chaselab

A look behind-the-scenes at the insanely complex model city built by New York-based Liberty Studios for HBO's 1983 on-air look. 6 model makers worked for 3 months casting nearly 100 unique buildings, all with working lightbulbs and meticulous exterior detailing. The model was made in 3 sections, a city, the suburbs and county side, with a 16ft high airbrushed skyline as the backdrop.

Shot entirely as stop-motion with a computer controlled camera, smoke was used on set to create an exaggerated sense of distance as the camera swoops through the city streets. The HBO logo that spins in from outer-space was made from brass and chrome plated letters, if you don't have time to watch the whole clip make sure you skip forward to 5:09 for a glimpse into the halcyon days of operating machinery in the workshop while smoking a pipe.

I did not gather all this up, I pulled it from core77.com, their a great resource for design inspiration. One of my favorites. As for the video it is really interesting and insightful. I love to see the way things were done before computers. I'm torn between the the digital and physical world.