UNCHARTED TERRORITY
Filming began on August 11, 2008, in Studio Babelsberg, Potsdam, just outside Berlin. A number of international projects have shot at Babelsberg recently, and the film's German production connections made it a perfect place for Pandorum to call home.
"We had such a good experience making the first Resident Evil film here," says Bolt. "There are tremendously good crews here, and Berlin is a fantastic city. Who wouldn't want to spend 5 months here?"
Director Alvart adds, "I shot Antibodies here, and I loved the crew and people. On a demanding project like Pandorum, I wanted to rely on people I knew."
In addition, Berlin provided the physical conditions required for the shoot.
"We wanted huge sets showing the Elysium's and the mission's dimension," Kulzer says; they wanted a deepness to the locations that would create a vertigo effect. The location was important to the story as well, as the filmmakers wanted the audience to feel the vastness of the ship which in the film can hold up to 60,000 passengers. They found suitable places in the sound stages of Babelsberg and within an abandoned power plant in Berlin, Steglitz, where the last two weeks of shooting took place. "It looks like a spaceship already," says Alvart. "We just had to add our sets."
Overall, the production required 54 sets and locations. Production designer Richard Bridgland previously worked with the producers on Resident Evil, and was glad to come onboard for a whole new challenge. Together with Alvart, he created the film's unique look - a sort of post-industrial futurism.
"This is a well-defined genre, and there's a typical look to these movies," says Bridgland. "But this script had a whole different feeling to it, a gothic element I really enjoyed."
A film like Pandorum can offer huge creative freedom to a production team, but that freedom can make things even more difficult. Alvart says, "You have to solve a paradox every day: You want to believably portray a future nobody knows, yet you want to connect to the audience and make them relate to the characters and story."
"It had to be very functional," adds Bridgland. "Things had to work." The intention - and ultimate result - was to create a look that differs from everything seen before, one that suited the dark and twisted Pandorum. "The sets themselves have to tell the story, so they gradually get more and more gothic and horrifying."
Of working on set, Foster says, "We're all affected by environment - emotionally and physically. The sets were designed to provoke a certain experience…and they were very effective in that department."
Cam Gigandet says, "I expected a lot of green screen, which always makes me skeptical - you can usually see that it's not real. With Pandorum, it was, 'Oh my God, this could all happen.'"
"Digital effects always create a distance - even with today's technique," says Kulzer. "We felt the more sets we could actually build and the more realistic they looked, the better the actors could convey real emotions. And the more they get scared, the more the audience will get scared as well."
The set, which became the actors' home for three months, together with the fact that some of them had not been to Germany before and could not speak the language, evoked what they ultimately named the "Pandorum effect." Actor Gigandet says, "The whole situation was quite surreal, and honestly, it brought out insecurity in me." Foster, who shot each of the 52 production days, says, "The working pace we had, the sets, and the whole atmosphere of the movie certainly supported a feeling of confusion and anxiety."
Traue adds, "Darkness was a big theme. It was dark when I'd get up, dark when I'd come home, and in between we're shooting in all dark sets. After some weeks, it definitely had influence on me." Producer Bolt laughs, "That was all deliberate - disorienting our actors is part of the method."
The movie's set design was supported by exceptional camera work and a strong lighting concept created by director of photography Wedigo von Schultzendorff. The film's look is characterized by an intense interplay of blackness and bright colors like green, blue, yellow and red to emphasize particular situations. "It was definitely a challenge," von Schultzendorff says.
"The movie is set in deep darkness most of the time; I tried to design a more expressionistic distribution of light and create the illusion of darkness."
Gerd Feuchter, SFX supervisor on Pandorum, says, "Our job was to make the light visible using steam, fog or dust, like a discotheque's laser show."
The film's more exciting scenes are punctuated by spectacular effects work. As with the sets, efforts were made to keep things based in reality, and practical effects were used instead of digital effects whenever possible. Stunt coordinator Francois Doge says, "All the actors were very keen on practicing the stunts, and wanted to do as many as possible by themselves. This is quite rare, especially when the shoot is such a tough one. Honestly, they put heart and soul into this movie."
Ben Foster says, "I suppose it's the daredevil thing. It's just fun to jump off something or into something - that's a boy's dream."
With such a complicated shoot, the producers and actors ultimately credit director Alvart and his crew with keeping everyone focused and on task. "The crew is really inspiring," says Foster. "The rigor and care put into the film is amazing. And Christian is incredible. He had 1500 storyboards - 1500 pictures that he knows inside out! He's certainly the most visually prepared and focused director I've met." Altogether about 500 people were engaged to bring the mass of storyboards to life.

