CULTURAL + COMMERCIAL
Disney IM Digital Studios
Location: Novato, CA
Size: 120,000 SF
Program: 3D Performance Capture Studio
Date: 2009
In collaboration with Kanner Architects
This massive internal project transformed two former Coast Guard hangars into a full production film studio. The design for the studio promotes complex and dynamic interactions, nurturing a robust and multifaceted work environment. Strategies that stimulate intense collaborate exchange fuel the company’s unique creative process.
Interior layout is conceived around the premise of ‘strange loop,’ a term used in film to describe narrative movement through interconnected levels, where one eventually finds themself back where they had started. This idea of dense circulation ultimately surmounted by discovery is translated into physical spaces that support creative presentation, contention, and resolution.
Through the utilization of a display wall system that unites the facilities in a continuous loop, various artistic and production departments are able to engage and collaborate with each other in a non-linear back-and-forth manner. Primarily composed of pivoting panels, the loop dynamically adjusts to accommodate a large demand for adaptable working pin-up space.
Programs are positioned according to specific levels of required light and sound control. Within a flexible plan, ‘dark programs’ (screening rooms, color grading stations, etc.) are centralized while ‘light programs’ are given access to the exterior. Nodes and carve-outs through the core define shortcuts and maximize circulation efficiency. The studios are designed to support and fuel an intricately integrated workplace.
Interior layout is conceived around the premise of ‘strange loop,’ a term used in film to describe narrative movement through interconnected levels, where one eventually finds themself back where they had started. This idea of dense circulation ultimately surmounted by discovery is translated into physical spaces that support creative presentation, contention, and resolution.
Through the utilization of a display wall system that unites the facilities in a continuous loop, various artistic and production departments are able to engage and collaborate with each other in a non-linear back-and-forth manner. Primarily composed of pivoting panels, the loop dynamically adjusts to accommodate a large demand for adaptable working pin-up space.
Programs are positioned according to specific levels of required light and sound control. Within a flexible plan, ‘dark programs’ (screening rooms, color grading stations, etc.) are centralized while ‘light programs’ are given access to the exterior. Nodes and carve-outs through the core define shortcuts and maximize circulation efficiency. The studios are designed to support and fuel an intricately integrated workplace.
