Strange New Worlds’ high-tech sets made the cast a little space-sick

Gooding plays young cadet Uhura in Strange New Worlds and will return for the show’s second season. While she can’t yet say what stories Trekkies can expect from the new season, she did talk about getting disoriented while standing in front of the AR screen. Without being able to look into the camera itself, Gooding only had to be prepared for her artificial set to move and twirl at seemingly random intervals. It seems that filming Strange New Worlds required the actors to gain their sea legs. Gooding said:

“I think it was a total learning experience because of the technology, how it works. The wall moves to make sense for the camera angle. The wall is constantly moving and things are constantly happening. And in the beginning it was about having to “how to orientate yourself to understand that while the world may be moving, you are very still. It was almost trying to remind yourself not to get dizzy, or if there’s big movement it’s best not to try to follow it because you’re going to confuse your brain.”

A common way to mitigate or prevent true seasickness is to avoid looking at the horizon or out of windows where the sound of the sea can be seen. Whether this is a tactic that can be employed by AR-enclosed actors, Gooding has not made clear. However, she said she eventually got used to it and remembered to prepare for the more dramatic scene changes.

Eventually she got her sea legs.