THE EVIL
There's a negative force that looms over the story and provides Pandorum with its terror, and that evil manifests itself in a variety of ways throughout the film, physically as well as psychologically. The force is evident even in the film's apocalyptic pre-story, as mankind has destroyed Earth and needs a new place to live. Ben Foster relates to that premise: "The way we're heading and the way we're treating our environment is certainly frightening. Pandorum is just one potential fantasy of what could happen if we go on behaving the way we are."
In the film, the word "pandorum" actually means Orbital Dysfunctional Syndrome, a sort of disease caused by the vastness, deep loneliness and isolation of space. "The dysfunction manifests itself in a kind of God-complex," producer Bolt explains, "a disability to discern right from wrong, hallucinations, bleeding noses and trembling."
The SFX costume and makeup departments created a very clear vision of how these psychological effects ultimately take their toll, becoming the story's true evil: the Hunters. Originally humans meant to be resettled and establish a new civilization, they've mutated and proliferated into terrifying monsters during the 125 years the failed space journey has lasted.
Unlike zombies or aliens, the filmmakers wanted a more mysterious embodiment of evil for Pandorum's creatures so audiences at first wouldn't understand what they were. "The plan was to have kind of a shape-shifting creature," says Kulzer. "The audience is trying to figure out what they are. Are they aliens? Are they supernatural? When they finally identify them, it's 'WOW.'"
To bolster the "wow effect" and increase the threat emanating from the Hunters, the filmmakers wanted them to be as real as possible and to again reduce CGI to a minimum. In a lengthy casting process, four actors were chosen to embody the four main Hunters: Heflin, Weasel, Hunter Shape and Hunter Brute. In total, 17 permanent Hunter actors were cast, and for four days of shooting in the Hunters' hatchery approximately 70 extras were turned into mutants.
For creature makeup, the filmmakers turned to the famous Stan Winston Studio. With 30 years of experience on movies like Terminator, Aliens, Jurassic Park, and Iron Man, Stan Winston Studio ranks among the best special effects companies and creature designers in the world.
"The biggest challenge is to find something that hasn't been done yet," says Lindsay McGowan, SFX Chief Makeup. "But that's the fun of it. You have to work the story and find the type of creature that fits."
On the basis of storyboard scribbles by Alvart and first concept art by Stan Winston Studio, Ivana Milos designed the look of the Hunter garb, and Niels Müller transferred her drawings into actual costumes. The Hunters' clothing/armor mainly consists of scrap metal taken from the ship, wrapped with leather straps and lined with skins to protect sensitive body parts and form mountings for their huge weapons…or trophies.
The looks were elaborate, and McGowan says, "We needed about three hours for the makeup process. Costume needed approximately two more." The everyday makeup process included body painting; masks for the head, the hands and the feet; and fake teeth and lenses for the eyes. "It was a little torture for the guys, but they were all very patient and cooperative," adds McGowan.
Particular attention with the makeup procedure was required to transform the child-age Hunter, played by a young girl named Luna - actually Alvart's 8-year-old daughter. "Actually, I was looking at her brother to play the child Hunter," Alvart says, "but she went along with him to the casting…and she won the role." As the working hours of child actors are legally limited, makeup and costume had to find compromises to complete their work most efficiently within the time given. SFX makeup artist Arjen Tuiten, who's worked on movies like Pan's Labyrinth and Hellboy 2: The Golden Army, brought it down to just two hours. "Luna was lovely," McGowan says. "She brought her computer and watched High School Musical. That kept her attention."
Overall, the production is thrilled with the Hunters' manifestation. "They're not like creatures in a haunted house - monsters or mutants," says Müller.
"There's an incredible concept about their movement, fighting, articulation and behavior, which is closely linked to the story; a whole philosophy that will engage the audience."
The well-founded combination of physical and psychological elements created by the sets, costumes, props, stunts, and makeup runs like a red thread through Pandorum, working together to knit a dense net of tension, thrills, and horror for the audience. And if the filmmakers get their way, this won't be the only time they'll explore the world of the film. Director Alvart says, "Truth be told, this is only the first chapter in a trilogy of films I wish to make exploring the Pandorum universe."

ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
CHRISTIAN ALVART (Director) was born in 1974 near Frankfurt, Germany. His strict Christian background frowned upon films and television and in his childhood he was rarely allowed to see a movie. He developed a fascination and love for the forbidden subject matter and quickly became an "expert" in his circle of friends, successfully hiding that he hadn't seen most of the films they were talking about. Instead, he read about films, their making, the novels or the source material they were based on.
When he finally was able to get his hands on films he couldn't stop watching, often going to the cinema six times a week. In 1990 he started making small video and Super-8 films with his friends. The group became part of a network of hobby-filmmakers and geeks. Most of his peers were professionally working in lower positions on movies, creating their own projects in their free time. At the age of 19 Alvart became an editor and layout designer with the XTRO Filmmagazin, soon working his way up to editor-in-chief and even owning the special interest publication. In 1997, he decided to make his own films again and moved with his company Syrreal Entertainment to Berlin. To get a glance at the world of "professional filmmaking" he started as a runner, soon working his way up again to 1st AD on two features within the same year. 
In 1998, he wrote, produced and directed Curiosity & The Cat, his first 35mm feature film - a low budget thriller which cost only $30K. Many of his friends from the Frankfurt days were part of the project. The film was nominated for the Max-Ophüls-Award and the Prize of the Minister President of the State Saarland. Alvart then worked as a writer for several German features and TV shows.
In 2005, he debuted Antibodies, his second work as a director. When it premiered at The AFI Film Festival he was named as one of "Five Directors To Watch" as well as the "German New Face of Cinema." Antibodies was also invited to the Edinburgh Film Festival as well as Tribeca and many others.  Christian recently completed Case 39, which stars Renée Zellweger, Ian McShane and Bradley Cooper, and was produced by Kevin Misher and Steve Golin. Projects in development include The Zero and Killer Queen.

TRAVIS MILLOY (Screenplay / Executive Producer), born in Chicago, grew up in northern Minnesota. He attended college in Minneapolis and worked in film as well as in music for several years, most notably for Prince at Paisley Park Studios. Milloy wrote and directed Street Gun, a no-budget action movie in 1996. Shot on a shoestring, Milloy came to Hollywood and sold it to Avi Lerner at Nu Image. This led to his signing with his first agent, Jeff Robinov, then with ICM. Robinov went on to Warner Brothers, where Milloy spent a few years under contract working as a writer on spy thrillers and action scripts. In 1998, he joined Anonymous Content. Milloy is represented by Anonymous Content's Lenny Beckerman. He is currently writing Outsourced for Constantin Film and Impact Pictures; the feature film is based on Dave Zeltersman's novel 28 Minutes.

PAUL W. S. ANDERSON (Producer) British-born director, producer and writer, has become internationally known for his visual and visceral films. With his finger on the pulse of the darker side of popular culture, his body of work is trademarked by the hidden and oftentimes primal aspects of humanity.
Most recently, Anderson's Death Race rolled into theaters. The film starred Jason Statham as Jensen Ames, an ex-con who is forced by a notorious prison warden, played by Joan Allen, to compete in the world's most popular reality TV program: a lethal car race in which inmates must brutalize and kill one another on the road in order to win their freedom. Also starring Tyrese Gibson and Ian McShane, Anderson's film is a remake of the 1975 cult classic DeathRace 2000 starring David Carradine and Sylvester Stallone.
Recently, Anderson began work on a remake of the gangster classic The Long Good Friday, which he will write, produce and direct. He also has begun developing the adaptation of the action/horror videogame Castlevania, which he will write and produce. Anderson and Bolt will produce all these through Impact Pictures. The first film of the pair's collaboration was 1994's low-budget success Shopping, which Anderson wrote and directed. Starring Sadie Frost and Jude Law (with an appearance by legendary singer Marianne Faithful), this dark film about joyriding and ram-raiding British youth was banned in some UK theatres, but firmly established Anderson's love of cars, dystopian futures and high-impact action. Shopping paved the way to Hollywood for Anderson, and 1995's Mortal Kombat became Anderson's first American No.1 box-office smash. It was also the first successful movie adaptation of a videogame. The triumph of Mortal Kombat quickly established Anderson as the man who could take the game off the television and make it explode on the big screen, and potentially into a successful franchise.
Sidestepping offers to direct a sequel, Anderson chose instead to turn his attention to science fiction. His next directorial projects included Soldier and Event Horizon. Blade Runner screenwriter David Peoples wrote Soldier as a "sidequel" to the bleakly powerful Blade Runner. The film starred Kurt Russell, Connie Nielsen and Jason Isaacs. Now considered a cult classic, Event Horizon starred Laurence Fishburne, Sam Neill, Jason Isaacs and Joely Richardson.
Anderson returned to adapting videogames for the big screen with the survival horror Resident Evil, starring Milla Jovovich and Michelle Rodriguez.  Anderson wrote, directed and produced the feature. A resounding commercial success, the movie spawned Anderson's second successful franchise, which includes No.1 hits Resident Evil: Apocalypse and Resident Evil: Extinction.
Anderson confirmed his box-office power when he wrote and directed the highly anticipated AVP: Alien vs. Predator starring Lance Henriksen. This kicked off Anderson's third successful franchise, as the movie opened at No.1 and went on to be the highest-grossing film in both the Alien and Predator series Born and raised in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, Anderson graduated from the University of Warwick with a BA in Film & Literature. He continued at Warwick to become the youngest student to achieve an MBA.

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