Project: THE PERIPHERAL
Type : TITLE DESIGN
Synopsis
For the Amazon series, “The Peripheral,” written by acclaimed science fiction novelist William Gibson, we were asked to develop the look of the “koids,” androids who have had the consciousness or identity of other human beings downloaded into them.
Approached by the creative team, led by director/showrunner Jonah Nolan and visual effects supervisors Jay Worth and Mark Spatny, the task was to imagine the futuristic look of these characters with attention to both their form and function.
Collecting Data : Inspiration
With rapid advances in robotics on the rise, it was refreshing in our research to uncover so many practical builds of androids. While in the real world the outer coverings of robots can be removed to reveal their inner mechanics, our koid was future-tech and composed of nano particles. Since koids in “The Peripheral” often function as servants, it was important that we developed a design that was humanoid but didn’t end up looking like an actor wearing a mask. We needed these characters to feel familiar while simultaneously communicating that they were not from our world.
Our first step in thinking about the build of a koid was exploring how we might break up the component pieces that make up the face. Is it important to preserve the eyes, the nose, and mouth? Should we take cues from the human musculature system? Would we see how nanoparticles come together to build a koid? How do koids move?
Phase 1 : Breaking Up the Panels
Negative Space : Panels and Wires
The creatives expressed an interest in using various panel shapes as the look for the outer shell. But beneath the surface, we needed these panels to feel grounded and not merely suspended in space. This prompted the design of a central support structure and power system running up from body of the koid akin to a central nervous system. This approach brought to attention the negative space within the koid and allowed us to see its inner workings, even if it was just a sci-fi dream.
After reviewing our initial designs, Jonah Nolan asked if we could use simple triangles to convey the uniformity of how nanobots might configure themselves. Figuring out how triangles apply to a face became the next challenge.
Phase 2 : Uniform Triangles
Koid Scene : Uniform Triangles
The uniformity of a triangle pattern helped reinforce the idea that koids belonged to a helper class and were not human themselves. We broke up the panels for the sake of visual interest, but ultimately these characters were only meant to be visible, yet unseen.
Projection : Triangle Screens
Further elaborating on the design we explored how the triangles might become a kind of display screen for the koids. These screens could then be used as narrative devices within the story. In one instance we animated whimsical butterflies across the face of a koid cocktail server at a party, and in another scene we used the face of a deceased accomplice to foreshadow future events.
Koid Scene : Projected Faces
The character of Daniel was the final generation of koid. This version was able to project a human face onto its triangles, allowing people to talk to and interact with a pseudo-human, which by design flirted with limitations of the uncanny valley.
Credits
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Concept Designs - Joshua Cox
Shader Development - Duncan Beck
Rigging - Duncan Beck
Art Direction - Joshua Cox
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