Now in its seventh season, “Black Mirror” continues to evolve as one of television’s most thought-provoking and visually daring anthologies. Created by Charlie Brooker, the Netflix series once again delivers six standalone episodes that range from grounded near-futures to stylized genre experiments and psychological horror. Standouts this season include “Eulogy,” a meditative sci-fi drama built around memory reconstruction; “Bête Noire,” a chilling exploration of manipulated reality; “Hotel Reverie,” which blends noir aesthetics with questions of identity; and “USS Callister: Into Infinity,” a long-awaited sequel to one of the series most popular episodes from season four. As always, the series tackles the emotional and ethical consequences of technology with sharp, genre-bending ambition. The cast includes big names like Paul Giamatti, Rashida Jones, Awkwafina, Issa Rae, and the returning Cristin Milioti.
While Brooker’s writing and direction often take center stage, the show’s cinematic ambition would fall flat without the meticulous work behind the camera. Season seven finds itself more visually varied than ever before, requiring period authenticity, digital surrealism, and sweeping action spectacle—all unified by a singular post-production vision. That responsibility largely fell to VFX Supervisor James MacLachlan, who oversaw effects across multiple episodes, including “Eulogy,” “Hotel Reverie,” and the much-anticipated sequel “USS Callister: Into Infinity.”
MacLachlan, who previously worked on high-concept features and prestige television, brought both technical expertise and a storyteller’s instinct to the table. Having been introduced to the show through connections at Netflix and VFX producer Josie Henwood, he quickly became an indispensable part of the season’s creative execution. “As things progressed and I became more integrated, they found it hard to get rid of me,” MacLachlan joked. “So I just ended up working on more and more episodes.”
That instinct for collaboration is evident in the season’s most visually sophisticated moments. In “Eulogy,” MacLachlan helped orchestrate one of the show’s most emotional VFX sequences, where still photographs become explorable memory spaces. “We leaned into the idea that the system is estimating what the unseen sides would look like,” he explains, pointing to the way the simulation’s resolution evolves in tandem with the story’s emotional stakes. In “Hotel Reverie,” MacLachlan worked with choreographers, practical effects teams, and an on-set ironworker to literally freeze actors in mid-motion, allowing for seamless in-camera illusions. And in “Callister,” he navigated a full-blown space battle with 669 effects shots, combining game-world logic with cinematic ambition.
Heading into Emmy season, “Black Mirror” remains a perennial contender, especially in the Craft categories. This season’s ambitious scale and emotional depth could easily place several episodes in contention for visual effects, production design, and writing.
In the conversation that follows, MacLachlan enthusiastically walks Awards Focus through the technical and creative challenges of Season 7, from shooting previs with paper planes to building entire sets to simulate vintage cinema. Along the way, he offers a candid look at the problem-solving mindset behind visual effects and shares how his own creative voice emerged through the contrast between “Eulogy” and “Callister.” “That dichotomy is very me,” he says. “And I think those sequences added something meaningful to how the show was experienced.”
Awards Focus: Let’s start at the beginning. How did you first get involved with “Black Mirror”, and what did those early conversations look like?
James MacLachlan: My agent approached me about Netflix. They needed somebody who knows Dan Barrow at Netflix, and Dan was already in touch with Josie Henwood, who was the VFX producer on the previous season. Josie was brought into season seven as well. I had interviews, chatted with them, and it all went really well.
As soon as I heard it was “Black Mirror”, I was ready to give it everything because it’s a fantastic show. I really like the fact that each episode is quite different. Initially, there were discussions about how involved I would be. As things progressed and I became more integrated, they found it hard to get rid of me. So I just ended up working on more and more episodes. It was fun and really entertaining.
AF: You mentioned how different each episode is. How did that affect the workload compared to a more traditional series or even a feature film?
MacLachlan: My brain actually quite likes that. I enjoy how distinct each episode is and how they’re able to stand on their own. I found it pretty easy to bounce between them.
We had overlapping shoots, overlapping post schedules. Some episodes were finishing while others were just beginning. Apart from the first one, we were never working on just a single episode at any given time. I really enjoyed that.
AF: Did that production overlap create unique challenges in terms of continuity or supervision?
MacLachlan: Definitely. It required real coordination between departments. Charlie’s writing is very defined for each piece, and with different directors, I had to constantly recalibrate. Toby Haynes was on both the first and third episodes, “Bête Noire” and “USS Callister: Into Infinity”, so there was already an understanding of how to work with him.
As a VFX supervisor, I’m basically an interpreter. I take the creative vision and make sure it can be executed by a team of technical artists—people who are incredibly skilled at realizing those ideas. But that interpretation had to shift depending on which episode I was on, which director I was working with, and which post house we were using.
We had eight vendors across the season, so there was a lot of coordination. But I really enjoy that. I like new puzzles coming at me and figuring out the solutions. It was a lot of fun.
AF: Before we get into specific episodes, was there a guiding visual language or shared aesthetic that helped unify the season?
