“The Emperor’s New Cloak” vfx

John Eaves has published drawings of the portable cloaking device for Star Trek Deep Space-Nine episode, “The Emperor’s New Cloak” on his blog, Eavesdropping with Johnny at: http://johneaves.wordpress.com/2009/05/27/klingon-cloaking-device/

When this episode was photographed I was on set as the vis efx supervisor.  It was decided that since the cloaking device was “cloaked” or invisible, we didn’t need to do any visual effects. I wondered if the pantomime was going to really sell that they had a mechanical device they were stealing. I kept asking if the producers were sure there would not be an effect; that they didn’t want me to take camera measurements and documentation of the set up just in case.  I was repeatedly reassured there would be no visual effects.

We did set up a rectangle of string that the actors playing Rom and Quark held in their hands. This enabled them to keep some semblance of size and distance between their hands and each other as they moved along.  After all, they were supposed to be carrying a rigid heavy device of a specific size together.  I am so glad we did that.

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TNG “Conspiracy” bugs (revised)

“Conspiracy” was season-1, episode 25, of  Star Trek: The Next Generation. The Enterprise crew must overcome Starfleet Command officers who are infected by an alien parasite. This episode has the dubious honor of having one or more shots censored as “violent images” by the BBC in England.  It is reported that the episode required a warning before airing in Canada.

The story required that the parasite climb the leg of an officer then later climb out of the mouth of another fallen human host and attempt to escape.

Animating the parasite bugs for the episode was my first work on Star Trek: The Next Generation.  Visual Effects Supervisor, Dan Curry, brought the job to David Stipes Productions, Inc. in April of 1988.

The bug was reportedly designed by Andy Probert. (1)  The property master, Alan Sims, had  commissioned Makeup & Effects Laboratories (2) to create the parasite.  They had done a fine sculpting job but I realized we would have to re-build it for the stop motion animation.

The original creature was cast in a dense silicone material and was very stiff. The legs were small nubs that were not long enough to reach the floor to propel the creature along.  We subcontracted Starlight Effects to re-sculpt the creature, give it longer legs, and define the body segments a bit more.  A plaster mold was made and fitted with a simple wire armature and the creature was cast in rubber.

Photo by Roger Sides

We scheduled the animation time then were told by Dan Curry that the date we were to animate was the actual date they needed the work finished. We scrambled to get the animation set up. Dan had provided frames of the woman opening her mouth to line up the parasite’s animation with the actor’s performance. I asked Dan if we could have a bloody slime trail from the woman’s mouth but he didn’t think the producers would like it. I thought it would help sell the horror of the situation but, disappointed; we moved on.

Dan has also provided a 4ft x 8ft piece of hard Formica flooring to match the set.  It was so big I had to place it on a sheet of Celotex board on my studio concrete floor and animate on my hands and knees.

The surface was hard so I could not directly pin the model to the floor for the animation process.

I had to drill through the hard Formica then drive a pin through the parasite’s foot into the Celotex insulation board below. Pinning the feet of the model prevented it from sliding around as I animated the body.

I animated the creature along by twisting the parasite’s body segments in sequence with the legs.

After a couple of scenes were done, the armature wires broke and the body segment with the last two legs fell off the puppet!  I finished the shot by animating the now two body sections along and making them appear as one creature.

As I worked, on another stage my assistant Stephen Lebed animated the parasite climbing the leg of the primary host, Lt. Commander Remick. Stephen faced his own challenges as the creature was difficult to attach and animate effectively on the cloth of the pants.

It was a challenge but it was fun and it continues to get comments. This episode is often included on lists of The Next Generation‘s greatest moments.

Article updated March 1, 2024

Credits: Frame blow-ups are from a video by Greg Stone.

(1)   Rick Sternbach, Facebook post 2/28/2024,
https://www.facebook.com/groups/starshipmodeler/posts/

(2)  Douglas Newton, Facebook post 2/28/2024,  https://www.facebook.com/groups/starshipmodeler/posts/

Will the new cost us the old?

Copyright 2009 Paramount CBS Studios Inc.

Star Trek has had a special place in my heart over the years. It was often the most intelligent science fiction show on television at a time when Batman and Lost in Space were considered high quality entertainment.

While I was appalled at the “Spock’s Brain” episode, I nevertheless tried to get onto the show during its last season. I still remember my 1968 interview with Edward Milkis, the associate producer on the third season of the show.  I was very young and “green” but Mr. Milkis was patient and gave me some encouragement and sent me on my way. 

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Romance, Deep Space Nine style

Romance between a “changeling” and a “solid” was not going to be easy on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. For the episode, “Chimera,” Odo and Kira decided to take their relationship to a new level. Because she was a solid, Kira could never “meld” into oneness with the changeling, Odo, so they did the next best thing which was ….  what? 

At this point the DS9 production team was stumped. What could Odo do?

“Uh, anybody have any ideas?”  “How about Odo becoming a cloud and snowing on Kira?”  Nope. The women in the production thought it too cold sounding.  “Kira could snuggle into Odo as he morphs into a pillow or a blanket.”    Hmmm, Odo would have to morph through his goo state to become a pillow or blanket.  That didn’t sound warm or cozy. Nothing suggested felt visually beautiful or romantic. So production filming began without this sequence finalized.

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A new adventure

Blogging is a new adventure for me. With many urgings by my friends and the universe, I can no longer sit on my tush and talk about writing again. Now I have to produce something on a regular basis. Several categories of articles are drawing my interest. Maybe some of you will respond to them as well … or you may give me some suggestions.

Some considerations; film and effects history, my experiences with Cascade Pictures and CPC Associates, Universal Hartland and, of course, David Stipes Productions.

Star Trek stories and behind the scenes on some of my favorite shots will be covered.

Since I am now more involved in education, I may visit that topic as well.

I hope former colleagues will contribute their information and recollections to these topics. It would be nice to document our history and techniques before they are lost. Since I have been teaching, I have seen how much information is slipping away. Many of my students rely on their computer as their only tool to solve visual problems.  I want to remind my students of the old tried & true techniques, and maybe keep them alive a while longer.

So, it seems I have several topics to write about. I hope you will return, read along and add to the commentary and conversation.

David