Sandbox Films by CIVILIAN

Sandbox Films is a dynamic studio and workspace, with interiors by Manhattan firm CIVILIAN. Located within a landmark 1920s neo-Gothic skyscraper in Manhattan’s Flatiron District, the studio encompasses a central reception area, a screening room, private and open offices and production and editing suites.

Inspired by the clients’ knack for storytelling and the grandeur of the building, CIVILIAN’s Ksenia Kagner and Nicko Elliott looked to a medley of different eras and design movements. Some inspiration touchpoints include Stockholm and Amsterdam’s early movie houses, Danish modernist designer Poul Henningsen’s architectural and chromatic gestures, and interwar New York – a tip of the hat to the project’s historic Broadway address. These references conjure images of cinematic romanticism offset by a rudimentary Dutch modernist edge, and CIVILIAN’s design response exudes exactly that.

Inspired by the clients’ knack for storytelling and the grandeur of the building, CIVILIAN’s Ksenia Kagner and Nicko Elliott looked to a medley of different eras and design movements.

For Ksenia, the project was also an opportunity to “create an elevated and layered space that supports the work Sandbox is doing to uplift documentary film talent,” she says. And while that was the primary focus, the project presented another underlying plot point: “We also felt it was important to be responsive to the changing priorities of the modern workplace, creating open, multipurpose spaces that nurture interaction and foster a sense of community.”

Sandbox hosts an active roster of screenings and events at its studio, as well as a residency program for independent filmmakers, so the space needed to function as an office as well as a gathering place and gravitational point for New York’s documentary film community. The diversity of the plan responds to this with a central reception area that doubles as an entertaining space for evening events, an Art Deco-inspired Dolby Atmos screening room with unparalleled surround sound (the only one of its kind in the city) and private offices and editing suites behind mint green acoustic sliding doors.

“We also felt it was important to be responsive to the changing priorities of the modern workplace, creating open, multipurpose spaces that nurture interaction and foster a sense of community.”

The screening room presented CIVILIAN with a design challenge unique to this brief. Working in collaboration with a team of sound engineers, Ksenia and Nicko have created a fully immersive environment with sound equipment, acoustic dampers and reverberators concealed behind a series of stretched, deep brown wool and walnut panels. Luxurious periwinkle blue lounge chairs, custom built-in table lamps by Lambert & Fils and brass sconces culminate in a tasteful yet playful cinema room that services Sandbox’s requirements with style.

There is the sense that community will be cultivated and creativity will thrive here. Layered in its influences and diverse in its utility, Sandbox Films is a refreshing interpretation of the modern workplace and a strong addition to CIVILIAN’s portfolio.

Architecture by LB Architects. Interior design and furniture design by CIVILIAN. Build by L&K Partners. Mechanical engineering by WB Engineers+Consultants. Audiovisual engineering by Spectra Audio Design Group. Acoustic engineering by WSDG. Production studio consulting by Tom Paul. Development by Cushman & Wakefield.