**The Making of Serenity: A Conversation with Sean Murray**

We sat down with Sean Murray, a renowned model maker and prop builder, to discuss his latest project, Serenity. The miniature replica is based on the TV series Firefly, which originally aired several years ago. Unlike its predecessor, the movie version, this iteration features more detail and intricate designs.

The original Serenity model from the TV show was created with a lower resolution in mind, as it was only required for screen time. However, when it came to our latest project, we decided to scale up the miniature and add details that were previously absent. We added small components such as nuts, bolts, and ladder rungs to create a more realistic representation of the ship. This attention to detail is what sets us apart from other model makers and prop builders.

One of the unique aspects of our workshop is the ability to create detailed interiors for props like Serenity's shuttle bay. We can fabricate these areas entirely from scratch, using techniques such as laser cutting and miniature brass components. The result is a level of detail that was previously impossible to achieve on screen. For example, we added stairwells, cabinets with handles, and even carpets to create a sense of realism.

**The Factory: A Hub for Creativity**

Our workshop in Florida serves as the hub for our model making and prop building operations. It's a full-fledged model shop that houses all the necessary tools and equipment. As Sean Murray mentioned, working on set was an eye-opening experience, revealing the similarities between film production and model making. We use similar techniques and materials to create props like Serenity, but with added creative freedom.

One of the most impressive aspects of our workshop is the caliber of talent that surrounds us. While we're all trained in various fields such as architecture, design, or sales, many of our team members didn't initially pursue careers in model making. However, they discovered a passion for prop building and joined our ranks. This eclectic mix of skills has allowed us to approach projects from unique angles, resulting in innovative solutions.

The workshop atmosphere is relaxed but intense, with all hands on deck working towards the same goal. As Sean Murray said, "It's like a pressure cooker – we're all excited about what we're creating." We work tirelessly to ensure that every miniature and prop meets our high standards of quality and attention to detail.

**The Art of Prop Making**

Our workshop is home to talented artists who are passionate about bringing props like Serenity to life. They've honed their skills through years of practice, and it's incredible to witness someone pick up a new talent and apply it to their craft. As Sean Murray noted, there's something special about seeing an idea take shape under the guidance of experienced prop makers.

From laser cutting to miniature brass components, every detail plays a crucial role in creating a convincing prop like Serenity. We can also fabricate electronics, lighting, and even entire sections of the ship's interior. The possibilities are endless, and our team takes pride in pushing the boundaries of what's possible with model making.

**Conclusion**

As we wrap up this conversation, it's clear that Sean Murray and his team have created something truly remarkable with Serenity. By combining their unique skills and expertise, they've brought a beloved TV series to life in miniature form. Whether you're a fan of Firefly or simply appreciate the art of prop making, there's no denying the magic of this project.

