The Elements of Fox Network’s Sleepy Hollow

Fox Network's Sleepy Hollow Headless Horseman

What makes a great story for television? Is it the story, characters, or visual effects? Perhaps it is all three elements.

In Fox Network’s new television series Sleepy Hollow, all three elements are present. The modern twist on the old classic tale Sleepy Hollow shows Ichabod Crane (Tom Misen) as a Revolutionary Soldier that is resurrected to solve a two-hundred-year old mystery dating back to America’s origins – The Revolutionary War – and prevents the Headless Horseman (one of the Four Horseman) from starting the Apocalypse. Crane meets Abby Mills (Nicole Beharie), a police lieutenant who has a mysterious past and watched her Sheriff die at the hands of the Headless Horseman. Each week these two characters face various supernatural forces and work through mysteries that will take them closer to defeating Moloch, the Headless Horseman’s demon boss.

The audience can relate to the characters Crain and Mills. Crain is learning about modern technologies and what happened to his wife Katrina (Katia Winter). Mills discovers her family tree and strives to find her place in the world. As the series progresses, Crain and Mills realize their families’ fates have been entwined.

The visual effects enhance the Sleepy Hollow’s story, and draw the audience in. Director and executive producer Ken Olin stated, “The show is complicated because in every scene there’s either visual effects, make-up effects, stunts, or sometimes we have them all. We want our stunts to enhance scenes, not create them.” Senior Supervisor Colorist Todd Bochner uses DaVinci Resolve for the color correction that provides the mood of the show. Richard Cetrone (the Headless Horseman) wears a chromakey green hood during filming, and the hood is taken out during postproduction. Additional visual effects, make-up effects, and stunts of Sleepy Hollow are shown in the YouTube video below.

With the presence of all three elements, Sleepy Hollow maintains an audience of over three million viewers each week. The show is among the television series nominated for the American Society of Cinematographer’s Outstanding AchievementAwards. Fox Networks announced Sleepy Hollow has been picked up for a second season. Sleepy Hollow proves a great television series needs a great story, strong characters, and fabulous visual effects.