One day I woke up and realized that there are 47,000 barrels of nuclear waste that have been dumped in the Atlantic and about half of that in the Pacific. In 45 years those thousands and thousands of barrels of nuclear waste, radioactive waste will begin to leak into the ocean and begin to destroy the life chain at its source. And suddenly I realized that, although I won't be alive when it happens, my children and other people will be alive. I realized that this is the most urgent problem that faces us. Destruction of the ocean is destruction of the whales, the porpoises and the life chain itself. We are poisoning our entire life and we really must be the guardians and the caretakers of the whole biosphere. I allways thought of it as a hypothetical situation and all of a sudden it became extremely real.

"The Voight-Kampff empathy test is probably as valid a test as there is ever going to be--because it is testing for something beyond intelligence, but which is still a form of intelligence. It is sort of a higher form of intelligence, that is, a concern for other living beings. What the test really asks the replicant to demonstrate is a reciprocal concern for other life. One is concerned for the replicants and one asks in return from the replicants a concern for the lives of other creatures. The replicants are entitled to this concern but only if they themselves exhibit it.

"The purpose of this story as I saw it was that in his job of hunting and killing these replicants, Deckard becomes progressively dehumanized. At the same time, the replicants are being perceived as becoming more human. Finally, Deckard must question what he is doing, and really what is the essential difference between him and them? And, to take it one step further, who is he if there is no real difference?

The Movie

Synopsis

Blade Runner (a term borrowed from William S. Burroughs) is a Ridley Scott adaptation of the Philip K. Dick novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?. It is perhaps one of the most popular cult films ever covering territory from film noir to cyberpunk. Academy award nominated special effects glaze a story that asked the most basic of questions, "who am I".

Millions of people in recent years have colonized on other planets due to the over-population and pollution of the Earth. Those who remain behind live in huge cities with skyscrapers as high as 400 stories. A vivid street life, with its flashing neon and bizzare traffic jams, clogs the city as it's drenched by the continual rainfall.

The police maintain control through the spinner--a flying car that allows them to hover above traffic and speed to building tops, and the Esper--a super-computer that enables them to enhance video images in 3-D.

Syd Mead's design for the bustling city of the future in the year 2019.

Making Plans for BladeRunner

One of Syd Mea's early drawings for the police spinner.

Syd Mead's early design concept for the Esper machine. This futuristic computer emits a high-frequency sound as it takes verbal instructions to search for a sparkling photograph in 3-D.

Phone base and headset design by Syd Mead for Deckard's apartment.

Syd Mead's production painting of Deckard's kitchen.

Syd Mead's production painting of Deckard's one bedroom apartment was used as a reference in building the elaborate set.

Ridley Scott's drawing of Deckard's apartment, showing the influence of the spanish architect, Gaudi (1852-1926.)

The stereoscope in Sebastian's apartment is an advanced microscope designed by Syd Mead.

Syd Mead's early design concept for Deckard's gun.

StoryBoarding

Ridley Scott's storyboards of the scene at the animoid mart, where expensive, artificial animals are sold and where Deckard goes with the scale flake he's found in Leon's apartment.

Ridley Scott's storyboard of the painful scene.

Replicants

Genetic engineering has become one of the Earth's biggest industries. When most of the world's animals became extinct, the genetic boom hit big by creating a line of artificial animals for use as pets. The industry was soon supplying genetically engineered humans, called replicants, to the Earth's colonies as slave labor and to the military for use in deep space.

Tyrell Corporation, the top replicant manufacturer, recently introduced the Nexus 6 model--the "ultimate" replicant with super-human strength. These replicants, however, are virtually identical to real humans, causing a major problem.

Replicants are outlawed on Earth but some manage to return and try to pass as human. That's when the police call in the Blade Runners, special detectives who use an elaborate type of lie detector (called the Voight-Kampff) to tell the difference between humans and replicants. It is the Blade Runner's job to track down the replicants and eliminate them (termed "retiring a skin job".)

The police have recieved an emergency report--four Nexus 6 replicants have returned to Earth after taking over a space shuttle by killing its crew. The police captain sends for the one man best able to find them: Rick Deckard (HARRISON FORD), an ex-cop and expert Blade Runner.

	Replicant (M) Des: BATTY (Roy) NEXUS 6 N6MAA10816 Incept Date: 8 Jan,2016 Func: Combat, Colonization, Defense Prog. Phys: LEV.A Ment: LEV.A
	Replicant (F) Des: ZHORA NEXUS 6 NGFAB61216 Incept Date: 12 June,2016 Func: Retrained (9 Feb,2008) Police/Homicide Phys: LEV.A Ment: LEV.B
	Replicant (M) Des: LEON NEXUS 6 N6MAC41717 Incept Date: 10 April,2017 Func: Combat/Leader Phys: LEV.A Ment:LEV.C
	Replicant (F) Des: PRIS NEXUS 6 N6FAB21416 Incept Date: 14 Feb,2016 Func: Military/Leisure Phys: LEV.A Ment: LEV.B

Transportation

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