More information on our latest projects can be found on our website, including behind-the-scenes insights into the making of Serenity. Be sure to check out our next article from Comic-Con 2014, where we'll delve deeper into the world of sci-fi props and model making.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enhey it's nor from tes.com I'm here at ComicCon 2014 at the quantum mechanics with quantum mechanics you do a lot of different type of Collectibles but what I'm interested in and what you guys are really known for the Artisan Collectibles John dein you're the head of the FX Cinema Arts Department that's the miniature model making Department he has a whole facility dedicated making scale models of movies and for production right yes correct uh we make um uh models for collectors uh and for studios and uh basically the only difference is is where they go to uh all of our Miniatures are built with the the thought in mind that we want them to be filming Miniatures um they're built the exact same way we the same techniques uh same tools same paint same artist it's just uh one might be going to a studio the other's going to a collector and what you have this year at Comic-Con two new prototypes this is of course the Reliant Wrath of con USS Reliant USS Reliant now this isn't going to be exactly the same as the shooting model which I believe is a little bigger but you've taken all the modern Technologies and stylings that you've done incorporated into your other starships and brought it to the Reliant we have we have uh the first place we started was the inside Reliant she's she's a big ship she's heavy so what we what we did is inside of her she's got a steel and aluminum Armature and that's where we started all the the hole plating all the fiberglass that's all bonded to the to the metal frame now when you build something for Film Production it's only got to last for that one shot you know two shots or so when you build something for a collector it's got to last for years cuz they're spending a thousand of dollars on there is a painting process different is the detailing different the the painting and and detailing is the same uh basically though where we where we have to have to uh look at focus our focus at is accessibility and we want to be able to to access the model in case there's there's ever a short or light goes out or something something we need to upgrade or change so we've got the ability to go into every part of the model and change every aspect of the electronics as we would need to very cool and then in addition to the Reliant you guys you're going back to your first love it's serenity right here Ser this is a massive and Incredibly detailed Artisan model how is this different from the serenity you did several years ago well uh first of all the serenity we did years ago she was based on the movie so she's slightly different the the movie version had had had a little bit more detail on her there was there was some slight cosmetic changes in her Seria that we're doing here uh she's from the TV show the TV show used a lower resolution in a less detailed version because that's all that was required but what we did is we went larger with this miniature we added detail that that was never visible on the model that you saw on TV but we knew that it would be there the nuts the bolts um the the ladder rungs the door handles things that that that would be there and what I love about this one it's something that only you guys do is you have the Interiors as well and can you talk about that manufacturing process say look in that little shuttle Bay and there's there's stairwells and how how was is that all fabricated for the Prototype we basically we'll we'll we'll do things from scratch we'll do things by hand until we we really know what is that we the direction that we want to go in uh we'll use a lot of a lot of miniature brass um this whatever whatever that's small that we can laser cut we will to get just get that nice tight detail and uh that always works really well for us and then you also have the cockpit as well and the galley cockpit we've got the galley uh you can see that you can see the cabinets cabinet handles you can see the tables and chairs cuz we get to we got to we knock the table one of the chairs over inside the inside the galley gu Jane's having a bad day that day and we've got the carpets and the we've got we've got leather chairs inside of there and uh wherever we could put detail we we we we put it in there just just to make it look like a real lived in ship can you give us a sense of what that factory the is like in Florida where this is being assembled where you're making stuff for movies props and Miniatures like what what is that factory atmosphere like and what do that assembly process like uh well it's it's it's relaxed but it's it's it's it's also a little bit of a pressure cooker um a model shop basically it it is it is a full functioning in every way shap shape or form it it's it's a model shop um one of the things that I always remembered from working at ilm was the was the spell from the laser cutter the the MDF the acrylic and uh and it it's it's got a different smell in the summer as it that it does in the winter and uh and it's it's it's interesting to go into our shop and and and and smell the same smells we're we're a model shop we use we use the same the same tools and techniques that any other model shop would uh resin fiberglass acrylics you know all that stuff the same glues we've got a lot of creative people in there they love their job they love what they do the the cool thing is that none of them started out as model makers we've got we've got folks that were they started out as Architects designers uh different things like that um sales Folks at at Best Buy we we got one one one of our guys uh Alex he does our Electronics you know that's that's what he did at at at at his other job and uh now instead of doing it for installing car stereos he's he's doing it with um installing uh Lighting on on Starships and spaceships something he never never thought he'd do place never thought he'd be at that's amazing that's something if you build models at home this is possible career path model making isn't dead it's not is Not Dead by any means it's not um it's it's also great for me when we when we get somebody in in the shop who's never done it before but they've got that that that inner Talent inside them and and we give them an outlet we give them Direction on on on where to send it and when I can see somebody you know pick up a talent and then and then and then apply it to the whatever miniature we're working on it's it's it's a great feeling to watch that to watch that happen to to know that that you know that the that the talent that the the discipline is going to is going to live on through somebody else it's it's it's it's neat to watch that happen and you guys do great work thank you so much Sean for sharing your