USCSS ‘NOSTROMO’ (United States Cargo Star Ship)

From the 1979 Science Fiction film ‘ALIEN’.

The NOSTROMO is the main setting in Ridley Scott’s hugely influential film from 1979 ‘ALIEN’ and is a masterclass in design and cinematography. The ship, and it’s ‘working class’ crew is totally believable. Much like ‘Star Wars’ (1977) the ship has a ‘used’ quality. This works perfectly to support and add credibility to the ‘the outer space monster on the ship’ storyline.

The design and craftsmanship of the interior sets and the miniatures created to depict the giant spacecraft are exceptional, with a 12 foot model used in most shots (often moved by a concealed fork-lift truck). Hundreds plastic model kits of aircraft, ships and tanks, were ‘kit bashed’ with various parts to detail the hull.

As originally conceived the ship was yellow in colour, looking much like what you would see on Science Fiction novels of the time. Late in filming, Ridley Scott decide the ship needed to be grey and photographed with very dark shadows, all adding to the sombre mood of the film. By the hundred of end of the 1970s it seemed that all movie spaceships were grey and covered in tiny details.

Designed by Ron Cobb

Model built by Bill Pearson and Martin Bower / VFX supervised by Brian Johnson & Nick Allder