to turn it off so that we could resume. After a few quick runs down the corridor, Brian became the Decker-style hero. Later, Phil added additional effects, such as sparks and extra color lights, in Photoshop.