latest prototypes this stuff looks amazing more information on your website and more stuff from ComicCon 2014 on test.com I'm Norm I'll see you guys later byehey it's nor from tes.com I'm here at ComicCon 2014 at the quantum mechanics with quantum mechanics you do a lot of different type of Collectibles but what I'm interested in and what you guys are really known for the Artisan Collectibles John dein you're the head of the FX Cinema Arts Department that's the miniature model making Department he has a whole facility dedicated making scale models of movies and for production right yes correct uh we make um uh models for collectors uh and for studios and uh basically the only difference is is where they go to uh all of our Miniatures are built with the the thought in mind that we want them to be filming Miniatures um they're built the exact same way we the same techniques uh same tools same paint same artist it's just uh one might be going to a studio the other's going to a collector and what you have this year at Comic-Con two new prototypes this is of course the Reliant Wrath of con USS Reliant USS Reliant now this isn't going to be exactly the same as the shooting model which I believe is a little bigger but you've taken all the modern Technologies and stylings that you've done incorporated into your other starships and brought it to the Reliant we have we have uh the first place we started was the inside Reliant she's she's a big ship she's heavy so what we what we did is inside of her she's got a steel and aluminum Armature and that's where we started all the the hole plating all the fiberglass that's all bonded to the to the metal frame now when you build something for Film Production it's only got to last for that one shot you know two shots or so when you build something for a collector it's got to last for years cuz they're spending a thousand of dollars on there is a painting process different is the detailing different the the painting and and detailing is the same uh basically though where we where we have to have to uh look at focus our focus at is accessibility and we want to be able to to access the model in case there's there's ever a short or light goes out or something something we need to upgrade or change so we've got the ability to go into every part of the model and change every aspect of the electronics as we would need to very cool and then in addition to the Reliant you guys you're going back to your first love it's serenity right here Ser this is a massive and Incredibly detailed Artisan model how is this different from the serenity you did several years ago well uh first of all the serenity we did years ago she was based on the movie so she's slightly different the the movie version had had had a little bit more detail on her there was there was some slight cosmetic changes in her Seria that we're doing here uh she's from the TV show the TV show used a lower resolution in a less detailed version because that's all that was required but what we did is we went larger with this miniature we added detail that that was never visible on the model that you saw on TV but we knew that it would be there the nuts the bolts um the the ladder rungs the door handles things that that that would be there and what I love about this one it's something that only you guys do is you have the Interiors as well and can you talk about that manufacturing process say look in that little shuttle Bay and there's there's stairwells and how how was is that all fabricated for the Prototype we basically we'll we'll we'll do things from scratch we'll do things by hand until we we really know what is that we the direction that we want to go in uh we'll use a lot of a lot of miniature brass um this whatever whatever that's small that we can laser cut we will to get just get that nice tight detail and uh that always works really well for us and then you also have the cockpit as well and the galley cockpit we've got the galley uh you can see that you can see the cabinets cabinet handles you can see the tables and chairs cuz we get to we got to we knock the table one of the chairs over inside the inside the galley gu Jane's having a bad day that day and we've got the carpets and the we've got we've got leather chairs inside of there and uh wherever we could put detail we we we we put it in there just just to make it look like a real lived in ship can you give us a sense of what that factory the is like in Florida where this is being assembled where you're making stuff for movies props and Miniatures like what what is that factory atmosphere like and what do that assembly process like uh well it's it's it's relaxed but it's it's it's it's also a little bit of a pressure cooker um a model shop basically it it is it is a full functioning in every way shap shape or form it it's it's a model shop um one of the things that I always remembered from working at ilm was the was the spell from the laser cutter the the MDF the acrylic and uh and it it's it's got a different smell in the summer as it that it does in the winter and uh and it's it's it's interesting to go into our shop and and and and smell the same smells we're we're a model shop we use we use the same the same tools and techniques that any other model shop would uh resin fiberglass acrylics you know all that stuff the same glues we've got a lot of creative people in there they love their job they love what they do the the cool thing is that none of them started out as model makers we've got we've got folks that were they started out as Architects designers uh different things like that um sales Folks at at Best Buy we we got one one one of our guys uh Alex he does our Electronics you know that's that's what he did at at at at his other job and uh now instead of doing it for installing car stereos he's he's doing it with um installing uh Lighting on on Starships and spaceships something he never never thought he'd do place never thought he'd be at that's amazing that's something if you build models at home this is possible career path model making isn't dead it's not is Not Dead by any means it's not um it's it's also great for me when we when we get somebody in in the shop who's never done it before but they've got that that that inner Talent inside them and and we give them an outlet we give them Direction on on on where to send it and when I can see somebody you know pick up a talent and then and then and then apply it to the whatever miniature we're working on it's it's it's a great feeling to watch that to watch that happen to to know that that you know that the that the talent that the the discipline is going to is going to live on through somebody else it's it's it's it's neat to watch that happen and you guys do great work thank you so much Sean for sharing your latest prototypes this stuff looks amazing more information on your website and more stuff from ComicCon 2014 on test.com I'm Norm I'll see you guys later bye\n"