Paramount+’s Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is utilizing LED volumes, practical dinosaur puppets, and black-and-white cinematography to tackle diverse genres in its fourth season, which premiered in July. The series continues its tradition of blending sci-fi with unexpected storytelling styles, ranging from prehistoric settings to crime noir and puppetry, according to supervising producer and lead visual effects supervisor Jason Zimmerman.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 4 Leverages LED Volumes and Practical Creatures for Genre-Bending Episodes
Expanding Virtual Production and Prehistoric Environments
The production’s LED volume capabilities have evolved significantly since the third season. Zimmerman notes that the visual effects team refines its efficiency with each run, allowing the crew to handle expansive environments scripted by executive producers. For the prehistoric Earth sequences set during the fourth season, the visual effects department collaborated with executive producer and director Chris Fisher to map out three primary hotspots: the landing site, the area behind a T. rex, and the location of a crashed ship. Rather than relying entirely on digital assets, the production incorporated practical creature elements. Legacy Effects built a physical raptor model to provide touchpoints and textures for actors, allowing cast member Christina Chong to interact directly with a physical reference on set. Vendors such as Pixomondo and Ghost VFX subsequently handled the final digital assets.
Executing a Stylized Black-and-White Episode
Breaking away from the franchise’s typical color palette, the fourth season features a black-and-white installment titled “A Case of Chiaroscuro.” Director of photography Glen Keenan pursued the monochrome concept, prompting the visual effects team to run rigorous tests prior to filming. Zimmerman states that the crew tested how color assets would translate into black-and-white tones, adjusting contrast and lighting setup parameters ahead of production to ensure the visual elements read correctly on camera.
Puppetry on the U.S.S. Enterprise Bridge
Enterprise is temporarily taken over by puppets modeled after the show’s cast members. These physical creations were supplied by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, adding another layer of practical filmmaking to the streaming series’ ongoing experimentation with format and tone.