Andrei Allen UCA Broadcast Media Blog

Having done my extensive research in part 1 for the world of Ergstulum, i decided to change the location from where the story is set within Italy, to Amsterdam, Netherlands, appropriating nightlife aspects from Bangoko, Thailand.  The reason for this is Amsterdam is renowned for its trade of sex and openly prides itself on its wholly liberal and tolerant attitude towards it, embracing the fact that people may be into prostitution, soft drugs and pornography, which is a theme continually displayed throughout GANGSTA. Also, the nightlife in Amsterdam, and also Bangkok, besides openly displaying vice activities, paints the night skies with vivid red, purple and blue neon lights, that would hopefully help to personify the neon-neo nior style of cinema shown in such films as Oldboy and Drive, which is a look that i would like to go for, as in the Manga/Anime, neon colours is also a common visual occurrence throughout the series that helps to push the idea of sexualisation throughout the series. 

Bangkok red light

After doing my extensive research in part 1 for the world of ERGASTULUM, i decided to adapted each location into its live action example,  showing how the live versions of each location would roughly look like, changing them up from their original designs, however, appropriating certain aspect from the original designs to create something new . The imagery created is intended to act as a mood board for the art department, so that they have some form of visual reference to go by when they’re creating the scene locations.

The locations displayed below are a mixture of photoshop manipulations and also 3D designed interior models created by an external collaborator.

So that the collaborator who i commissioned to do the work could understand what i wanted, i created a mood board supplemented by a floor plan design so that he had an idea of what i wanted. 

Handymen hideout

This was the mood-board and floor plan handed over to the first external collaborator, so that he could create the Handymen hideout, which is the main location on the series where a proportionate amount of time is spent

Below is the 3d floor plan that he created, and rendered pictures of the interior designs for the locations. 

DR. Theos Clinic

Monroe Mansion

With this location, i decided that i wanted to change it completely from from it's original location, as Daniel Monroe is one of the most important characters in the series. So, in selecting this location, the Hotel Sofitel Legend the Grand Amsterdam, the architectural  exterior design, plus the side of the premises would help to portray the power, wealth and importance of Daniel Monroe.

Cristiano headquarter - bastards

This was the mood board that the 3d designer had to work from, in order to attempt to create the interior design for the club. I too used the mood board, in order to work on the exterior of the building, and create the neon signboards.

The reason that i chose this Hotel is that because it is the centre of attraction, open for anyone to enter, in a sense, it has the same feeling as the club in the Manga. Another reason is that the size of the club will help emphasise the importance and wealth of the Cristiano family.  

Ergastulum police department

Pauklee guild headquarters 

The Pauklee guild headquarters will stick more to the dystopian look, situated within a base an ex army shipyard and bunker that they have taken possession of.

For this location, i mainly photoshopped out the no smoking signs and placed in army field laptops on the dests, plus replaced the map to display Ergastulum "Amsterdam"

Example of Gina Paulkee's Bunker designed office bedroom

Location where The pauklee Guild HQ will be based

Granny Raveau kiosk

Because Granny Raveaus's shops was placed inside a wall, opposite a set of steps on a hill, unfortunately, that architectural design is rare to find amongst the city. So for this purpose, i recreated the small shop into a Kiosk, placing it on the side road opposite a canal.

Constance gun store

Here is an example of what the gun store will look like on the series Gangsta. Like the Manga, the front of the shop will be riddled with bullets due to trouble kicking off, however, it will also have a gun signboard with a target on displaying the name of the shop.

Erotic magnificent pussy

Trying to find a location for big momma's business was very hard, as there was no where that was compatible with the story. All of the locations i found within Amsterdam were either to big and not cosy, or too small and cramped, so in the end, i ended up finding an example in another location of how i would like the production design for this location to be. This restaurant is Buddha Belly in Kiev, photoshopped into a floor layout for Big Mommmas Brothel.

Scouting the locations for this series i found to be a very hard task, because i could not just choose any location, it had to somehow work with the story, contributing plot devices to further develop the narrative. This was an interested process though, as i found myself not only using location scouting website such as The Netherlands Film Commision (https://filmcommission.nl/), but also browsing google street maps to study the structure of the town, and to find more locations. I also found myself researching about Amsterdam in general, which helped me to find the hotel locations that i selected for two of the main actors. 

Having looked through the Netherlands film commission website and researched about the company, they are he main proprietor for dealing with film within Netherlands. Anybody wanting to film anything and needing any type of location, they're the goto company as they hold a reputable stance within the country, being able to source any type of location. Primarily, the series producers will be working with this company to source the locations in Amsterdam.