The attic scene in my Amazon instant Video pilot Just Add Magic plays an important part in how the main character discovers a magical cookbook.

During pre-production we gave up trying to find a real attic because of the size and labor limitations of hauling gear, crew, talent and set dressing up to a real space.

The idea was to build the attic in the driveway of the house where the interiors were filmed. The look of the attic had to be old and creepy but also feel like it was a part of the house. Big enough to shoot in but small enough to feel like the young actors are boxed in.

First was a pencil sketch to capture a vibe.Then a render to scale showing color, dressing, our main character in the space and what walls would pull.

Here is a photo I took on set. And this is the outside.The attic set was build in one day, shot the next from 8am-noon and struck by 3pm to allow for shooting in the driveway.

Fingers crossed it gets picked up. It would be nice to build this set on a sound stage. Air conditioning please.

Just Add Magic is streaming now on Amazon Prime for the winter 2015 pilot season.