As part of a team, we were tasked with building 2 hero suits for Star Trek Discovery. This would be the first time the team worked on anything of this calibre, which made it very exciting to be a part of as we got to do a lot of experimentation and R&D. 

We worked with their internal Costumes team to achieve this. They were responsible for the undersuit, while we would resolve the panelling and attachment. It was important to maintain certain seamlines, while maintaining the aesthetic of the concept art and movement for the actor. All of these elements informed how we would collaborate on the pattern.

We would pattern on the real body, take that form and translate it into 2D, then digitally scan and scale that, using that as a baseline for our 3D models. From there, we 3D printed the panels on high-resolution polyjet printers, sanded and finished the parts, molded and cast them out of different urethane resins. Once cast, they were painted with flexible automotive-grade paint. Finally they would be glued and hand-sewn into place – all placement based on the original 2D pattern. 

One of the issues that we came across was that the actor had restricted movement, some of the panelling also buckled due to the placement. For both issues, we altered the design to accommodate for range of movement. We would strategically split certain panels and repattern some of the shapes, while staying true to the original aesthetic. 

Another issue we had was how to paint certain panels that had a specific texture. 

We first tried to lasercut masking tape sheets, but that ended up being too fussy to work with. Because the panels had a rounded surface, we couldn’t achieve an even look if we put them directly in the lasercutter. Through some experimenting, we discovered that we could lasercut very thin silicone sheets. Initially, we poured excess silicone from our moldmaking process in flat sheets. We then noticed that the silicone naturally stuck to the sides of the 2L mixing cups and started using that - it was both thinner and less wasteful. The silicone was a great, reusable mask with a slight tack to it and draped well over slight compound curves. 

As a coincidence, I had very similar measurements to one of the actors and wore the suit for our test fittings. This was unique for me since I am seldom the size of most actors. To directly experience the range of movement that they might go through helped inform a lot of our design decisions for the team. 

In the end, it was a beautiful end product that the team was very proud of.