Project Hail Mary Uses 70-Foot Practical Tunnel with Moving “Sun” Lighting Rig

Cinematographer Greig Fraser calls Project Hail Mary “the most challenging film I’ve ever done, by far.”

The tunnel where Grace meets Rocky in Project Hail Mary was built as a fully practical set. The structure measured approximately 70 feet in length, with a massive rig of old-school tungsten lights installed throughout.

The lighting system was pixel-mapped to create a controllable, moving “sun” effect. The tunnel’s design also evolved during production as the team refined the look of “xenonite,” the fictional material it is made from.

Speaking to Variety, Fraser revealed that the team used a large array of tungsten lights instead of LEDs, which were then pixel-mapped to create a fully controllable, rotating “sun.”

Speaking to Happy Sad Confused, directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller said the original cut of Project Hail Mary was nearly four hours long.

“We subjected some filmmaker friends of ours to a three-hour and 45-minute cut of the movie, which was embarrassing.”

The film is directed by Academy Award-winning filmmakers Phil Lord and Chris Miller, from a screenplay by Drew Goddard, based on Andy Weir’s New York Times best-selling novel.

Science teacher Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling) wakes up on a spaceship with no recollection of who he is or how he got there. As his memory slowly returns, he soon discovers he must solve the riddle behind a mysterious substance that’s causing the sun to die out. As details of the mission unravel, he calls on his scientific training and sheer ingenuity — but he may not have to do it alone.

The film also stars Sandra Hüller as Eva Stratt, Ryland’s superior; Milana Vayntrub plays Olesya Ilyukhina, Ryland’s deceased Russian crewmate; with Lionel Boyce and Ken Leung also appearing in undisclosed roles.

Produced by Lord, Miller, Gosling, Ken Kao, Amy Pascal, and Andy Weir. The film is a collaboration between Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Lord Miller Productions, and Pascal Pictures.

Project Hail Mary is now in theaters. The film has already crossed $400 million globally against a budget of $190 million.