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The Man in the High CastleCreative Treatment / Case Study

Prepared by: Mark Spatny

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OVERVIEW:Stargate Studios brings a wealth of tools for creating the world of The Man in the High Castle. A network of talent in five countries. Experience creating period locations including New York in the 1930s and 1960s, Los Angeles in the 1940s and 1960s, as well as exotic locations around the world. A library of digital assets collected over 20 years. Experience working on every type of television production at every budget range. And most importantly, a group of passionate and creative visual effects supervisors and artists recognized for creating some of the most memorable images ever seen on television.

In this document, we will show the ways Stargate can help add production value through the use of set extensions and digital vehicles. We will suggest design ideas and influences based on our reading of the script, as well as more detailed visual ideas gleaned from the original book by Philip K. Dick.

These pages highlight samples from the visual and historical research done by our team, and provide some concept sketches that can be used as a starting point for conversations with the director and production designer.

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Contents:OVERVIEW: p. 2

SET EXTENSIONS:

Nazi Occupied New York – Key Design Influences p. 4

Nazi Occupied New York – Visual Reference p. 5

Nazi Occupied New York – Times Square concept sketch p. 7

Japanese Occupied San Francisco – Key Design Influences p. 8

Japanese Occupied San Francisco –Visual Reference p. 9

Japanese Occupied San Francisco – Concept Sketch p. 10

CG VEHICLES:

V-9E Rocket Plane – Design Influences p. 11

V-9E Rocket Plane – Concept #1 p. 13

V-9E Rocket Plane – Concept #2 p. 15

V-9E Rocket Plane – Concept #3 p.18

German Automobiles – New York – Visual Reference p. 20

Japanese Automobiles – San Francisco – Visual Reference p. 22

American Cars – Canon City - Visual Reference p. 24

GRAPHICS / SIGNAGE – VISUAL INSPIRATION p. 25

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SET EXTENSIONS – GENERAL PHILOSOPHY:

The Man In the High Castle is not a visual effects driven story.VFX should be used sparingly and be organic to the production.

They must support and work in concert with the overall production design of the show.

Set Extensions to be used to:

Remove modern buildings and technology.

Help the audience understand what life is like in occupied America.

'Fill in the blanks' about the alternate history of the world between 1940-1962.

Show how the German, Japanese, and neutral territories are different, based on the different governments, law, policies, philosophy, economics, andrelative freedoms of the people living there.

Support the story by reinforcing the mood / danger / anxiety of the characers.

Replace traffic in background plates with period appropriate vehicles as needed.

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Nazi Occupied New York – Key Design Influences● Occupied New York remains an industrial/commercial hub.

● Hitler enjoyed seeing world-famous monuments being surpassed in size by German equivalents.

● Nazi architecture was designed to glorify the military and the state, and to celebrate their victories. It was particularly influenced by classical Greek and art deco styles.

● Flags and insignia played an important role in decorating buildings.

● The script says that the traditional billboards and advertisements of Times Square have been replaced by Nazi propaganda signs. By extension, these signs could be prominent throughout New York.

● In this world, German technology is vastly superior to Japanese technology. Germany has already explored the Moon and are engaging in manned exploration of the other planets. They use atomic power and have drained the Mediterranean to increase the farmland of Europe.

● The Germans have continued their genocide of jews, non Aryan races, the infirm, and the elderly. It is safe to assume that many people in New York live in fear.

● Director David Semel suggests using iconic photos of James Dean walking through New York as a reference for the overall gritty tone of the city and the depth of the view.

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Nazi Occupied New York - Visual Reference:

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Nazi Occupied New York – Stargate Concept Sketch

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● Much of the flat areas of San Francisco were destroyed by bombs during the annexation.

● The bombed areas were replaced primarily by two things 1) “Honkeytonk jazz slums” and shanty towns featuring cheap nightclubs, shooting galleries, and bawdy shows, and 2) High end restricted Japanese residential communities.

● Society is structured in a caste system with privileges based on race and ethnic origin.

● Japanese colonies in Korea and Manchuria were marked by heavy bureaucracy and the rule of law. Colonial authorities built large scale public structures to support the bureaucracy.

● The increasingly militaristic Japanese government of late 1930s / early 1940s preferred that major government buildings be constructed in the 'Imperial Crown' style characterized by the combination of modern western designs and traditional Japanese roofs and decoration.

● San Francisco culture now heavily influenced by Taoism and Confucianism, featuring a strong awareness of man's interconnection with nature, the universe, and spirituality.

● Shop districts feature enormous neon signage that obscures the front of nearly every store.

● Colonial Japan does not have a plastics industry, and relies on natural fibers and metal.

Japanese Occupied San Francisco – Key Design Influences

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Japanese Occupied San Francisco - Visual Reference:

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Japanese Occupied San Francisco – Stargate Concept Sketch

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German V-9E “Rocket” Plane – Design influences:● Described in the script as “Much like a Concorde SST, skinned with Nazi swastikas”

● Recommend combining the modern supersonic jet designs of the Concorde and SR—71 Blackbird with design influences from German WW2 rocket, jet, and flying wing designs.

● In this document, we present 3 potential designs for purposes of discussion:

#1 A sleeker version with swastikas, as described in the script

#2 A larger Lufthansa commercial airline version, as described in the book

#3 A version that relies entirely on Nazi

flying wing designs

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German V-9E Rocket Plane: Stargate Concept #1

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German V-9E Rocket Plane: Stargate Concept #2

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German V-9E Rocket Plane: Stargate Concept #3

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CG German Automobiles – New York – Visual Reference

German advances in aerospace design could influence vehicle design as it did in America during the 1950s and 1960s. We recommend focusing on German vehicles from the period that used sleek modern aerodynamic lines, and possibly add tail fins and trim reminiscent of American designs from the period. These can be augmented with more utilitarian vehicles based on less stylish Volkswagon vehicles of the period.

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CG Japanese Automobiles – San Francisco – Visual Reference To differentiate Japanese occupied territories from German territories, we would fill our streets with traffic using Japanese small economical cars of the era that emphasized function over form. A few elite might be chauffeured around the city in larger well maintained pre-war era American cars and imported German autos. Rickshaws and pedicabs would also be used as public transportation, as would 3 wheeled motorcycles.

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CG American Automobiles – Canon City – Visual Reference

The automobiles commonly used in the neutral zone between the occupied West and East coasts would most likely have a higher concentration of older pre-war era American cars, especially the heavier duty cars and trucks favored in mountain regions.

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Graphics and Signage – Visual Inspiration

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