Archive notice: This article was originally published on 3 July 2020. It has been translated into English and lightly edited for clarity while preserving its historical context.
Pixomondo CG supervisor Dan Smiczek discussed his work on Star Trek: Picard. His credits also included The Mandalorian, Westworld and The Orville.
From Tribbles to greebles
The interview focused on the Borg Cubes, covering their concept and design phase and the integration of digital geometry with physical Borg Cube sets. Detailed surface elements, commonly called greebles, helped the team establish the immense scale and mechanical density of the structures.
The discussion provides production context for asset design and live-action integration rather than a step-by-step recipe. Teams should validate modelling density, lighting and compositing decisions against current shot requirements before reusing the approach.