MacLachlan: There aren’t many physical elements that carry across every episode, but there are a few. One example is the nubbins [pointing to the side of his head where small devices are attached to intervene with the brain]. They pop up now and then. There’s also a visual language tied to immersive environments, like the milky eye effect we used in previous seasons to show when someone is experiencing a simulation or event. That was one consistent thread.
But I think the best framework Charlie gave us was how far into the future each episode is set. Whether it is five years ahead, ten, fifty, or even a hundred, that timeline shaped our approach.
AF: How did that future-setting influence the types of effects you designed?
MacLachlan: We would talk with the directors. Are there drones in this world? Can multiple people experience the same event together? How advanced is the technology when it comes to immersion? Those conversations helped set the tone for each episode.
What remained consistent was the high standard for quality. To manage that, we had to be really strategic with vendor allocation. Josie Henwood and I would sit down and assign key moments to the vendors best suited for them. Over the six episodes, we worked with eight vendors. It was like fitting together pieces of Tetris.
AF: Let’s dive into “Eulogy.” It may not have been the most VFX-heavy episode, but the scenes where we move inside the still photograph were stunning. How did you approach that?
MacLachlan: That all stemmed from (Directors) Chris Barrett and Luke Taylor. I had worked with them years ago, so I knew their creative sensibilities. They told us they wanted everyone to be still, with Paul [Giamatti] and Patsy [Ferran] able to move through the space, touch objects, and have light bounce naturally. It was important to get as much of that in camera as possible.
AF: What kinds of tools or techniques did you explore during the early development?
MacLachlan: We approached one of our vendors and said we needed to do previs. We tested whether mannequins would work. We studied how the light from the Polaroid would project and what would remain hidden on the “dark side.”
We ran lighting tests, previs, and explored different concepts. We ended up using people who could hold still. A hero light helped us set the lighting reference. Once we had a fixed nodal point, the Steadicam could move freely.
In post, we worked on shaping the dark side. Initially, it was black, but that felt too artificial—like a Photoshop cutout. Since it’s a computer simulation in the story, we leaned into the idea that the system is estimating those unseen sides. As the episode progresses, the fidelity of the simulation improves—more depth, more light leaks, more immersive textures. That evolution mirrors what Paul is going through emotionally.
AF: In “Hotel Reverie,” there’s a completely different aesthetic—a sepia-toned, old Hollywood look. How did you approach that stylistically?
MacLachlan: They used filters to get that golden, vintage tone in color. Once it went through the LUTs and final grading, it landed exactly where we wanted it.
What really interested me was the layering of film eras—early film, HD, 4K restoration, and the final version with Alex Palmer. Each layer had its own grain, blur, or clarity to cue where we were in the story. We had in-depth conversations with Haolu Wang [director], Charlie, and the DP about how to treat each of those formats.
AF: Was that commitment to era authenticity part of the reason you avoided virtual production?
MacLachlan: Absolutely. We built massive sets. The exterior of “Hotel Reverie” was mostly real. Set extensions were used sparingly—like when looking down from balconies. We debated whether to keep that lo-fi, matte-painting look or go more realistic. Since the characters were experiencing this as a real environment, we leaned toward realism.
We also had to keep actors frozen in time. An ironworker built custom armatures with plates and braces. Polly Bennett (choreographer) would freeze them mid-motion, and we’d slide in the supports. In the “Eulogy” barbecue scene, the man with the beer had an armature down his sleeve, through his clothes, and out his pant leg. That allowed us to spend less time in post freezing people, and more time on light leaks, dust, and motion blur.
AF: Let’s go back to “Callister”. The space battle sequences were a big spectacle. What was the most difficult VFX challenge there?
MacLachlan: The battles in “Callister” were the biggest technical hurdle. We had fighter jets, laser blasts, explosions, and the Heart of Infinity slicing through ships. We started with rough choreography—Tai Chi-like movements with paper planes. We filmed those on iPhones with Toby Haynes.
AF: How did you evolve that from sketches into something cinematic?
MacLachlan: We moved into full previs with Big Tooth (VFx vendor), who were fantastic. We’d edit those sequences, show them to Toby and Charlie, get feedback, and refine. That iterative problem-solving was one of the best parts of the job.
“Callister” also sits in the gaming world, so the visual language had to reflect that. There’s a massive cinematic history of space battles to pull from. Combining those references with game visuals made it a huge, demanding episode—669 VFX shots in total.
AF: Looking back on the season, what scene feels like the clearest expression of your creative voice?
MacLachlan: I’m into film. I shoot 120. So I have a soft spot for the Polaroids in “Eulogy”. That feeling of youth, of being with your friends, that whole barbecue scene—it was just beautiful. And the visual effects landed exactly where they needed to.
Or “Callister”, on the bridge. We used an LED screen instead of green screen. Real light from space played across faces and metal surfaces. That contrast—between the grainy, handheld intimacy of “Eulogy” and the sleek, hypermodern scale of “Callister”—that is very much me. And I think both moments really added to the emotional experience for the viewer.
AF: They certainly did. Those were some of my favorites, especially the “Eulogy” sequences. Such a pleasure to talk to you, James, and good luck with the rest of awards season.
MacLachlan: Thank you so much for chatting.