26.06.11 – Rocket Science VFX was brought in to help reconstruct 1970s Chicago for DEVIL IN DISGUISE: JOHN WAYNE GACY (Peacock), transforming contemporary filming locations into period-authentic environments.
VFX Supervisor John Coldrick describes the directive and meticulousness behind the work.
“A lot of what we did was structural correction,” says Coldrick, “We weren’t adding embellishment, we were reengineering the practical locations to be period and location specific. Proportions, surface detail, signage systems, everything had to align with archival reference and still hold up under lens distortion and lighting continuity.”
The goal was to ensure the photography felt historically authentic, without feeling imposed.
“When you’re dealing with factual, sensitive storylines,” Coldrick adds, “there’s a responsibility. The setting has to feel accurate. The tone must feel honest.”
The Greyhound Bus Terminal served as a key locale to set the narrative within downtown Chicago. Filmed at Jackson Square in Hamilton, Ontario, the location required a comprehensive transformation to represent the station circa 1970s.
Previsualization and concept work for the Greyhound Bus Station was developed by Rocket Science Head of Creative, Matthew Schofield, and team. Working directly with Production VFX Supervisor Robert Crowthers, and Coldrick, they established the look and created the newly conceived station as a 3D asset in Maya. The front of the building and the distinctive Greyhound sign were each modeled and textured individually. Digital matte painting and CG integration extended the surrounding cityscape, adding and adjusting background buildings, while reconstructing period storefronts, roads, and sidewalks across the full frame. The station needed to feel active and highly trafficked, the kind of place where someone could pass through without ever being noticed.
The environment work extended beyond the terminal to other locations central to the investigation. The Des Plaines Police Department also required subtle reconstruction through building extension and, signage work to bring the location back to its 1970s context.
Beyond street-level environments, Chicago’s elevated rail system, the L train, reinforced the city’s identity throughout the series.
The train, station, and platform were modeled as 3D assets with careful attention to beam spacing, ironwork patterns, and surface wear consistent with the era.
“The ‘L’ isn’t just background,” Coldrick notes. “It has weight. The proportions have to be right. The texture has to feel real. If it’s even slightly off, the illusion collapses.”
The series briefly departs Illinois for a 1960s flashback set at Grand View Mortuary in Las Vegas requiring a complete shift in geography.
Desert hillsides, mid-century structures, palm trees, and regional signage were integrated to establish the Nevada setting, where 2.5d digital matte painting extended the photographed location outward, reshaping the horizon and integrating heat haze to reinforce the sweltering climate. As the pressure mounts, the focus shifts to Gacy’s home in suburban Illinois.
Positioned within a middle-class neighborhood, the house is initially framed as part of a community that carried familiarity and warmth, with porch lights active, homes illuminated, as though the street carried an everyday routine. As suspicion grows, the visual treatment shifts. “Lighting subtly recedes from the surrounding houses, and the contrast deepens, leaving the Gacy residence increasingly exposed within the frame,” says Coldrick.
Previsualization and early concept development from the Rocket Science team, helped to establish how that gradual isolation would unfold across aerial and street-level views, with the surrounding neighborhood progressively falling away and attention drawn toward the Gacy residence.
The house exterior itself was replaced through 2.5d matte painting. With the property appearing across autumn, winter, and spring throughout the series, snow cover along roadways and shrubs, foliage density in surrounding trees, and grass color were all modified to reflect each season. Modern vehicles were removed across exterior shots so the location remained true to its decade, and in colder weather scenes, visible breath from actors was painted out to support seasonal continuity.
With close to 250 shots, Rocket Science VFX handled each detail with care that the production required while ensuring the work sat quietly beneath the story.
“Devil in Disguise reflects invisible visual effects in its truest form. The team effectively helped to set the story in 1970s Chicago seamlessly, says Executive VFX Producer, Christa Tazzeo. “Thank you to our collaborators, Production VFX Supervisor, Robert Crowthers and NBC Universal.”
DEVIL IN DISGUISE: JOHN WAYNE GACY is an eight-episode limited true-crime drama series that follows Lieutenant Joe Kozenczak and Detective Rafael Tovar of the Des Plaines Police Department as they uncover the remains of 32 victims and expose the systemic failures that allowed Gacy to walk freely for years.
The series is executive produced by Patrick MacManus and Kelly Funke, and produced by Littleton Road Productions, NBC News Studios, and Universal Content Productions.
Watch DEVIL IN DISGUISE: JOHN WAYNE GACY on Peacock and Apple TV in the United States and Canada.