We checked back with Set Decorator Jennifer Lukehart SDSA for more behind the scenes and more sets that she and Production Designer Rob Tokarz, with their teams, created for Season 4 of the simply splendid HACKS!
There were so many sets this season, we focused on workplaces and added in some eateries for kitsch and fun.
First, more BTS of the offices in conjunction with the new “LATE NIGHT With Deborah Vance” show...
Enjoy!
Karen Burg, Editor
The LATE NIGHT WITH DEBORAH VANCE production offices...and Deborah’s world...
Deborah’s world...
“Trying to figure out a production office that still felt like Deborah was one of our earliest challenges," Jennifer reveals. "I had a photo album of just desks that had upwards of 40 different ideas. The desk and bookcases ultimately came from Wayfair, with other pieces from Universal, Warner Bros, Omega Cinema Props and Hollywood Studio Gallery, the desk chair from Advanced Office Liquidators. When we stumbled into that carpet at Linoleum City, we knew it would complement the wallpaper perfectly.”
Deborah’s studio office, completed. Courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved.
Deborah’s touch-up room...“We kept the palette for her spaces...the finishes that were in her office are also the same finishes that we did in her little touch-up room before she walks the stage. And then when the curtain opens, that's still in the same palette range. We wanted to feel like that's all Deb's world.”
Deborah’s touch-up room, BTS. Courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved.
Mood board...
Samples for both the stage & Deborah's office. “Early on in conversations with PD Rob Tokarz, I mentioned the idea of the “sequin wall” for behind the curtain. We ordered multiple color options, and even considered a custom color. But as the design and colors of the LATE NIGHT stage were narrowed, we landed on an existing option sourced from Shop Wild Things out of Arizona. I have used them since back in my music video days,” she smiles.
Mood board: samples for both the stage & Deborah's office. Courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved.
LATE NIGHT Celebrity Dressing Room...
“We did three versions of the LATE NIGHT dressing rooms, thinking that the guests for each show would have a slight hierarchy. That also gave us flexibility for filming, since we could redesign the room to account for each scene. Sometimes you need to feature a vanity, and sometimes you just need a sofa for them to boof some drugs on!”
LATE NIGHT Celebrity Dressing Room. Courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved.
LATE NIGHT Celebrity Dressing Room, reverse. Courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved
LATE NIGHT Writers Room...
“This set had several iterations: First, Ava’s office, then Rob’s office [See below for photos], and then we reworked this set to be the Writer’s Bullpen. We reached out to each actor about what personal items their character might have, then whittled that through what we could clear, and crunched it down again, as to not over-dress the set. We also needed to include flexibility on seating space to accommodate scenes that included multiple actors, so we incorporated a lot of common and flexible seating spots. This space would then go on to be the Production Conference Room!”
LATE NIGHT Writers Room. Courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved.
LATE NIGHT Writers Room, reverse. Inset: Ava [Hannah Einbinder] with her writing team. Courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved.
Ava’s office...
“Ava’s office evolved a bit over the season, but we shot it all back-to-back, so my On-Set Dresser Niles Padilla kept adding dressing and mess. We wanted the office to feel like a actual production space office, right down to the ubiquitous plastic torchieres familiar to everyone who has worked in a production office!”
Ava’s office. Courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved.
Rob’s office, BTS...
“Ava’s office set became Rob’s office, which was a contrast to her empty, generic production office, as Rob had been the Executive Producer at LATE NIGHT for many years and settled into his space. Ava has never had a space that’s truly ‘hers’ throughout all four seasons!”
Rob’s office, BTS.
Courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved.
Rob’s office, reverse. [Later this space was reconfigured to become the Writer’s Room, then the Production Conference Room!] Photo courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved.
Deborah’s LA House office...
“Even though there was not a truly good space at our Altadena location for Deb’s LA house to have an office, they wrote one in. After prepping a small side room, it was determined the room was too small to shoot in, so we pivoted to redressing the back wall & corner of the living room as an office. I thought it worked quite well, and I will miss finding the sweet spot of Deb’s taste as we know it, blended with the ‘90s when she decorated the LA house. Also, of course, a sad end to this wonderful location that was lost in the Altadena fire.”
Deborah’s LA House office, BTS with reverse inset. Courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved.
Deb’s Vegas Mansion...
“We seemingly never stop discovering new rooms in Deb’s Vegas Mansion! This season, we added a TV room for Deb to be “interviewing” her new grandson in. We needed to film at our exterior mansion location, so we converted a room at the location. The walls there have a Venetian plaster finish on them, so we were not able to use any nails. Billy Baker, my Leadperson, conducted multiple experiments in our office to test weights and rigging ideas so as not to damage the walls. Thankfully, Asst Decorator Jill Carvalho never tires of sourcing new Deb Vance looks!”
Deb’s Vegas Mansion. Courtesy of HBO Max. All Rights Reserved.
LuSaque &Schaefer/Schaefer & LuSaque office...
“The L&S/S&L office was planned to shoot at the location that we established last season, and then quite a way into prep they decided to build it. Luckily most of the dressing we had sourced was still usable. This is another set that that needed to evolve throughout our season, but was shot in a compressed time frame!”
For photos of this high end/contemporary chic set, and others...
Click on the SHOW MORE PHOTOS button below!
Editor’s note:
Once again, Set Decorator Jennifer Lukehart SDSA would like to acknowledge her entire crew, especially her keys:
Jill Carvalho - Assistant Set Decorator | Amy Strong – Buyer | Billy Baker – Leadman | Craig Stoa - Gang Boss
She also gives a shout out the all the SDSA Business members, with special thanks for this season of HACKS to:
Advanced Liquidators Office Furniture & Studio rentals - so many offices this season! |
Ob-jects | Omega Cinema Props | Warner Bros | Sandy Rose Floral | FormDecor Furniture Rental | Town & Country Event Rentals | Lennie Marvin’s Prop Heaven | Art Pic | Hollywood Studio Gallery ...and, of course, Universal Property and Drapery
And our thanks to Libby Woolems of ACME who, once again, was a website wizard for us!
Don't forget to...
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