SF Media Group is a media production house on Battery Street in San Francisco, with multiple studios, sound stages, and satellite uplinks. Local and national political figures broadcast from this location. The owners wanted a facelift for the space, done cost-effectively, without turning a working production facility into a construction zone.
Over about five or six weeks, we took on a long list of cosmetic and functional improvements across the building.
For the production control room, we built a raised, split-level floor, giving the control area its own elevated level. We also built a lowered ceiling and loft space, installed new doors, and did some lighting work.
On the talent side, we converted a closet into a changing room, added new mirrors, and finished out closets throughout. We also built blue screens for the studios. They’re simple in principle, but they need a smooth, even surface to key cleanly on camera.
The bathroom got a remodel, with a new floor, vanity, and toilet.
A lot of the work was prep and paint, including painting a sound room. A building that’s hosted years of productions collects its share of holes, dings, and patches, so there was plenty of spackling before any paint went on. The surface is what the camera and the client see, and paint only looks as good as the wall under it.
The goal on a job like this is to get the most visible improvement for the budget. We focused on the rooms that are on camera, the rooms clients and guests pass through, and the spaces the crew uses every day. The result was a studio that looks refreshed and works better, without the cost of a major remodel.
