How do you make an Oscar? Get an exclusive peek behind the scenes
USA TODAY
How does a wax model become a gold Oscar statuette? USA TODAY got an exclusive tour of the place that makes Hollywood dreams come true.
ROCK TAVERN, N.Y. — It never gets old watching the Oscars on TV, especially if you're the person who made the trophy.
“You’re always trying to zoom in like, ‘Who made that one?!’ ” jokes Ivan Goodman, manufacturing manager at the UAP fine arts foundry, where the priceless statuettes have been fastidiously produced for the last decade.
“I watch the Oscars every year with my daughters and I tell them, ‘I made those at work!’ ” says craftsman Miguel Lucero, who’s tasked with coating each wax model in a ceramic shell – just one of myriad steps it takes to build the iconic hardware.
“It’s so complicated,” Lucero adds. “I think a lot of people would be surprised how long the process is to actually finish one Oscar.”
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