The process of going from concept to screen is paramount for every movie production, it is the period during which the end product is being conceptualized and formed.

Very rarely does the final product look exactly like what was initially conceptualized. This is, however, not the case with director Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi classic Alien.

Conceptualized by brilliant Swiss painter Hans Rudolf Giger, whose original designs for Alien are even more chilling than the film.

H.R. Giger began working on the project in 1978, strictly as a creature designer. But it soon became apparent that his abilities were such that he should be hired to do much more, he ended up working on the sets and sculpting the film’s key components.

“I actually realized during pre-production that we had a very special film on our hands? We had a huge soundstage and had it locked off for total secrecy. It was a very intense time for all, but through all of this, I found Giger to be very amusing as a person which made him great fun to work with.”

– Ridley Scott

Also working on the movie was Ron Cobb and Jean Henri Gaston “Moebius” Giraud. Ron Cobb is an American cartoonist, artist, writer, film designer, and film director. He worked on Alien before H.R. Giger came on board. Ron Cobb has since worked on many other Hollywood productions, for example, the cult film Dark Star (1973).

“Moebius” was a French comics artist who also contributed to films like Willow, The Abyss, Tron, and The Fifth Element. While H.R. Giger designed the Alien creatures, ships, and sets, Ron Cobb mainly designed ships and Moebius designed the spacesuits.