X-men II
20th Century Fox

The highly-stylized X-Jet cock-pit crew seats are a synthesis of digital design and traditional craft of the Sculptor.

Initially, the chairs were designed on a 3-D modeling program. An original or ‘plug’ of the seat was later created from a high density proto-typing plastic. The plug was constructed out of two slabs cut on a CNC milling machine and later assembled together to form the complete chair. During its construction, much hand-work was required to mold the edges and fair the contours of the complexly shaped surface of the seat.

Once the original was completely corrected a fiberglass mould was made. Strength and durability were key concerns in creating the chairs because of the extreme performance needs of the crew. A rigid mould was built from foam injected carbon fiber fortified by a prefabricated aluminum frame encased into the body of the chair. This added strength to the chairs to ensure they remained rigid and anchored to the floor of the X-Jet set. The crew was secured by body harnesses fixed to the internal frames of the chairs. The set was placed on a gimble control to allow for rapid pitching and yawing, creating an effect similar to the the jarring sensations felt on a roller coaster ride.