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Making HBO’s Model City

A 1982 look behind-the-scenes at making a model city for HBO’s original promo.

“We put a few bums on the street, a few hookers on the corner. Those little things are our calling card. They add to the monotony of three months of building this thing.”

Definitely check out the section about animating the HBO logo with the “stargate effect” by David Bruce at 5:10.

Watch the final promo at 8:55.

via Signal vs Noise

  • Kerrydammit

    Wow! I watched this “making of” in 1982! It looks totally different now!

    Funny they were talking about “the old days” before computers even way back then. But the computer they’re using (at around 8:20) looks like something out of Terry Gilliam’s BRAZIL! Thanks for the blast from the past!

    If anyone can find the making of Dino De Laurentis’s KING KONG from 74 or 76, Rick Baker in his heyday, I would be greatly appreciative.

  • Kerrydammit

    Wow! I watched this “making of” in 1982! It looks totally different now!

    Funny they were talking about “the old days” before computers even way back then. But the computer they’re using (at around 8:20) looks like something out of Terry Gilliam’s BRAZIL! Thanks for the blast from the past!

    If anyone can find the making of Dino De Laurentis’s KING KONG from 74 or 76, Rick Baker in his heyday, I would be greatly appreciative.

  • http://www.johnlacko.com/ Lacko

    Great find!!! I’ve been building some paper models for a while and stating to get into background models for projects. This is a great video piece. I use to love the start of a movie on HBO as a kid. Watching the model sequence now and how it was put together gives me new appreciation for all the work that when into this project… I wonder where that model is now?!!

  • http://www.johnlacko.com Lacko

    Great find!!! I’ve been building some paper models for a while and stating to get into background models for projects. This is a great video piece. I use to love the start of a movie on HBO as a kid. Watching the model sequence now and how it was put together gives me new appreciation for all the work that when into this project… I wonder where that model is now?!!

  • http://www.designkiller.it/ clearcut

    uh! i love these making-of movies! :) it’s really old-fashioned. How lucky are we now with all these 3D programs and special effects!!! and how funny are those haircuts? LOL

  • http://www.designkiller.it clearcut

    uh! i love these making-of movies! :) it’s really old-fashioned. How lucky are we now with all these 3D programs and special effects!!! and how funny are those haircuts? LOL

  • http://www.lunchboxunlimited.blogspot.com Lunchbox

    I was just thinking of this making of doc not a week ago. I saw this video when it first aired. At the beginning, the guy is talking about detail and how you have to use as much as possible or you’ll know somethings missing. This is how I feel about most CG. Look at Empire and Clones side by side and ask yourself which one will still fool you in thirty years. These guys did something almost thirty years ago that still plays every night on HBO. It holds up (unlike the pop songs and hair cuts on the doc) still to this day. Understanding this is what makes Jackson and the team at WETA the powerhouse they are today. Loads of Rings and Kong have constructed models.

    Anyway, thanks for posting this!

  • http://www.lunchboxunlimited.blogspot.com/ Lunchbox

    I was just thinking of this making of doc not a week ago. I saw this video when it first aired. At the beginning, the guy is talking about detail and how you have to use as much as possible or you’ll know somethings missing. This is how I feel about most CG. Look at Empire and Clones side by side and ask yourself which one will still fool you in thirty years. These guys did something almost thirty years ago that still plays every night on HBO. It holds up (unlike the pop songs and hair cuts on the doc) still to this day. Understanding this is what makes Jackson and the team at WETA the powerhouse they are today. Loads of Rings and Kong have constructed models.

    Anyway, thanks for posting this!

  • http://wardomatic.blogspot.com/ Ward

    I was an “HBO Kid” back in the day and I remember this Behind The Scenes — when it would come on, I would try and soak up as much info as possible. I loved watching these guys create all the details. And that big metallic HBO? Classic. I can’t even try to describe the feeling being 12-13 years old and seeing that super-cool HBO logo coming at ya, all shiny and perfect — like seeing CBS’s “Special Presentation” open. Pure joy.

  • http://wardomatic.blogspot.com Ward

    I was an “HBO Kid” back in the day and I remember this Behind The Scenes — when it would come on, I would try and soak up as much info as possible. I loved watching these guys create all the details. And that big metallic HBO? Classic. I can’t even try to describe the feeling being 12-13 years old and seeing that super-cool HBO logo coming at ya, all shiny and perfect — like seeing CBS’s “Special Presentation” open. Pure joy.

  • http://ryuuseipro.deviantart.com/ John Paul Cassidy

    Since I’ve seen this intro for years and years as a kid (in the Bronx) and always liked it, it’s really cool to see how it was done! The miniature work never ceases to impress me, being a fan of miniatures. The optical effects look easy enough to recreate on a computer today (having experimented with overlapping shapes and stuff myself), but even back then, they were pretty cutting-edge.

    For the record, I *do* like the pop song (“Illusions”) in the featurette!

  • http://ryuuseipro.deviantart.com John Paul Cassidy

    Since I’ve seen this intro for years and years as a kid (in the Bronx) and always liked it, it’s really cool to see how it was done! The miniature work never ceases to impress me, being a fan of miniatures. The optical effects look easy enough to recreate on a computer today (having experimented with overlapping shapes and stuff myself), but even back then, they were pretty cutting-edge.

    For the record, I *do* like the pop song (“Illusions”) in the featurette!